At the time of her death in 1980, Jacqueline "Jackie" Cochran held more speed, altitude, and distance records than any other pilot, male or female, in aviation history. Her career spanned 40 years from the "Golden Age" of the 1930s as a racing pilot, throughout the turbulent years of World War II as founder and head of the Women's Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) program, into the jet age when she became the first female pilot to fly faster than the speed of sound. This donation consists of a letter dated February 19, 1976 from Cochran to Miss Jane Sullivan.

At the time of her death in 1980, Jacqueline "Jackie" Cochran held more speed, altitude, and distance records than any other pilot, male or female, in aviation history. Her career spanned 40 years from the "Golden Age" of the 1930s as a racing pilot, throughout the turbulent years of World War II as founder and head of the Women's Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) program, into the jet age when she became the first female pilot to fly faster than the speed of sound. She was a 14-time winner of the Harmon Trophy for the outstanding female pilot of the year and was accorded numerous other awards and honors in addition to the trophies she won with her flying skills.