Balloons...Who Knew pt.2

I have finished Richard Holmes book Falling Upwards and I must say, I really enjoyed it! For my second post on the fascinating subject of balloons I am going to be looking at the role of women in ballooning near the end of the nineteenth century.

Apparently, as ballooning became more established in Europe, particularly France and Britain, people began to be bored of a simple balloon just floating in the air. What was once a marvel became mundane, so people began to push the envelope for what could be done with these floating sacks of hydrogen gas. In Britain, the aerial champagne culture produced an avenue for women to begin the risqué tradition that was already popular in France; the spectacular and dangerous parachuting, trapeze and acrobatic performances by female aeronauts. This was the fin de siècle of ballooning. Female aeronauts began to frequent fairs and festivals, executing acrobatics while floating in the air

Fanny Godard sitting in her balloon

and releasing aerial fireworks displays. What began with Sophie Blanchard, continued and to a greater extent. Some of the most famous names in Britain were Maude Brooke, Cissy Kent and Marie Merton and Fanny Godard. As was the case with the male balloonists, the threat of injury was always great, and these women had to be careful.

One of the most famous Edwardian balloon girl was twenty one year old Dolly Shepherd. Much like Sophie Blanchard, she was fearless and regularly pushed the limits of safety to achieve a good show. Her biggest trick was truly terrifying. She would climb several thousand feet in her balloon hanging from a trapeze beneath. When she reached her desired height she would pull a special release cord and be dropped to the earth by parachute. In addition to this terrifying stunt, she was made famous by her costume which was very scandalous for the time! She was dressed in a blue trouser flying suit with a little cap placed on her head and tight lace up boots that showed off her legs. Unsurprisingly she had many male admirers, and offers of marriage, but more significantly she had a large following amongst young working class women, and she was regarded as a potent figure in women's rights. Dolly's greatest scare happened in 1908 when she ascended with a twin parachute

Dolly Shepherd in her risqué flying suit

harness with her friend Louie May. Louie's harness failed to release her when they went to drop, so Dolly had to transfer her friend to her own trapeze while thousands of feet in the air and still attached to the balloon. She managed to hook Louie up to her harness, and the two of them reached the ground safely with one parachute. Louie was unhurt, but Dolly suffered a spinal injury which left her temporarily paralyzed, and in a wheelchair for several weeks. After she recovered she returned and performed for several more years.

Severe injuries such as this were an expected part of the job as ballooning became part of the festival circuit. Displays and presentations had to become more daring to attract crowds, but this also placed the acrobats in a great amount of danger. According to Dolly most of the parachutists that she worked with eventually just disappeared, be it because of an injury that prevented them from jumping anymore, or sometimes because they did not survive. These risks were increased because there were no regulations or licensing for these kinds of displays and no insurance on the lives of the performers. It was not until the First World War that these festival demonstrations stopped. These young performers were the last representatives of the great nineteenth century tradition of ballooning as entertainment in Europe and marked the end of a glorious and dangerous era.