Amelia Earhart was born in 1897 in Kansas and grew up loving the outdoors. She took her first flight in 1920 and knew immediately that she had to learn to fly. Earhart graduated from high school in 1916 and worked to become a pilot. In 1928, she broke off an engagement and later married publisher George Putnam in 1931. In 1937, Earhart embarked on a planned round-the-world flight with navigator Fred Noonan but disappeared over the Pacific Ocean near Howland Island on July 2nd during the final leg of the journey. Some rumors persisted that she survived but there is no conclusive evidence to confirm this.