In the summer of 1932, an airplane circled over Emporia, Kansas, drawing the attention of nearly everyone below. Aviation was still new, exciting, and just a little daring—and on this particular day, Pauline Edith (Mentzer) Briles intended to be part of it. With three children at home and a life grounded in family and work, Pauline chose to take a ten-minute airplane ride that offered far more than entertainment. This “day in time” narrative explores that moment, placing Pauline within the sights, sounds, and spirit of an era when flight still felt like magic.
What follows is a glimpse into that day, imagining Pauline’s experience as she prepared to leave the ground and see her Kansas home from the sky.
A Day in the Air – Pauline Edith Briles, 1932
It was a warm day in 1932, the kind of Kansas day when the sky stretched wide and blue above Emporia. Pauline Edith (Mentzer) Briles stood outside with her thoughts pulled upward, drawn by the steady circling of an airplane overhead. Aviation was still a novelty—thrilling, a little daring, and far from ordinary life—but today, Pauline intended to experience it for herself.
At home, Pauline balanced the responsibilities of a busy household. She and her husband, Edward Osmund Briles, had been married for nearly seventeen years, and together they were raising three children: fifteen-year-old Walter, already edging toward adulthood; eight-year-old Letha, curious and energetic; and two-year-old Roberta, still firmly in the stage of needing constant care. Life was full, structured by routines, obligations, and the rhythms of family and work.
Yet on this day, Pauline allowed herself a moment that belonged entirely to her.
The airplane circling above Emporia was offering short pleasure flights—ten minutes in the air for one dollar, piloted by a licensed transport pilot. For many, it was simply entertainment. For Pauline, it was something more: a chance to step briefly beyond the familiar roles of wife, mother, and theater manager’s partner and see her world from an entirely new vantage point.
Observers later noted her intention with a mix of admiration and humor. While Edward remained firmly on the ground, Pauline looked skyward with anticipation. The plane dipped and turned above the town, its presence impossible to ignore. Below, Emporia went about its business—streets, rooftops, fields—unaware that soon one of its residents would rise above it all, if only for ten minutes.
As Pauline prepared for her ride, one can imagine her thoughts: the children she’d left behind for the afternoon, the novelty of flight, the thrill of doing something few women of her generation had experienced. This was the early 1930s, a time when technology was reshaping everyday life, and Pauline was not content merely to watch progress from the sidelines.
When the plane finally landed and lifted again with Pauline aboard, Emporia shrank beneath her. The Lyric Theatre, the streets she walked daily, the homes of neighbors—all became patterns below. For a brief span of time, she was suspended between earth and sky, carrying with her the quiet courage and curiosity that marked her life.
It was only a short ride, but it lingered as a moment of distinction—a reminder that even amid the demands of family and work, Pauline Briles was willing to embrace wonder, risk, and the promise of something new. Pauline Airplane ride
This brief airplane ride did not change the course of Pauline Briles’s life, but it reveals something important about her spirit. Amid the responsibilities of marriage, motherhood, and daily work, she made space for curiosity and courage. Moments like this—small, fleeting, and easily overlooked—add texture to our ancestors’ lives, reminding us that they, too, sought wonder and embraced new experiences when the opportunity arose.