Catherine Chatham 95, of Bryan, passed away on Thursday August 25, 2016 in Bryan. Services are in the care of Callaway-Jones Funeral and Cremation Centers.
Featured Story Wednesday August 31, 2016 from The Eagle below:
Catherine Parker Chatham, a fifth-generation Bryan native who was one of only 1,000 female pilots who served during World War II, died Aug. 25.
She was 95.
Chatham was a lifetime resident of Bryan, and her ancestors were among the first European settlers to Brazos County. While known for her community service and devotion to her church, St. Andrew’s Episcopal, during World War II she served as a WASP — or Women Airforce Service Pilot.
A previous article in The Eagle stated more than 25,000 women applied to become a trained pilot during World War II in order to transport soldiers and materials in large bomber planes across the country, but just over 1,000 successfully became pilots.
Chatham’s niece and nephew, Marshall Parker of Galveston and Candy Thompson of the Dallas area, have spent time going through boxes in Chatham’s apartment at St. Joseph Manor since her death. Among their findings have been journals of pilots logs and a medal given to her by federal leaders, including representatives Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner.
In 2010, Chatham was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the highest awards that can be given to a civilian, for her service as a WASP. Though several politicians requested to give Chatham her medal, Thompson said, she insisted it be given to her by a current female pilot.
Maj. Katherine Burkhead of the Air Force, who saw 300 hours of combat flying a B-52 plane in Afghanistan, presented her with the medal. Chatham’s funeral will be in October so that Burkhead will be able to attend.
Parker and Thompson said their aunt decided to become a WASP because she had a thirst for the adventure of flying and wanted to serve the military alongside her two brothers and then-boyfriend, Bryan photographer Roland Chatham.
“She just had the bug [for flying],” Thompson said. “Catherine was a free spirit. I think that’s why she and I are close and bonded a lot of our lives. She got into piloting because she said she had the feeling, the freedom of flying.”
Chatham served as a female civilian pilot stateside during World War II and was not honored for her service until decades later.
“She wore slacks back before women ever wore slacks,” Parker said, “[She] had a crop haircut, and was pretty independent.”
When Roland Chatham returned to Bryan after the war, he and Catherine worked side-by-side at his photography business. She indexed his photographs and flew him in her airplane over Bryan and College Station while he took aerial shots of Aggieland. The two also raced antique British race cars together, with Catherine Chatham navigating the vehicle while he drove.
The couple married in their 60s, after Roland Chatham suffered a stroke.
“My aunt always said as a joke that they decided to get married because she was pregnant,” Thompson said, “But the truth is, he was a photographer she had known and worked together with all her life in the studio, and when he had a stroke, she said she wouldn’t move in with him to take care of him unless they were married.”
The couple’s collection of photographs of Bryan and College Station is currently in storage at Cushing Library on Texas A&M’s campus. “There are a lot of preservation issues we’re working out with the collection,” said the library’s processing archivist Jeremy Brett. “… I think this will make for a great local history collection.”
Services will be at 11:30 a.m. Oct. 1 at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church. Burkhead will be speaking at the service.
“If you knew Catherine, you loved her,” Thompson said. “You couldn’t help yourself.”
It was a privilege to know Catherine and to learn from her. My life will always be richer because of Catherine. How happy I am that she is free from pain…that she is indeed free.