Irene Craigmile Bolam (born Irene Madalaine O'Crowley; October 1, 1904 – July 7, 1982) was an American banker and resident of

Monroe Township, Middlesex County, New Jersey Monroe Township is a township located in southern Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is centrally located within the Raritan Valley region and is an outer-ring suburb of New York City within the New York metropol ...

. In 1970, a book that she discredited set forth an allegation that she was

Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( ; July 24, 1897 – January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer. On July 2, 1937, she disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to become the first female pilot to circumnavigate the world. During her li ...

. Bolam took legal action against the publisher (McGraw Hill), resulting in the book being withdrawnStrippel 1995, p. 52. although it has since gone back on the market.

Amelia Earhart theory

In 1965, Joseph Gervais received an invitation to speak at a retired pilots' gathering, where one of Amelia Earhart's friends, Viola Gentry, introduced him to Mrs. Bolam. Gervais thought he recognized her as Amelia Earhart and commenced to research her past. Gervais and author Joe Klaas documented his position in the book ''Amelia Earhart Lives'' (1970). Bolam denied being Earhart, filed a lawsuit and submitted an

affidavit An ( ; Medieval Latin for "he has declared under oath") is a written statement voluntarily made by an ''affiant'' or ''deposition (law), deponent'' under an oath or affirmation which is administered by a person who is authorized to do so by la ...

refuting the claim. Bolam's personal life history has since been thoroughly documented, eliminating any possibility she was Earhart. The evidence presented in the affidavit included her 1937 private pilot's license and marriage certificate. Born Irene Madalaine O'Crowley, she married Charles Craigmile, and after his death, married Alvin Heller in 1933. They had a son in 1934 named Clarence Alvin Heller, but their marriage was annulled in 1940. She married Guy Bolam in 1958. On her death, Gervais sought permission to photograph and fingerprint the body. Permission was denied. After ''Amelia Earhart Lives'', three additional books were published claiming that Bolam and Earhart were one and the same. They are ''Stand By To Die'' by Robert Myers and Barbara Wiley (1985), ''Amelia Earhart Survived'' by Colonel Rollin C. Reineck (2003), and ''Amelia Earhart: Beyond the Grave'' by W. C. Jameson (2016)."New book claims Amelia Earhart was taken prisoner by Japanese during WWII."
''Fox News'', December 30, 2015. Retrieved: January 5, 2016.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Glines, C.V. "'Lady Lindy': The Remarkable Life of Amelia Earhart." ''Aviation History'', July 1997. * Goldstein, Donald M. and Katherine V. Dillon. ''Amelia: The Centennial Biography of an Aviation Pioneer''. Washington, DC: Brassey's, 1997. . * Hoverstein, Paul. "An American Obsession". ''Air & Space Smithsonian'', Vol. 22, No. 2, June/July 2007. * Klaas, Joe. ''Amelia Earhart Lives''. New York: McGraw–Hill Book Co., 1970. . * Strippel, Richard G. ''Amelia Earhart: The Myth and the Reality''. New York: Exposition Press, 1972. . * Strippel, Richard G. "Researching Amelia: A Detailed Summary for the Serious Researcher into the Disappearance of Amelia Earhart." ''Air Classics'', Vol. 31, No. 11, November 1995.

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bolam, Irene Craigmile 1904 births 1982 deaths People from Monroe Township, Middlesex County, New Jersey American bankers Amelia Earhart American women bankers 20th-century American businesswomen 20th-century American businesspeople