Margery Durant

Margery Pitt Durant (May 24, 1887 – February 3, 1969) was the daughter of businessman and General Motors founder, Billy Durant. She was notable for authoring a book about her father, her contributions to increasing travel abroad via aviation, photographing her aviation adventures, and for being a socialite. Early life Margery Pitt Durant was born on May 24, 1887, in the city of Flint, Michigan. She was the daughter of William Crapo Durant and Clara Miller Pitt Durant. Growing up, Durant attended schools in Michigan, New York, and Washington D.C. My Father In 1929, Durant published My Father, the book about her father William Crapo Durant. He was still alive at age 65 when the book was released. In the opening of the book, she wrote of her first "horseless carriage" ride. Upon her return, her father, the future founder of General Motors said, "Margery, how could you - how could you be so foolish to risk your life in one of those things." Margery wrote about her father with anecdotes from him, but a lot was written through her viewpoint. Aviation In the early thirties, Durant advocated for private aviation. Amelia Earhart gave her the name of a reputable pilot who assisted her in learning to fly. She later bought her own airplane, a Lockheed Vega. In 1931 Durant had her aircraft transported across the Atlantic aboard the ocean liner S.S. Hamburg so she could fly over different countries in Europe and Africa. While there, she took a number of photographs of her travels which are occasionally displayed today.