When more than 1,300 people packed into The Ebell of Los Angeles on April 7, 1937, to listen to a lecture by aviation icon Amelia Earhart, no one could have known it would be one of her last talks.

The caption for the archived photo read: Mrs. Lynn Wightman, curator of the art and travel section of Ebell Club, Dr. Renato Longobardi and Miss Amelia Earhart, right, were topliners on the Aviation Day program at the club this week. Miss Earhart told of her recent flight to Hawaii.

On March 30 at 11:30 a.m., The Ebell will host “Women Take Wing”, an event examining women pilots including Earhart, with speaker aviation author Barbara Schultz.

The Ebell’s ties to Earhart were rumored for many years, members said.

“At the club … it was legend,” said Kay Lachter, curator of The Ebell’s archives.

Approximately four years ago, members hired an archivist to organize all of The Ebell’s scrapbooks and history. It had been so long, and there was never any definitive proof of Earhart’s visit, Lachter said. Many in the organization began to believe it didn’t happen. Some wondered if a movie about Earhart was filmed there instead of the pilot actually visiting. Then the archivist came up with several newspaper clippings from the Los Angeles Times and the Los Angeles Evening Herald.

“It probably was one of the first things we found [during the archiving sessions], because [the archivist] knew how interested we were,” Lachter said. “We were all just fascinated that this was actually true and there was a picture to prove it.”

According to the articles, Earhart came to The Ebell shortly after an infamous crash in Honolulu. Bad weather was predicted for the flight, so Earhart said she overloaded the plane with fuel, which forced a crash landing.

“It was a heartbreaking disappointment to have to return but it was far worse to injure my beautiful plane,” she said in the Los Angeles Times article. “It was like hurting a friend.”

Earhart would disappear on June 2, 1937 over the central Pacific Ocean during an attempt to circumnavigate the world. Previously, she had been the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean.

“It was interesting to look back because apparently aviation was really big and people were really, really interested,” Lachter said. “[The Ebell] had several programs on Lindberg and other aviators. Apparently this was something they were mining, this general interest by the community in aviation. They took that to heart and had great speakers come and talk about it.”

The Ebell has taken great pride in the Earhart visit, especially since confirming it.

“The Ebell is really, really fascinated that she was here,” Lachter said. “Whenever we give tours of the building or talk to new prospective members that’s one of the high points. She’s among a number of people of interest, and she is very important.”

During Women Take Wing, Schultz will be drawing from “Endorsed by Earhart: How Amelia Financed Her Flying”, which is one of several books she has written related to aviatrixes.

Schultz said the contributions of aviatrixes were immense back in the 1920s and 1930s, and not only the efforts of Earhart. The author will also touch on the careers of Juanita Burns, Gladys O’Donnell, Clema Granger, Bobbi Trout and Pancho Barnes.

“I think it was a collective effort, only [Earhart] garnered more attention because of who she was,” Schultz said.

The author became a pilot in 1978 and she and her husband established their own airport in the Antelope Valley, where they still live. She also runs the Plane Mercantile, which features vintage aviation items. Specifically, Schultz’ book on Earhart examines the endorsements that Earhart received.

“In order for her to fly, she needed to have an income, so she endorsed products during the 1930s,” Schultz said.

Her endorsements included airlines, automobiles, chocolate, luggage and a fashion line.

Schultz added that it was important for women like Earhart and Barnes to be out in the public and flying, which reduced community skepticism of men flying planes.

“She showed the safety of it all just by the fact that she was able to fly,” Schultz said. “And a great deal of aviatrixes were doing that, as well.”

The luncheon is part of The Ebell’s celebration of National Women’s History Month. Tickets to the luncheon are $30. The Ebell of Los Angeles is located at 743 Lucerne Ave.