Earle Ovington

Earle Lewis Ovington (December 20, 1879 – July 21, 1936) was an American aeronautical engineer, aviator and inventor, and served as a lab assistant to Thomas Edison.

Ovington piloted the first official airmail flight in the United States in a Blériot XI on September 23, 1911.

He circled at 500 feet and tossed the bag over the side of the cockpit and the sack burst on impact, scattering letters and postcards.

[5][6] He married Adelaide in 1911 and they had two children: Earle Kester Ovington (1912–2006) and Audrey Ovington (1914-2005)[7][8] He built a house in the Samarkand area of Santa Barbara, California, which included an airstrip.

While this airstrip wasn't the ultimate site of the Santa Barbara Municipal Airfield, it did serve in that capacity until Ovington's death.