Creating Caribbean Vacationlands: Women, Pan Am, and the Post-War Tourism LandscapePresented by the Recipient of the Dave Abrams and Gene Banning Pan Am Research Grant: Elizabeth S. Manley, Associate and Kellogg-Endowed Professor of History, Xavier University of Louisiana
Thursday, March 3, 2022 at 1 p.m. (EST)
About the PresentationJoin Elizabeth S. Manley for a presentation that will explore the role of women in Caribbean tourism development across the twentieth century using materials from the
Pan American World Airways, Inc. Records, housed in Special Collections at the University of Miami.
Manley's work for an upcoming book contributes to a growing scholarship of pan-Caribbean historical analysis by envisioning tourism development with female actors at the center of the narrative, illustrating the mechanisms that built Caribbean visions of paradise for visitors and complicating a history that grounds modern tourism as a predominantly male-constructed fantasy. Her research focuses on materials from the records that were relative to female flight attendants, travel agents, and travel journalists engaged with Pan Am and how they collectively created an imaginary representation of the Caribbean for a North American and Western European audience of potential travelers.
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About Dave Abrams and Gene Banning
After graduating from the University of Miami, Dave Abrams (1919–2005) joined Pan American Airways and worked for 42 years as a meteorologist, navigator, and Director of Flight Operations for Latin America. Abrams was instrumental in the formation of The Pan Am Historical Foundation after the company shut its doors in 1991, and he played a crucial role in finding a home for Pan Am’s archives and memorabilia.
Gene Banning (1918–2006) was one of the longest serving pilots for Pan Am. His aviation days started with the infamous flying boats in 1941 and ended with Boeing 747s in 1978. An avid researcher, Banning was a guiding member of The Pan Am Historical Foundation from its inception, and he is the author of "Airlines of Pan American since 1927."
About The Pan Am Historical Foundation and Special Collections
The
Pan Am Historical Foundation is a group dedicated to preserving the heritage of Pan American World Airways.
The
Special Collections of the University of Miami Libraries preserves and provides access to research materials focusing on the history and culture of Florida, the Caribbean, and Latin America. The Pan American World Airways, Inc. Records consists of hundreds of boxes of materials and reigns as the most avidly consulted single resource in Special Collections.
Title image: "Caribbean by Clipper" poster (modified). Created by Jean Carll for Pan American World Airways, 1954. From the Pan American World Airways, Inc. Records, courtesy of Special Collections, University of Miami Libraries, Coral Gables, Florida.