Adeline Gray

Adeline Gray, married names Johnson and Graf, (1915/16 – September 27, 1975) was an early American parachutist. She is thought to have been one of the only female parachutists in the United States before the 1940s. Gray received her parachuting license at the age of 19 and afterwards appeared as part of a stunt parachuting team in barnstorming shows. She was also a licensed pilot by 21. Gray later worked as a parachute rigger and tester for DuPont and on June 6, 1942, became the first person to jump with a nylon parachute. Gray became moderately famous for this and appeared in advertisements for Camel cigarettes.

Parachutist Adeline Gray was born in 1915 or 1916 and grew up in Oxford, Connecticut. Gray began making parachute jumps in 1935, at the age of 19, and became the first licensed female parachutist in Connecticut. Media reports from the time remarked on Gray's calm demeanor before the test, which was her 33rd parachute jump. The jump was broadcast live on Hartford radio station WTIC.

The test was witnessed by 50 senior military officials and led to the widescale use of nylon for parachutes. Gray later married again, to August Graf. She had a son, Glenn Johnson, and two daughters, Keni Cummings and Joyce Harrington. Gray died in Naugatuck, Connecticut on September 27, 1975, at the age of 59. Her death followed a brief period of illness.