Dorothy Binney Putnam

Dorothy Binney Palmer ( Binney; July 20, 1888 – May 9, 1982) was an American explorer, socialite, and friend to Amelia Earhart.

Early life Palmer, born Dorothy Binney on July 20, 1888, the manufacturer known for Binney & Smith company which produced Crayola crayons. Growing up she was known as Dorfry to her friends and family, and she was a championship swimmer. Palmer went to Wellesley College where she participated in plays such as "The Tempest", "Trail of Lonesome Pine", and "Princess Far Away", Palmer was also an athlete who rowed crew. She graduated from Wellesley College in 1910.

After her sophomore year in college, she met George P. Putnam in 1908 who was leading a climbing trip up Mount Whitney with the Sierra Mountain Club; after the hiking trip they had an "understanding" about their plan to marry. They announced their engagement in 1910, and she married Putnam and became Dorothy Binney Putnam on October 26, 1911, in a wedding held at her parents' house in Sound Beach, Connecticut.

Life with George Putnam In 1911, Dorothy Binney Putnam and George Putnam had a house built in Bend, Oregon. The house, known as Pinelyn, was added to the United States' National Register of Historic Places in 1998.

Dorothy and George arrived in Bend, Oregon in February 1912 a honeymoon that had taken them to New York, Central America, San Francisco, and Portland. Their new house, Pinelyn, was 2800 square feet, cost more than $4000 to build, and by 1913 had an added tennis court. While they lived in Bend, George Putnam sold lots on the Bend riverfront and named the resulting road Dohema Road after the three Binney sisters: Dorothy, Helen, Mary. She was known for her work in the suffrage movement and encouraging other women to help pass the laws needed to allow women the right to vote.

On December 3, 1912, she cast her vote in Oregon, the second woman allowed to do so after the Governor's wife had cast the first vote. They remained in Bend until 1914 when they moved to Salem, Oregon while her husband George was secretary to James Withycombe. where they built a house without blueprints which included a jungle-themed guest room painted by the artist Isabel Cooper. Her second child, George Palmer Putnam, was born May 9, 1921. which is about Oregon and has a character based on Dorothy.

Voyages: Arcturus expedition and sailing on the Effie M. Morrissey In 1925, Dorothy Putnam and her twelve-year-old son David Putnam joined one leg of the Arcturus expedition that was being led by William Beebe. She was one of six women and twelve men on the voyage to the Galápagos Islands. Her name later appeared in the book 'Florida women of distinction' for outstanding achievements because of her participation in this journey. She was described as a "fun-loving woman" who organized activities such as games and charades with the group on the boat. During the expedition, she helped with the identification of fish, and made sure she knew all about venomous and non-venomous snakes so that she could differentiate between them. Her son David wrote a book about the trip with Beebe and the book, David Goes Voyaging, was the first in the series published by George Putnam in which boys wrote about their adventures. In the book, David describes playing like a pirate during the voyage, going to different islands, crossing the equator, and investigating animals. George Putnam had sent Beebe a letter indicating he wanted David to do a book because there was benefit in publishing such a book,

In 1926, George Putnam took their son David on an expedition on the Effie M. Morrissey that was led by Robert Bartlett and headed to the east coast of Greenland. and there are photos of her, George, and David in the archives of the Hagley Museum and Library. David also wrote a book about this trip, David Goes to Greenland, and dedicated the book "To my best friend who really should have gone to Greenland, mother". and Dorothy and Earhart flew together in Earhart's Avro Avian plane. In June 1928 Earhart became the first woman to fly, as a passenger, across the Atlantic. After Earhart returned to the United States she stayed with Dorothy and George in their house while writing her book, 20 Hrs. 40 Min.

Dorothy was also interested in aviation and in July 1929, Dorothy Putnam, Amelia Earhart, Dan Schaeffer, Betty Brainerd, Anne Lindbergh, and Charles Lindbergh were the first people to fly across the United States as passengers in a plane. Dorothy Putnam joined the group at the invitation of Earhart. and left for Reno to establish residence, and then filed for divorce under a 'failure to provide'. The newspapers noted that she made no request for alimony given her own status as wealthy. They were divorced by later in 1929 A 1929 article in the Daily News noted that it was not clear if George Putnam's travels on the Morrissey played a role in their divorce.

On January 12, 1930, she married a decorated World War I veteran, Frank Monroe Upton, in the West Indies and became Dorothy Binney Upton. By November 1930, George Putnam and Amelia Earhart had a marriage license, though Earhart denied the wedding took place; in February 1931 Earhart and George Putnam were married. Dorothy subsequently built a house in Fort Pierce, Florida that would come to be known as Immokolee which is listed on the United States' National Register of Historic Places. Immokolee had a large pool which Dorothy would open up for meals and swimming to Navy men during World War II.

In her diaries Dorothy discussed Upton's drinking and poor behavior towards her which ultimately led to their divorce. Her sister Mary Binney had married Jim Davey in 1916, and while her sister died in 1937, Dorothy remained friends with her brother-in-law. She bought property from him and he built a cabin that was first called "Sundown Cabin". Sundown Cabin was known for its views from the porch. but by 2020 the cabin was in the news because of its deterioration.

Marriage to Don Blanding She was first introduced to the artist and poet Don Blanding in 1912 while she was still married to George Putnam. Blanding visited Rye, New York and invited Dorothy and George to Hawaii, a trip Dorothy took in 1928. Blanding's Floridays poem is dedicated to Dorothy. which she later wrote about in African Overtones, a collection of newspaper articles about the trip. and Immokolee accumulated items from her travels. Palmer was also a writer who wrote stories about her travels

While in Florida, she helped organize the Fort Pierce Garden Club in St. Lucie in 1931, She also managed an 80-acre orange grove,

Palmer died sitting with her son David when she was 93 years old. Upon her death, the local newspaper printed two articles sharing details of her life. which was reviewed by The New York Times''.