Marion Link
Portrait of Marion Clayton Link
Link's Cessna plane may have been one of the most fortuitous purchases of his life. He had just begun his foray into the pilot-training business when the country plunged into the Great Depression. Like millions of others, Link struggled to remain afloat by chartering flights, conducting dangerous aerial surveys, and advertising products through his newly-invented "sky-sign." And yet, despite the many instances of uncertainty and desperation, Ed was never alone.
Marion Clayton and Ed Link met on a blind date in 1929. By that time, Marion had graduated from Syracuse University's journalism school and was writing for the local Binghamton Press. As they began to date in earnest, Marion flew frequently with Ed in the Cessna and eventually helped organize the instructional materials that would become pivotal to the operation of the yet-unformed Link Flying School.
Marion Clayton Link leaning out of Ed Link's Cessna plane
Marion and Ed were married on June 6th, 1931. Marion's writing skills and Link’s affinity for invention and adventure complemented each other well. Throughout the Depression, the ups and downs of Link’s companies, and all the projects beyond, Marion was an essential participant, chronicler, and active community member in their lives. While they would travel the world and soon raise two boys of their own, William and Clayton, Marion was also an adventurer in her own right, and had her various articles and books published by National Geographic and the Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press alongside Ed's own research.
Ed Link and his dog, Patrick Henry. Marion included this picture in her article about Ed and his "air-minded dog" for the Binghamton Press
Marion had many works published, including this book, "Windows in the Sea," published by the Smithsonian Institution Press in 1973.
Marion and Ed diving together