Bessie Stringfield

Bessie Stringfield (1911–1993), nicknamed "The Motorcycle Queen of Miami", was the first African-American woman to ride across the United States solo, and during World War II she served as one of the few motorcycle despatch riders for the United States military.
Credited with breaking down barriers for both women and African American motorcyclists, Stringfield was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame.; the award bestowed by the American Motorcyclist Association for 'Superior Achievement by a Female Motorcyclist' is named in her honor.
Biography
Stringfield was born in Kingston, Jamaica in 1911, but her parents migrated to Boston when she was still young. Her parents died when Stringfield was five and she was adopted and raised by an Irish woman.
At the age of sixteen Stringfield taught herself to ride her first motorcycle, a 1928 Indian Scout. At the age of nineteen she commenced traveling across the United States and eventually rode through...