Meaning no disrespect here.... But in a most bizarre and nearly unfathomable bit of irony, isn't Tim Mellon a descendant of Amelia Earhart?
No, I am no relation.
However, she did found, with two other partners, Boston Maine Airways, a joint venture between Boston and Maine Railroad and Mane Central Railway, both of which are now subsidiaries of Pan American Railways, my company. Boston Maine Airways became Northeast Airlines (the Yellow Bird), which was eventually absorbed into Delta Airlines.
When we purchased PanAm (airlines) out of bankruptcy in 1998, we resuscitated Boston Maine Airways as a subsidiary that was not burdened with union contracts. It flew until 2007, but economics dictated terminating operations.
As I have explained elsewhere, Boston and Maine Railroad owned a large freight yard in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It has been converted into an urban development
("Northpoint"), our joint venture partners being Canyon, which is owned in part by Magic Johnson. We suggested naming two of the new streets in the development "Earhart Street" (after Amelia) and "Child Street" (after Julia Childs, the cook). Both names were accepted by the City of Cambridge.