Ann Davison was an author and sailor. At the age of 39, she was the first woman to single-handedly sail the Atlantic Ocean. She departed Plymouth, England in her 23-foot boat Felicity Ann on May 18th, 1952.

Growing up, she was interested in horses, which led to a brief period at the London Veterinary College. She then became interested in planes and she trained as a pilot. She earned her pilot's license on February 5th, 1935.

She held a 'B' license and worked as a freelance commercial pilot flying both people and cargo. She met owner and manager of Hooton Airfield, Frank Davison, through this line of work. The couple married in 1939.

In 1949, Ann and Frank Davison attempted to sail to the Caribbean, to start a new life. They hit bad weather and battled gales in the English Channel for 19 days. Their boat crashed against rocks in southern England, leading to Frank Davison's death the following morning. Ann Davison came close to death but survived.

On 18 May 1952, Ann Davison set sail from Plymouth, England in her 23-foot boat Felicity Ann, having vowed to finish the journey she had originally set out on with her late husband.

She landed in Brittany, Portugal, Morocco, and the Canary Islands, before setting sail across the Atlantic on 20 November 1952, aiming to make land-fall in Antigua.

She eventually touched land in Dominica on January 23rd,1953.

After an extended stopover in the Caribbean, she sailed north to Florida and finally to New York by way of the Intracoastal Waterway.

Ann Davison was the author of several other autobiographical works. Her first two books Last Voyage: An Autobiographical Account of All That Led Up to an Illicit Voyage and the Outcome Thereof and Home was an Island were written and published in 1952.

Ann Davison finally settled in Florida and married Bert Billheimer, a former Miami Herald photographer. She spent her final years in relative obscurity, residing on a ranch in Lorida, Florida, where she raised exotic cats with her second husband.

Ann Davison was an adventurer with a free spirit. She is now exploring “In Heaven with the Stars.” May she rest in peace.