The Founding Ledger
The original membership book of the Colorado Pilots Association
Incorporated 1972Where It All Began
In the spring of 1972, a small group of Colorado aviators gathered with a shared conviction: that the pilots of Colorado needed a unified voice. Carl Weil, an aircraft salesman at Atlas Aviation on Stapleton Field, brought together Hal B. Gamble, Betty Warner, Carl Williams, and F.W. Spagnard to incorporate the Colorado Pilots Association.
They opened a cloth-bound ledger and began writing names. The very first entry — Member #1 — was Emily Howell, a young pilot from Aurora who would go on to make aviation history the following year as the first woman hired as a pilot by a U.S. scheduled airline. The founders couldn't have known it at the time, but in that simple act of writing her name in a blank book, they were beginning a tradition that would endure for more than half a century.
Carl Weil served as the first President in 1972 and 1973, steering CPA through its formative years. Under his leadership and the energy of those early members, the organization quickly grew to some 600 members. They took on ambitious projects: playing a leadership role in designing the Denver Class B airspace, launching the Tripp Aero Fair, and building programs that would serve Colorado's general aviation community for decades.
The ledger pages that follow tell the story not of an organization, but of a community. Hundreds of pilots — from student pilots to airline captains, from weekend flyers to astronauts — signed their names in this book. Each entry represents someone who believed that Colorado aviation was worth protecting, promoting, and celebrating together.
The First Ten
Signed March 10, 1972 — the day it all started
Emily Howell
Listed in the ledger as the very first member of CPA. In 1973, Emily Howell Warner made history when Frontier Airlines hired her as the first female pilot at a U.S. scheduled airline. She later became the first woman to earn the rank of airline captain. A true Colorado aviation legend.
R.W. Spagnard
One of the five who signed the incorporation papers and helped bring CPA into existence.
Carl Weil
The driving force behind CPA's founding. An aircraft salesman at Atlas Aviation on Stapleton Field, Carl brought the incorporators together and served as the organization's first President for two years.
Hal B. Gamble
Signed the incorporation papers alongside Carl Weil. One of the five who made CPA a reality.
Carl Williams
One of the five original incorporators who helped establish the voice of general aviation in Colorado.
Clyde Hudson
Among the first to join CPA after its incorporation.
Hugh B. Suttle
An early member from Littleton who helped build CPA's foundation.
J. Fred Miller
Joined through AutoWest on Stout Street in Denver.
Raymond Adams
An early member from Denver's University Boulevard corridor.
Robert C. Barnes
Joined from the Applewood Knolls neighborhood in Lakewood.
Names That Made History
Remarkable people found within the ledger's pages
Jack Swigert
Command Module Pilot on the harrowing Apollo 13 mission in 1970. A native Denverite, Swigert was awarded a complimentary CPA membership in 1978. He was later elected to the U.S. House representing Colorado but passed away before taking office.
Patricia Schroeder
Served Colorado's 1st Congressional District for 24 years (1973–1997). One of the most influential Colorado political figures of the 20th century and a supporter of the state's aviation community.
Sen. Peter Dominick
Served as United States Senator from Colorado from 1963 to 1975. An advocate for aviation interests and an early supporter of CPA's mission.
Vern Foster
Joined from Arvada in CPA's founding year. Vern's 1997 letter to fellow members preserved crucial details about the organization's origins that might otherwise have been lost to time.
Stormy Rottman
A well-known name in Colorado aviation circles and a valued CPA member.
Elna Ruberg
Among the early members who helped CPA grow in its first year. Her entry in the ledger, Member #97, shows how quickly the organization attracted Colorado pilots.
Lee Larson
Noted in the ledger as a member of significance. Found on page 139 of the original ledger.
The Original Ledger
What follows are photographs of every page of the original CPA membership book — the handwritten record of the hundreds of pilots who built this organization. Each entry includes a name, an address, a phone number, and often a pilot certificate number and aircraft type. Together, they form an irreplaceable record of Colorado's general aviation community.
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More than fifty years later, the Colorado Pilots Association continues the work these founders began — protecting, promoting, and celebrating general aviation in Colorado. Every current member stands on the shoulders of the people in this ledger.
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