| Notes |
- Three Claim Charles A. Lindbergh As Parent Fri Aug 1, 8:40 PM ET
By MELISSA EDDY, Associated Press Writer
FRANKFURT, Germany - Three children of a German hat-maker claimtheirfather was Charles A. Lindbergh, citing excerpts from more than100letters the famous pilot purportedly wrote their mother from 1957to1974.
In Saturday's edition of the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily, thethreedescribed Lindbergh as a dedicated, although infrequent, fatherwhoregaled them with stories of his African adventures during visitstotheir Munich home.
Dyrk and David Hesshaimer and their sister, Astrid Bouteuil, offerednoconcrete proof.
A member of the Lindbergh family, contacted by Marlene White,executivedirector of the Anoka, Minnesota-based Lindbergh Foundation,declined tocomment on the report.
"These kind of things surface periodically," White said.
Lindbergh made his groundbreaking solo and nonstop flight acrosstheAtlantic in 1927. He and his wife, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, hadsixchildren. The oldest, Charles Jr., was kidnapped and murdered in1932 at20 months of age.
In the final decades of his life, the pilot roamed the globe, onlyrarelyvisiting his Connecticut home.
It was during this time, beginning in 1957, that the HesshaimersclaimLindbergh met their mother, Brigitte, a Munich hatmaker.
"It was a very close, very warm relationship," recalled Dyrk, theoldestof the three.
A. Scott Berg, who wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winningbiography,"Lindbergh," cast doubt on the claim. He said that while thetimeframe ofthe purported relationship seemed possible, "it's aninconsistency withhis character."
Only rarely in the 112 letters does the author speak as the father ofthechildren. The newspaper reported his response to photos Brigittesent himof her first-born.
"Isn't he a wonderful baby? And of course, you are to be givengreatcredit for it," read one letter. "Although, I also deserve a bit.Youwouldn't have been able to do it alone."
The children said their mother threatened to cut off contactwithLindbergh if their secret became known. It wasn't until two yearsafterher death, the newspaper said, that they decided to go public.
The newspaper said the handwriting in the letters was found tomatchLindbergh's. It did not say who analyzed the letters.
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1902 - 1974 (72 years)
