Adorable Story #159: Eva Dickson

Eva Dickson: I shall drive from here in Nairobi to Stockholm.

Swedish Gentleman: The wager is accepted.

Before the age of thirty‑five, Eva Dickson had flown airplanes, raced automobiles under a man’s name, wagered on her own endurance, and driven across some of the world’s most unforgiving terrains.

Born into Swedish aristocracy but restless to live within the rules of the time, she traded the comforts of her home for the road. In an era that prescribed stillness for women of her class, she chose velocity.

This is the story of a life lived forward, toward risk, and the next horizon.

Table of Contents: Early Years / Education / Career / Personal Life / The Silk Road Dream

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Eva Amalia Maria Lindström was born on March 8th, 1905 at Steninge Slott in Sigtuna, Sweden (1 hour north of Stockholm).

Her father, Albert Lindström, was a respected hippologist who later became director-in-chief of Sweden’s national stud authority.

Her mother, Maria “Mille” Lindström, took care of the family which remained confidently within Stockholm’s upper tier.

Eva had an older brother: Åke.

When she was two, the family left Steninge for Ljungs Slott, a beautiful Swedish castle outside Linköping (just 2 hours by car from Stockholm). She spent her formative childhood years surrounded by horses, estate routines, and the quiet discipline of country life.

In 1916 they finally relocated to Stockholm after her father accepted his national appointment.

Stockholm society noticed her early: from a young age, Eva was an excellent horseback rider.

Eva and her brother were initially educated at home by a governess. Later she attended the Brummer School (Brummerska skolan) and then the Anna Sandström school in Stockholm.

Her true education, however, unfolded in mechanical form.

On July 1st, 1923, she received her pilot’s licence, becoming one of Sweden’s earliest licensed female aviators (according to Swedish records, she was most probably the third woman getting a pilot license in Sweden).