Florence Leontine Lowe was born on July 29, 1901, in Pasadena. Through an arranged marriage in 1921, she became the wife of minister Rankin Barnes, and she ended the relationship a few years after bearing a son, Billy. She acquired the nickname "Pancho" on a trip to Mexico in 1927 and, after her solo flight in 1928, returned to buy her first airplane. She began performing stunts in airshows and movies, then won races and broke speed records. Pancho formed the Woman's Air Reserve and the Motion Picture Stunt Pilot Assoc. In 1935, she bought 80 acres of land nearby and established the Happy Bottom Riding Club, a ranch, bar, and civilian pilot's school that became the unofficial de-briefing room for pilots and engineers from the nearby flight testing center. Pancho and her fourth husband, Gene McKendry, bought this property in 1958. She later toured the world as a lecturer and was honored by the Air Force and aviation organizations. In 1975, her heart failed at her home in Boron, where she died.