IN a display of daring equestrianism Sonora Carver enthralled a bygone generation by diving with her mount from a 40ft high ramp into a pond of water.

Even after being blinded when one of her plunges went wrong, she carried on with gutsy determination to thrill the crowds with her death-defying act.

Despite writing an autobiography and having the film Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken immortalise her life, Sonora lives all but forgotten in an old folks' home - until now.

Following years of study and detective work a man from Stanley is preparing to travel to the Atlantic City in the United States to meet the living legend.

Geoff Pattison, a lecturer in fine arts at Northumbria University, is a specialist in popular culture. He hopes to lift the 93-year-old from obscurity and ensure her place in popular culture history.

He said: "I'm very excited and don't know quite what to expect.

"I can imagine this blind old lady sitting in a nursing home with such a story that needs telling and remembering."

Mr Pattison learned about her while researching funfairs of the Thirties in Blackpool and the Steel Pier in Atlantic City.

He said: "I was intrigued by her. My grandfather ran the first fish and chip shop in Stanley which was pulled by a horse called Beauty - so there was the equestrian connection as well."

Mr Pattison managed to obtain a rare copy of the autobiography recounting her astonishing life.

Born in 1905, Sonora left home at the age of 19 to join Dr W F Carver's High Diving Horse Act.

A contemporary of Buffalo Bill, Carver evolved his act from a stunt in which he rode over a bridge that gave way under his horse. The horse fell into a river of water while he hung on to an upright.

In her book A Girl and Five Brave Horses, Sonora describes their unique relationship and their characters.

There was Klatwah, a ticklish horse with love of showmanship which used to wait for applause before taking the leap.

The others were Duchess of Lightening, Snow, John the Baptist and Red Lips, which had a habit of wanting to pull off Sonora's costume.

Mr Pattison said: "They were never stopped by the ASPCA because the horses loved doing it.

"The act travelled from town to town, where a ramp 40ft high was built and a hole 40ft, by 20ft and 11 ft deep dug.

"The horse galloped up a ramp and Sonora jumped on."

Tragedy struck when Red Lips dived too vertically and Sonora hit her face straight on the water, detaching her retinas. She learned to jump again and carried on, keeping her blindness secret for years.

Mr Pattison, who has been granted an audience after corresponding with Sonora and sending her gifts, said: "Her life is a testimony to human resilience and she serves as a lesson to the younger generation - not to be afraid to be different.

"I hope to record her memories for posterity."