Notable people · Inventor · Aviation · Parachutist
James Floyd Smith
Floyd Smith, a former trapeze artist and aviator from Illinois, joined the Army's parachute team at McCook Field, Dayton, in 1918. His Type A back-pack ripcord parachute was used for Leslie Irvin's April 28, 1919 jump and he patented it in 1920. A specimen is at the National Museum of the USAF in Dayton.
At a glance
- Born
- 1884-10-17
- Died
- 1956-04-18
- Education
- Public schools in Oregon and California
- Known as
- Inventor, Aviation, Parachutist
- Organizations
- Army Air Service (McCook Field)
Life story
Floyd Smith was born in Geneseo, Illinois, in 1884 and grew up in Union, Oregon. He worked as a cowboy, machinist and trapeze artist before learning to fly.
He soloed in his own hand-built plane in 1912 and later worked as a mechanic and test pilot for Glenn L. Martin. In 1916 he set three altitude records.
His wife's near-fatal parachute accident in 1914 pushed him toward safer designs. He developed the first backpack free-fall ripcord parachute, patented in May 1920.
The Army paid him $3,500 for the patent, which passed to the Irving Air Chute Company. He co-founded Pioneer Parachute in 1938 and Smith Parachute in San Diego in 1947, and died in San Diego in 1956.
Timeline
- 1884-10-17: Born (Geneseo, IL) source
- 1907-05-11: Marries Hilder Youngberg ((not stated)) source
- 1912-06-01: Solos his hand-built aircraft ((not stated)) source
- 1914: Wife's near-fatal parachute accident ((not stated)) source
- 1916: Aero Club of America Medal of Merit for altitude records (United States) source
- 1918: Joins Army parachute team at McCook Field (existing record) (Dayton, OH) source
- 1920-05: Parachute patent (United States) source
- 1938: Co-founds Pioneer Parachute Co. (Connecticut) source
- 1947: Founds Smith Parachute Co. with son Prevost (San Diego, CA) source
- 1956-04-18: Dies (San Diego, CA) source
What James is known for
- Designed the first practical back-pack, ripcord free-fall parachute (McCook Field, 1919)
- Backpack free-fall ripcord parachute, patent May 1920
- 33 patents in all
- Pioneer Parachute Company; Smith Parachute Company
Inventions and firsts
Honors and things named for them
- Aero Club of America Medal of Merit (1916)
- Don Beck Memorial Achievement Award, Parachute Industry Association (2009)
- Buried at Portal of Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation
Family
- wife: Hilder Florentina Youngberg
- son: Prevost Smith
- son: Sylvester Smith
- colleague: Leslie Irvin
Ohio places
Where James Floyd Smith was born, lived, worked and is remembered, with the ZIP code, town and county pages for each.
- Worked: Dayton, Montgomery County (McCook Field) ZIP 45402 · Dayton · Montgomery County
Further reading
Sources
Confidence. High: the main facts were confirmed in sources we opened.
- James Floyd Smith (Wikipedia) life, patent, honors