INVENTOR

Richard Pearse

1877 - 1953

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Richard William Pearse (3 December 1877 – 29 July 1953) was a New Zealand farmer and inventor who performed pioneering aviation experiments. Witnesses interviewed many years afterwards describe observing Pearse flying and landing a powered heavier-than-air machine on 31 March 1903, nine months before the Wright brothers flew. Ambiguous statements made by Pearse himself make it difficult to date the aviation experiments with certainty. In a newspaper interview in 1909, with respect to inventing a flying machine, he said "I did not attempt anything practical with the idea until 1904". Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in 18 different languages on Wikipedia. Richard Pearse is the 417th most popular inventor (down from 406th in 2024), the 143rd most popular biography from New Zealand (down from 110th in 2019) and the most popular New Zealander Inventor.

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Among INVENTORS

Among inventors, Richard Pearse ranks 417 out of 426. Before him are Charles F. Kettering, Arunachalam Muruganantham, Arthur Fry, Walter Frederick Morrison, Sarah E. Goode, and Frank Hornby. After him are David Hahn, Curt O. Schaller, Shiva Ayyadurai, Boyan Slat, Jarkko Oikarinen, and Jack Andraka.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1877, Richard Pearse ranks 197. Before him are Montagu Love, Georges Johin, Gian Giorgio Trissino, Robert F. Wagner, Edward Barrett, and Clarence McKerrow. After him is Carl Hayden. Among people deceased in 1953, Richard Pearse ranks 198. Before him are Roland Young, Alex James, George Barnes, Robert F. Wagner, William Farnum, and Asaf Ali. After him is Alexander Zelenko.

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In New Zealand

Among people born in New Zealand, Richard Pearse ranks 143 out of 303. Before him are Jerry Mateparae (1954), Michael Hardie Boys (1931), Ray Sefo (1971), Chris Rankin (1983), Tony Shelly (1937), and Grant Bramwell (1961). After him are Chris Harris (null), Ivan Vicelich (1976), Archie Thompson (1978), Lisa Chappell (1968), Whina Cooper (1895), and Marilyn Waring (1952).

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Among INVENTORS In New Zealand

Among inventors born in New Zealand, Richard Pearse ranks 1. 

New Zealander born Inventors

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