Edward Bayard Heath (November 17, 1888 – November 1, 1931) was an American Aircraft engineer.
Biography
He was born on November 17, 1888 in
Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, behi ...
to Clark Heath and Ada M. Johnson.
[Illinois Death Index]
Heath designed and built a series of aircraft starting in 1909 with a
Bleriot-inspired monoplane. His first flight was on 10 October 1909 in
Amsterdam, New York resulting in a broken landing gear. On July 4, 1910 Heath made $500 in appearance fees and $200 in photograph revenues from his aircraft that flew a 3 feet above the ground.
In 1911 Heath went to work for
Glen Curtiss in
Hammondsport, New York as a motorcycle mechanic, next to the Curtiss aircraft factory where he built a second aircraft with
Walter Eales
Walter may refer to:
People
* Walter (name), both a surname and a given name
* Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968)
* Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...
making short aerial runs. After purchasing the Chicago-based
Bates Aeroplane Company in 1912, Heath founded the ''E.B. Heath Aerial Vehicle Co.'', later becoming the ''Heath Airplane Company''.
His company produced the ''Heath Feather'' and ''Heath Favorite'' after
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, and later the
Heath Parasol series of aircraft powered with
Henderson Motorcycle engines.
Heath died on February 1, 1931 in
Maine Township, Cook County, Illinois
Maine Township is one of 29 townships in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 135,772 at the 2010 census. The township was founded in 1850.
Maine Township is located in Cook County, directly north and east of O'Hare Internat ...
.
[ He was in an aircraft accident while testing a new low-wing aircraft design.]
Legacy
Heath's company was eventually purchased and after World War II, changed its product to kit electronics. Heathkit
Heathkit is the brand name of kits and other electronic products produced and marketed by the Heath Company. The products over the decades have included electronic test equipment, high fidelity home audio equipment, television receivers, amate ...
filed for bankruptcy and closed in 2012. As of 2019, the company has a live website at www.heathkit.com..
References
External links
Heathkit
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heath, Edward
American aerospace engineers
Members of the Early Birds of Aviation
1888 births
1931 deaths