The Unlucky Seven Inventors
These seven men all died while riding in or using something they invented. In the 50 year span between 1882 and 1932, new and innovative products were popping up all over the place. These things needed to be tested… sometimes the tests went horribly wrong and sometimes people were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Senator Webster Wagner 1882
Webster Wagner was a Republican Senator out of New York. He helped start a wagon business in his younger days before becoming an employee for the New York Central Railroad. From there he went on to invent (some might say stole) the sleeping car and luxury parlor car. He became wealthy after founding the Wagner Palace Car Company.
Wagner was on the Senate from 1872 until the day he died. On January 13th of 1882, he was riding in one of his ‘sleeping cars’ when the train he was aboard was rear-ended by a fast moving train. His body was found crushed between two of his company’s cars. Between the crash and the ensuing fire, eight people were killed, and 19 seriously injured. Neighborhood residents and crew helped put out the fire by rolling large snowballs into the blaze until local firefighters arrived.
Sylvester H. Roper 1896
Sylvester Roper, from Boston, Massachusetts, was a pioneer in early automobiles and motorcycles. Roper built a steam driven carriage in 1863. It was considered one of the first automobiles. In 1867 he created the Roper steam velocipede which many consider the first motorcycle. The velocipede landed him in the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2002.
On June 1st, 1896, he rode one of his newer model velocipedes to the Charles River bicycle track in Cambridge, Massachusetts. After completing several successful laps that saw him reach speeds of near 40 mph, he lost control of the vehicle and crashed, hitting his head on the track. The cause of death ended up being a heart attack but it’s unknown whether the heart attack caused the fall or vice versa.
Percy Pilcher 1899
Percy Pilcher was a leading British inventor within the field of aviation. Pilcher was successful with developing hang gliders and in 1895 he made repeated flights in a contraption he called the ‘Bat’. Between 1896–1897 he had numerous successful flights in his ‘Hawk’ invention. One of those flights ended with Pilcher getting his name in the record books for distance flown.
By 1899, Pilcher had turned to powered aircraft and produced a motor-driven triplane. If the testing went well, Pilcher may have been the first person to fly in a motorized aircraft. Unfortunately the test was delayed due to mechanical problems so he decided to take the ‘Hawk’ for a run. The ‘Hawk’ experienced structural failure after takeoff and Pilcher was fatally injured.
Sadly, his friend and mentor, Otto Lilienthal also died in the same way in 1896.
William Nelson 1903
William Nelson worked for the General Electric company in Schenectady, New York. In his spare time he worked on his invention, a new motorized bicycle.
On the afternoon of October 3rd, 1903, Nelson took his prototype to the hill across from the home of his father-in-law, William H. Sterling. During the test, Nelson fell from the machine and was instantly killed. He was only 24.
Franz Reichelt 1912
Franz Reichelt was a French tailor, inventor and pioneer in parachuting. He came to be known as the Flying Tailor, only after the accident.
The accident in question turned out to be quite the spectacle, with hundreds of onlookers, news reporters and police gathered below the Eiffel Tower. The act of testing inventions on the Eiffel Tower needed approval, and it was granted, but only if Reichelt used a test dummy. It was clear from his arrival (he was already in the suit) that he would be doing the test himself, still police allowed him to proceed.
Reichelt eventually jumped and within seconds he crashed to the ground below. The entire thing was recorded on camera and various French newspapers showed pictures of his fall on the front pages of the next day’s papers.
It’s possible that his invention may have worked, but at the height he was at, there wasn’t time for the chute to open.
Francis E Stanley 1918
Along with his brother, Freelan, Francis Edgar Stanley was a businessman and co-founder of the Stanley Motor Carriage Company. The steam car manufacturing company would go on to develop the Stanley Steamer automobile in Newton, Massachusetts. The automobile quickly became a hit with wealthy automobile enthusiasts. In 1906, a Stanley steam car nicknamed the “Rocket”, achieved the land speed record at the time of 127.6 mph.
Sadly, Francis died in 1918 in Wenham, Massachusetts when he drove his car into a woodpile while attempting to avoid farm wagons travelling side by side on the road.
Fred Dusenberg 1932
Fred Dusenberg was a German-born automobile and engine designer and manufacturer, well known as a designer of racecars and racing engines. Duesenberg had a big part in the development of the automobile between 1910 and 1930. He is credited with introducing an eight-cylinder engine, also known as the Duesenberg Straight-8 engine, and four-wheel hydraulic brakes.
On July 2nd, 1932, Fred was driving one of his own Dusenberg passenger cars, equipped with a prototype, high-powered engine. While driving along a rain soaked Lincoln Highway on Ligonier Mountain, in Pennsylvania he lost control. The automobile overturned and ejected Duesenberg. Initially doctors expected a full recovery from his spinal and shoulder injuries.
While in recovery Duesenberg developed pleural pneumonia, that was treated with oxygen. He improved but relapsed on July 26th and passed away at the age of fifty-five.
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