Gabriel Voisin

From Freepedia

Gabriel Voisin (February 5, 1880 – December 25, 1973) was a French aviation pioneer.

He was born at Belleville-sur-Saône, France, and his brother Charles, two years younger than he, was his best friend. When his father abandoned the family, his mother, Amélie, took her sons home to Neuville-sur-Saône, where they settled near her father's factory.

The grandfather, Charles Forestier, took charge of the boys' education with military rigor. The boys also went for expeditions along the river, went fishing, and built numerous contraptions. When his grandfather died, Gabriel was sent to school in Lyons. However, he often returned home, and by the end of the century, the brothers had built, among other things, a rifle, a glider, and an automobile.

In 1900, Gabriel was hired as a designer for the Universal Exposition in Paris. There, he met Clément Ader, who fueled his interest in aeronautics. In 1906, he and Charles formed the first aviation firm in the world, Les Frères Voisin.

In 1909, Gabriel became the youngest knight of the French Legion of Honor at 29. By that time, he was considered a true industrialist.

He married Adrienne Lola, and they had one daughter, Jeanne, who was the joy of his life. He was greatly affected by the death of his brother in 1912 in an automobile accident.

After World War I, he abandoned aviation, partly because of the trauma of the military use of his planes during the war. From then until 1960, he concentrated his efforts on the automobile.

In 1960, he retired to Tournus, where he wrote his memoires. In 1965, he was made a commander of the Legion of Honor.