Parachute inventor - Greenville, PA
Posted by: 
scornell1
N 41° 24.480 W 080° 22.868
17T E 551725 N 4584235
First parachute invented in the Greenville PA area by Stefan Banic.
Waymark Code: WM7BHW
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 10/01/2009
Views: 7
The inscription on the marker reads as follows:
STEFAN BANIC
(1870 – 1941)
Slovak Immigrant from
Nestich, Slovakia
PARACHUTE INVENTOR
Banic was a resident of Greenville, PA. from 1907 -1921 where he invented a parachute. It was successfully demonstrated in Washington, D.C. on August 3, 1914, and shortly thereafter from a U.S. Army airplane. Banic received the first U.S. patent for a parachute, August 25, 1914.
Plaque presented by
The Slovak Museum & Archives
Jednota Estates, Middletown, PA.
to the Greenville Railroad Park & Museum
August 1990
Note: While Stefan Banic was not the first to claim credit for inventing the parachute, he was the first to receive a US patent; moreover, his parachute was the first to be used successfully by the US Military.
The reason that this plaque is located in the Railroad Museum may seem confusing. Stefan was employed by the Chicago Bridge and Iron Co. of Greenville PA, which owned the property where the park is now located. The factory no longer exists so the marker was donated to the museum.
FIRST - Classification Variable: Item or Event
Date of FIRST: 08/25/1914
More Information - Web URL: [Web Link]
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