Person
Hawker, Harry George (1889 - 1921)
- Born
- 22 January 1889
Moorabbin, Victoria, Australia - Died
- 12 July 1921
Hendon, England - Occupation
- Aeronautical engineer and Aviator
Summary
Harry Hawker trained as a mechanic in Melbourne and in 1911 left for England to become an aviator. He was employed by the Sopwith Aviation Co. and trained as a pilot, aircraft designer and general troubleshooter. His designed the revolutionary Sopwith Tabloid.
Details
Born Moorabbin, Victoria, 22 January 1889. Died Hendon, England, 12 July 1921. Trainee mechanic, Melbourne branch, Hall & Warden bicycle depot 1901-04; qualified motor mechanic, Tarrant Motor and Engineering Co 1905-07; his own car servicing workshop, Caramut, western Victoria 1907-11; Commer Car Company, England 1911; Mercedes Company 1912; Austro-Daimler Company 1912; Sopwith Aviation Company working on the Sopwith-Wright biplane 1912, test pilot and designer 1912-ca 1918, designing the Sopwith Tabloid 1913; shipped the Tabloid to Australia and gave practical flying exhibitions 1914, carrying many notable citizens as passengers; speedboard and motor racing events 1919; formed the H.G. Hawker Engineering Company 1920. £1,000 prize for the first flight of 1,000 miles on an outward course 1913; £5,000 for first pilot to fly over 1,000 miles of water without touching down 1919; drove the first car to reach 100 miles an hour 1920.
Archival resources
State Library of Victoria, Australian Manuscripts Collection
- Harry George Hawker - Records, 1914, MS 8851; State Library of Victoria, Australian Manuscripts Collection. Details
Published resources
Book Sections
- Sheehy, Thomas, 'Hawker, Harry George (1889-1921)' in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Bede Nairn and Geoffrey Serle, eds, vol. 9 (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1983), pp. 233-234. http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A090236b.htm. Details
Resources
- Wikidata, http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q328337. Details
- VIAF - Virtual International Authority File, OCLC, https://viaf.org/viaf/35257173. Details
- 'Hawker, H G (1889-1921)', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-840448. Details
See also
- Serle, Percival, Dictionary of Australian biography (Sydney: Angus & Robertson, 1949). Details
McCarthy, G.J.
Created: 20 October 1993, Last modified: 2 March 2018
- Foundation Supporter - Committee to Review Australian Studies in Tertiary Education