Lawrence Hargrave

Lawrence Hargrave
Lawrence Hargrave, c.1890
Born	(1850-01-29)January 29, 1850 Greenwich, England
Died	July 6, 1915(1915-07-06) (aged 65)
Nationality	Australian

Lawrence Hargrave, MRAeS, (29 January 1850 – 6 July 1915) was an Australian engineer, explorer, astronomer, inventor and aeronautical pioneer.

Hargrave was born in Greenwich, England, the second son of John Fletcher Hargrave (later Attorney-General of NSW) and was educated at Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Kirkby Lonsdale, Westmorland. He immigrated to Australia with his family, arriving in Sydney on 5 November 1865 on the La Hogue. He accepted a place on the Ellesmere and circumnavigated Australia. Although he had shown ability in mathematics at his English school he failed the matriculation examination and in 1867 took an engineering apprenticeship with the Australasian Steam Navigation Company in Sydney. He later found the experience of great use in constructing his models.

In 1872, as an engineer, he sailed on the Maria on a voyage to New Guinea but the ship was wrecked. In 1875, he again sailed as an engineer on William John Macleay's expedition to the Gulf of Papua. From October 1875 to January 1876 he was exploring the hinterland of Port Moresby under Octavius Stone, and in April 1876 went on another expedition under Luigi D'Albertis for over 400 miles up the Fly River on the SS Ellengowan. In 1877 he was inspecting the newly developing pearling industry for Parbury Lamb and Co. He returned to Sydney, joined the Royal Society of New South Wales in 1877, and in 1878 became an assistant astronomical observer at Sydney Observatory. He held this position for about five years, retired in 1883 with a moderate competency, and gave the rest of his life to research work.