Lawrence Dale "Larry" Bell (April 5, 1894 – October 20, 1956) was an American

industrialist A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through perso ...

and founder of

Bell Aircraft Corporation The Bell Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer, a builder of several types of fighter aircraft for World War II but most famous for the Bell X-1, the first supersonic aircraft, and for the development and production of many i ...

Biography

Bell was born in Mentone, Indiana, and lived there until 1907, when his family moved to

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. He joined his older brother Grover and stunt pilot

Lincoln Beachey Lincoln Beachey (March 3, 1887 – March 14, 1915) was a Aviation in the pioneer era, pioneer American aviator and barnstorming, barnstormer. He became famous and wealthy from flying exhibitions, staging aerial stunts, helping invent aerobatics ...

as a mechanic in 1912. Grover Bell was killed in a plane crash the following year, and Lawrence vowed to quit aviation for good; however, he went to work for the Glenn L. Martin Company after friends convinced him to return to the industry. He became Martin's shop foreman at age 20, and later the company's general manager, wanting to become partner. On 17 July 1915, he married Lucille Mainwaring (1891–1970); their marriage, without children, lasted for thirty-three years.Norton, Donald J. ''Larry, a biography of Lawrence D. Bell'' p. 30. Nelson-Hall, Chicago, 1981. Airacobra P39 Assembly LOC 02902u

He left Martin in 1928 to join

Consolidated Aircraft The Consolidated Aircraft Corporation was founded in 1923 in aviation, 1923 by Reuben H. Fleet in Buffalo, New York, the result of the Gallaudet Aircraft Company's liquidation and Fleet's purchase of designs from the Dayton-Wright Company as the ...

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, eventually becoming vice president and general manager. When Consolidated relocated to

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, Bell stayed in Buffalo and founded his own company with 56 employees,Pate, J'Nell L. ''Arsenal of Defense: Fort Worth's Military Legacy'' p. 137-138. Texas State Historical Association Press, 2011. Bell Aircraft Corporation, on July 10, 1935. On a government-sponsored "spy tour" to Germany with 44 other industrialists in 1938, he saw the

Focke-Wulf Fw 61 The Focke-Wulf Fw 61 is often considered the first practical, functional helicopter, first flown in 1936. It was also known as the Fa 61, as Focke began a new company—Focke-Achgelis—in 1937. Design and development Professor Henrich Fock ...

helicopter, and used the layout of a German aircraft factory for his Niagara Falls plant. Bell Aircraft built the

P-39 Airacobra The Bell P-39 Airacobra is a fighter produced by Bell Aircraft for the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. It was one of the principal American fighters in service when the United States entered combat. The P-39 was used by the ...

and

P-63 Kingcobra The Bell P-63 Kingcobra is an American fighter aircraft that was developed by Bell Aircraft during World War II. Based on the preceding Bell P-39 Airacobra, the P-63's design incorporated suggestions from P-39 pilots and was superior to its pr ...

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Bell's

P-59 Airacomet The Bell P-59 Airacomet was a single-seat, twin jet-engine fighter aircraft that was designed and built by Bell Aircraft during World War II, the first produced in the United States. As the British were further along in jet engine developme ...

fighter was America's first jet-powered aircraft. Postwar, the company produced the

Bell X-1 The Bell X-1 (Bell Model 44) is a rocket engine–powered aircraft, designated originally as the XS-1, and was a joint National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics– U.S. Army Air Forces–U.S. Air Force supersonic research project built by Be ...

, the first aircraft to break the

sound barrier The sound barrier or sonic barrier is the large increase in aerodynamic drag and other undesirable effects experienced by an aircraft or other object when it approaches the speed of sound. When aircraft first approached the speed of sound, th ...

in level flight. The company began developing

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...

s in 1941, with the

Bell 30 The Bell 30 was the prototype for the first commercial helicopter, and the first helicopter built by the Bell Aircraft Company. Designed by Arthur M. Young, the type served as a demonstration testbed for the successful Bell 47. Development Youn ...

taking its maiden flight in 1943. This early model evolved into the

Bell 47 The Bell 47 is a single-rotor single-engine light helicopter manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It was based on the third Bell 30 prototype, which was the company's first helicopter designed by Arthur M. Young. The 47 became the first he ...

, the first helicopter to be certified for civilian use. The Model 47 saw worldwide success, with over 5,600 being built, serving notably in the Korean War, and in innumerable civilian roles. Bell's greatest enduring legacy is perhaps the UH-1 Iroquois, with over 16,000 produced, advanced versions of which remain in production. The "Huey" transformed US Army aviation during the Vietnam War, and became one of the most recognizable aircraft in history. For his role in the X-1's first supersonic flight, he shared the 1947

Collier Trophy The Robert J. Collier Trophy is an annual aviation award administered by the U.S. National Aeronautic Association (NAA), presented to those who have made "the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America, with respect to im ...

with pilot

Chuck Yeager Brigadier General Charles Elwood Yeager ( , February 13, 1923December 7, 2020) was a United States Air Force officer, flying ace, and record-setting test pilot who in October 1947 became the first pilot in history confirmed to have exceeded the ...

and John Stack, a research scientist with the

National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its assets ...

(now

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

). He was awarded the

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE International, formerly named the Society of Automotive Engineers, is a United States-based, globally active professional association and standards developing organization for engineering professionals in various industries. SAE Internatio ...

' Daniel Guggenheim Medal in 1944, and was posthumously inducted into the

National Aviation Hall of Fame The National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) is a museum, annual awards ceremony and learning and research center that was founded in 1962 as an Ohio non-profit corporation in Dayton, Ohio, United States, known as the "Birthplace of Aviation" with it ...

(1977), the Army Aviation Hall of Fame (1986), and the

International Aerospace Hall of Fame The International Air & Space Hall of Fame is an honor roll of people, groups, organizations, or things that have contributed significantly to the advancement of aerospace flight and technology, sponsored by the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Sin ...

(2004).

Legacy and awards

Bell was initiated to the

York Rite The York Rite, sometimes referred to as the American Rite, is one of several Rites of Freemasonry. It is named for, but not practiced in York, Yorkshire, England. A Rite is a series of progressive degrees that are conferred by various Masonic ...

of Freemasonry; he was subsequently elevated to the highest degree of Grand Master.

Namesakes

* Th
Bell Memorial Public Library
building in Bell's hometown of Mentone, Indiana, was constructed largely through a $20,000 grant willed to the town; it is so named because Bell requested that the money be used for a memorial for his parents. * Mentone is also the site of th
Lawrence D. Bell Aircraft Museum
which showcases personal and historical items related to his life and the history of aviation.
Lawrence D. Bell Hall
is a major engineering hub at the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 1846 ...

. In addition to the building, Mr. Bell is honored through a general-purpose fund in the School of Engineering & Applied Sciences.
Lawrence Bell Drive
in

Amherst, New York Amherst () is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. Amherst is an inner ring suburb of Buffalo. As of 2020, the town had a total population of 129,595. This represents an increase from 122,366 as reported in the 2010 census. The second ...

. * In

Hurst, Texas Hurst is a city in the U.S. state of Texas located in the densely populated portion of northeastern Tarrant County and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. It is considered a Dallas and Fort Worth suburb and is part of the Mid-Ci ...

, L.D. Bell High School sits on land Bell donated to the

Hurst-Euless-Bedford Independent School District Hurst-Euless-Bedford Independent School District (HEB ISD) is a K-12 public school district based in Bedford, Texas ( USA). The district serves the city of Bedford, most of the cities of Euless and Hurst, and small parts of North Richland Hills, ...

. * Since 1971, the

Helicopter Association International The Helicopter Association International (HAI) is a not-for-profit professional trade association of over member organizations in more than 68 nations. Since 1948, HAI has provided its membership with services that directly benefit their operati ...

has given a Lawrence D. Bell Memorial Award for excellence in management leadership in the civil helicopter industry. *Larry Bell Park, Marietta, Georgia

References

External links

Biographical sketch and photo
from th
Lawrence D. Bell Aircraft Museum

National Aviation Hall of Fame enshrinee profile

brother of Lawrence Bell, EarlyAviators.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Lawrence Dale 1894 births 1956 deaths People from Mentone, Indiana American aviation businesspeople Aviation pioneers People from Santa Monica, California Burials at Forest Lawn Cemetery (Buffalo) Indiana in World War II National Aviation Hall of Fame inductees

Biography

Legacy and awards

Namesakes

See also

References

External links