Buried on August 20, 1915.
NOTE: I spelled his first name as it is on all his patents. On the cemetery record & Death Certificate it is Rueben.
His parents were Joseph Swank & Minerva Toman. (Both were born in Ohio.)
On the 1900 Federal Census, he is living at 319 South Broadway Street, Dayton. His occupation is Carriage Body Maker.
He died at home, 319 South Broadway. (Source: Death Certificate. On it, his occupation is Body Maker / Carriages.)
Famous inventor. He was experimenting with aviation in the 1890s, with the idea of horizontal propellers on the wings for lift.
Among his U.S. Patents are:
- 817,729 on April 10, 1906 for a "Railway-Joint"
- 843,119 & 843,120 on February 5, 1907 for a "Railway-Joint"
- 920,214 on May 4, 1909 for a "Railway-Switch"
- 1,020,628 on March 19, 1912 for a "Flying-Machine"
- 1,089,880 on March 10, 1914 for an "Aeroplane"
Family Members
Spouse
Anna Bohmn Swank
1856–1915
Children
Harley Swank
1882–1922
