MASONIC BIOGRAPHIES FAMOUS FREEMASONS

Richard J. Gatling September 12, 1818 - February 26, 1903 American inventor Dr. Richard Jordan Gatling was a medical doctor and holder of 48 patents. He is best remembered for inventing a revolving battery gun, firing 1200 shots per minute. He worked as a fisherman, court clerk, teacher, and storekeeper, later founding the Gatling Gun Company in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1862. The hand-cranked Gatling gun was declared obsolete by the United States Army in 1911. In 1877, he wrote: "It occurred to me that if I could invent a machine—a gun—which could by its rapidity of fire, enable one man to do as much battle duty as a hundred, that it would, to a large extent supersede the necessity of large armies, and consequently, exposure to battle and disease be greatly diminished." Gatling was elected as the first president of the American Association of Inventors and Manufacturers in 1891, serving for six years. Member Centre Lodge No. 23, Indianapolis Source: Hamill, John et al.. Freemasonry : A Celebration of the Craft. JG Press 1998. ISBN:1572152672. Portrait circa 1870.

ANTI-MASONRY | FAMOUS FREEMASONS | HOME | ESSAYS & PAPERS | SITEMAP

© 1871-2023 Grand Lodge of British Columbia and Yukon A.F. & A. M. Updated: 2008/05/18 freemasonry.bcy.ca/biography/gatling_r/gatling_r.html