Richard E. Byrd the South Pole by air. However, his claim to have reached the North Pole is disputed. Byrd was born in Winchester, Virginia, the son of Esther Bolling (Flood) and Richard Evelyn Byrd Sr. He was a descendant of one of the First Families of Virginia. His ancestors include planter John Rolfe and his wife Pocahontas, William Byrd II of Westover Plantation, who established Richmond, and Robert "King" Carter, a colonial governor. He was the brother of Virginia Governor and U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, a dominant figure in the Virginia Democratic Party from the 1920s until the 1960s; their father
Claims to the first powered flight Claims to the first powered flight Several aviators have been claimed as the first to fly a powered aeroplane. Much controversy has surrounded these claims. It is most widely held today that the Wright Brothers were the first to fly successfully. Brazil regards Santos-Dumont as the first successful aviator because the Wright Flyer took off from a rail and, after 1903, used a catapult. An editorial in the influential "Jane's All the World's Aircraft" 2013 edition supported the claim of Gustave Whitehead. Several aviators and/or their supporters have laid claim to the first manned flight in a powered aeroplane. Claims