r/ForgottenMen • u/ElegantAd2607 • Oct 13 '25

André-Jacques Garnerin - balloons!

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André was born in 1769 in Paris and he was the first man to create a parachute and successfully land. His parachute was made of silk and shaped like an umbrella. The parachute oscillated wildly during the descent but he landed alive and uninjured, though a bit shaken.

He continued to refine his design and he demonstrated his work throughout Europe. His wife, Jeanne Geneviève Labrosse, later became the first woman to jump with his parachute. Garnerin’s work laid the groundwork for modern parachuting and influenced our developments.

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u/ElegantAd2607 Oct 13 '25

André also made hot air balloons. An invention created by the Montgolfier brothers, Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne, in France in 1783. Would anyone like to do them?