George W. Lewis
(1882-1948)
graduated from Sibley College of Engineering and received his
Masters of Engineering from Cornell in 1908. In 1919, Lewis joined
the NACA as Executive Officer and was named Director of Aeronautical
Research five years later. He remained in that position until
his retirement in 1947. During this period, he was chiefly responsible
for the rapid expansion that the NACA underwent, especially starting
in the mid-1930s with the rearmament of Europe. In this period
of tremendous growth for NACA, Lewis oversaw the X-1 program from
the government end, and although he retired before the testing
had been completed, he was very much responsible for the success
of the program. Due to failing health, Lewis resigned after having
served the NACA for twenty-eight years as an inspiring leader.
See "George W. Lewis," biographical file, NASA Historical
Reference Collection.
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Updated September 18, 1997