John Moses Browning
Jan. 23, 1855 – Nov. 26, 1926

the most successful firearms designer of the 20th century
made his first firearm at age 13
awarded his first patent (1879) at the age of 24

Browning’s successful designs include: M1911 pistol, the Browning Hi Power pistol, the M1917 .30 caliber water-cooled Machine Gun the M1919 .30 caliber air-cooled machine gun, the M2 .50 caliber machine gun (Ma Deuce), the .30-06 Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR), and the Browning Auto-5 semi-automatic 12 gauge shotgun.