Robert R. Gilruth

Robert R. Gilruth
Gilruth at NASA, 1965
Born	Robert Rowe Gilruth (1913-10-08)October 8, 1913 Nashwauk, Minnesota, U.S.
Died	August 17, 2000(2000-08-17) (aged 86) Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Minnesota, B.S. 1935, M.S. 1936
Occupation(s)	Director of NASA Manned Spacecraft Center, now Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
Awards	President's Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service (1962) ASME Medal (1970)

Robert Rowe Gilruth (October 8, 1913 – August 17, 2000) was an American aerospace engineer and an aviation/space pioneer who was the first director of NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center, later renamed the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center.^[1]

He worked for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) from 1937 to 1958 and its successor NASA, until his retirement in 1973. He was involved with early research into supersonic flight and rocket-powered aircraft, and then with the United States human spaceflight program, including the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs.