Robert Peary

Robert Edwin Peary, Sr. (May 6, 1856 – February 20, 1920) was an American explorer who claimed to have led the first expedition, on April 6, 1909, to reach the geographic North Pole. Peary's claim was widely credited for most of the 20th century, rather than the competing claim by Frederick Cook who said he got there a year earlier.
Peary was born on May 6, 1856 in Cresson, Pennsylvania. He was raised in Portland, Maine. Peary studied at Bowdoin College. He was married to Josephine Diebitsch from 1888 until his death in 1920. They had two children. Peary died on February 20, 1920 in Washington, D.C. from an illness, aged 63.