Jacques de Kervor

Who was Jacques de Kervor?

Jacques Edouard de Kervor was an inventor and industrial designer.

Among de Kervor's achievements was one of Delta's first single-handle faucets. He also helped design the 1955 Ford Thunderbird.

De Kervor also designed equipment for Jacques Cousteau, a Voit jet diving fin, models for Disneyland, and the toy robot Maxx Steele. He also designed John Deere farm equipment, office equipment, televisions and toys.

De Kervor was born in Vichy, France. Though only 11 when his country fell to Germany, he nevertheless fought for the resistance in World War II. In 1948 de Kervor moved to the United States but often returned to his native country. While in France as a youth he apprenticed as a sculptor, which led to work designing for Ford and Chrysler.

Other careers included artist, fashion designer, photographer and restaurant owner.

Later in life, de Kervor worked on decoy tanks and artillery in Columbia, South Carolina. He lived in Salisbury, North Carolina for a while, and in a 1997 Salisbury Post interview, he said, "I’ve made lots of people rich. But making money, making money — this is not all in life."