One particularly colourful, but ultimately tragic, bearer of the proud name of Scott was the American daredevil Samuel Gilbert Scott, better known as Sam Scott.
Born in about 1813 in Philadelphia, it was while serving in the United States Navy that he became renowned for his dangerous stunt of diving from the masts of naval vessels into the depths of the sea.
Becoming a professional stuntman, he performed other daring acts involving diving or jumping from great heights, including one from a precipice near Niagara Falls.
But his dangerous career came to a decidedly abrupt end on January 11, 1841 while on a visit to England.
