It would depend on your definition.
- Leonardo da Vinci's wooden corkscrew was maybe built, but it not fly.
- A number of machines flew in the late 1800s, but could not carry a pilot.
- Louis BREGUET's "Gyroplane n°1" did carry a pilot, but did not fly much. (1907)
- Etienne Oehmichen's "Helicostat" earned a certificate for closed circuits in 1924, even taking up passengers.
FYI, the French are celebrating this year the "100 years of the helicopter".
If you read French:
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89tienne_%C5%92hmichen
http://ufh.fr/100ans/100ans_helico_newsletter02.pdf