Living in a high rise provides unique views of the world. From afar, vehicles and trains look like die-cast toys and people like ants. Most entertaining to watch are the helicopters and planes that regularly fly by, transporting passengers above the busy city skyline to airports, hospitals, supply centers and other important destinations. Some aircrafts soar in the distance, while others are level to our window, providing close-up views of rotating propellers and steady wings alike. I am certain the Wright brothers would enjoy time by my window to witness the progress in aviation that we appreciate today. Let’s take a brief look at the Wright brothers, from their humble start to their huge impact on flight development and history!
Wilbur and Orville Wright (born in 1867 and 1871 respectively) grew up comfortably in a middle-class neighborhood in Dayton, Ohio. Though not born of wealth, they were afforded special opportunities by their parents. Their success is largely attributed to “…a home environment where there was always much encouragement to pursue intellectual interests, to investigate whatever aroused their curiosity.” The boys were sons of a minister, Milton Wright, and a college educated mother, Susan Koerner Wright. The Wright household contained home libraries to support reading and learning. Both parents were creative individuals, and, as the saying goes, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. The curious and innovative boys followed their parents’ lead. They took to making homemade toys that could fly, published and ran a real newspaper, and even made their own version of a bicycle since they lacked money to buy one.
Modern Americans, the biographical school reader copyrighted 1918/1921, documents that the brothers always found their greatest pleasure in making things rather than using them. “Therefore, it did not seem strange to any one when they said they wanted something better than a bicycle; but when it became known that instead of riding rapidly over city streets and country roads they wanted to fly through the air like birds, the people were amazed and thought the two boys had lost their wits.” Their undeniable energy and interests would grow into the creation of airplanes that could successfully take off, be controlled and sustained in the air, and land on the ground.
Back in the day, wealthy men (in particular) attended college and traveled abroad to widen their experience and knowledge. It was also a time “where clever men were being urged by their governments to make experiments with what the world called ‘flying machines.’” As it happened, the Wright brothers were unable to attend college. They also lacked wealthy friends to back them in their noble pursuits. Rather, they began studying what the German, French, and English inventors knew of flying. They sought to learn everything they could on the subject. Meanwhile, U.S. newspapers and magazines mocked “mad inventors” who thought “men would some day soar through the air as birds do.”
As with any passion that truly grips man, the Wright brothers remained certain that they would succeed. They just needed to create a clever way to launch and balance a flying machine in air. The Wright brothers weren’t the only ones interested in flying. American aviator, Professor Samuel Pierpont Langley, completed a full-size man-carrying flying machine by 1903. Upon two attempts to fly it, the launching apparatus failed. Langley was criticized by members of U.S. Congress and mocked by the press, leaving him “crushed and broken in spirit.” Despite naysayers in those days, the Wright brothers remained dedicated to becoming aviation pioneers by ultimately designing a controllable airplane that could take off in strong headwind – and land.
It is argued that the main difference between Langley and the Wrights was the ability of the brothers to “master the art of flying” before attempting the task. Wilbur and Orville used a unique approach in their pursuits – they voraciously studied the flight of birds to gain knowledge of working parts, shapes, proportions, balance, air currents, and more. They intently witnessed soaring birds who scarcely moved their wings and observed how they balanced in the rising air. Per Modern Americans, “Lying flat on their backs they would watch birds for whole afternoons at a time, until at last they came to believe that the bird himself was really an aeroplane.” The brother team would scientifically apply their observations to ultimately create a vehicle that could fly like a bird!
Armed with knowledge, the Wrights began building prototypes and required land for their experiments. In 1902, they sought a location to test a full-size two-winged glider with a moveable rudder. Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, proved to be the ideal spot; preferred for three important reasons. One: the United States Weather Bureau demonstrated that the winds were strong and steady at the location. Two: the ground was soft. Three: the secluded location afforded them space and privacy from public interference. It would shield them from media scrutiny as reports of the day likened the science of flying to a circus event.
The determined team relentlessly pushed forward experimenting with flight. Per the Library of Congress, in 1903, in North Carolina’s Outer Banks, the Wright brothers would “make their first free, controlled, and sustained flights in a power-driven, heavier-than-air machine.” Advancements followed. In 1908, the first passenger, Charles Furnas, traveled on a short-distance flight with Wilbur. Due to their progress, the U.S. began taking interest in the “aeroplane” for use in war. To advocate for aeronautics and to negotiate for financiers, Wilbur traveled to France to meet with government officials and businessmen. Though initially mocked by the French public, it became clear that Americans were making great progress in the air ahead of other nations.
In February of 1908, the Wrights signed a contract for the sale of an airplane to the U.S. Army. They also signed an agreement with a group of French investors. Despite Orville being seriously injured in an airplane crash that year, one in which a lieutenant became the first airplane fatality, the duo continued their advancements in the science of developing aircraft. In 1909, the Wright Company was incorporated with Wilbur as President. That same year, the Wright brothers were awarded a Medal of Congress for “recognition and appreciation of the great service of Orville and Wilbur Wright of Ohio rendered the science of aerial navigation, in the invention of the Wright aeroplane, and for their ability, courage and success in navigating the air.”
Wilbur died shortly after his success. Orville continued to run a large factory dedicated to building aeroplanes. The old book, Modern Americans, describes his thoughts on aviation, “Although he believes air travel will become quite an everyday happening, he does not expect it to take the place of the railroad or the steam boat. However, he hopes to see the government carry the mails by an aerial route, and to go quickly and easily to out-of-the-way-places.” Though the steamboat era clearly ceased, and train development lags in the U.S. as compared to Europe, I can’t help but think, if only the Wright brothers could peer out my window to see all the planes and helicopters pass by. It’s “quite an everyday happening” that they would surely stand proud of!
For information on the Wright Brothers National Memorial in North Carolina, visit https://www.nps.gov/wrbr/index.htm
