The Force Behind the Wright Brothers

Picture from The Airplane by Nancy Robinson Masters.

Shortly after reading everything available, Wilbur determined the elements needed were: wings for lift, a power source for propulsion, and a system for control. Wilbur recognized the need to control the flying structure during it’s “three axes of motion: pitch, roll, and yaw.” Using a small kite he tested his theory that the surface of the wings needs change position in relation to the oncoming wind, and he twisted an empty bicycle tube over the wing’s surface.

When they travelled to Kitty Hawk to perform tests on their flying machine their lives were very simple.

Pictures taken from http://wright.nasa.gov/wilbur.htm

• The aeronautical data available proved to be faulty, so they created their own wind tunnel
• They determined that a long narrow wing was ideal for flight
• They discovered how to make the plane move freely so it would be able to use air as a cushion while moving across and up and down
• They also invented rudders to stop the plane from swaying uncontrollably and a pulley system that warped the shape of the wings during flight to steady the plane
• They carved the first pair of 8 foot propellers from laminated spruce and realized they needed to turn in opposite directions
• They designed their own lightweight gas-powered engine which produced 12 horsepower with a weight of just 152 lbs
• They used their wind tunnel to compile vast amounts of charts and tables to better understand the science of wind
• They had to calculate their “lift” formulas using pencil, paper, trigonometry, algebra, geometry without benefit of a calculator. In accessing inventor Otto Lilienthal’s figures they found some of the figures faulty.
• They carefully photographed and dated every step of the way, which proved useful in their defense of their patent

The historical flight on 12/17/1903 at 1035 a.m. Picture from Time Magazine

In 1903 they developed a flying machine from spruce, ash and muslin. It weighed 600 lbs. and had a wingspan of 40 ft. On Dec. 17, 1903 it flew 120 feet.

Only four newspapers in the U.S. carried the story and many more dismissed it as a widely exaggerated tale.

The Wright brothers were two of four brothers and one sister born to Milton and Susan Wright. Their sister, Katharine (1874-1929) was the only one to have completed college.

She also went on to receive her teaching certificate from Oberlin College. She flew with her brother Wilbur in France in 1908 helping him demonstrate the airplane. Her signature is found on some of the original stock.

Wilbur was born on April 16, 1867, the third child of Milton and Susan Wright. Orville Wright was born on August 19, 1871 at 7 Hawthorne Street in Dayton, Ohio.

Katharine and Wilbur fly in France in 1908

Katharine, Wilbur and Orville were very close to one another and made a pact to never marry. However in 1926 Katharine married Henry Haskell. The brothers never married.

Picture from The Airplane by Nancy Robinson Masters.

“In memory and intellect, there was none like him. He systemized every thing. His wit was quick and keen. He could say or write anything he wanted to. He was not very talkative. His temper could hardly be stirred. He wrote much. He could deliver a fine speech, but was modest.” Bishop Milton Wright regarding his son after Wilbur passed away from typhoid fever at the age of 45… “short life, full of consequences. An unfailing intellect, imperturbable temper, great self-reliance and as great modesty, seeing the right clearly, pursuing it steadily, he lived and died.”

For more information regarding the Wright Brothers and more pictures visit: http://wright.nasa.gov/orville.htm

Orville was the healthier and more athletic of the two, and has even been known as a champion bicyclist. He praised his parents for their encouragement of intellectual interests and allowing them to investigate their curiosities. The home they grew up in also boasted two libraries.

Following his brother’s death in 1912 he continued working in their aeronautics laboratory until he sold it in 1916. Dr. Orville Wright served on NACA National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics for 28 years, which was later to become the National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA).

He received the first Daniel Guggenheim award on April 8, 1930.

The home the brothers’ co designed on Hawthorn Hill in Oakwood, Ohio. Unfortunately Wilbur never lived to see the completion, but it is a frequently visited tourist attraction.