Wilbur Wright was born on April 16, 1867 near Millville, Indiana and his brother Orville was born in 1871. The boys owned a bicycle shop before using their experience, tools, and equipment to experiment with flight. The collection is circa 1920 and includes a pamphlet titled Essais de Wilbur Wright, Le Mans - 1908: La Conquete de l'Air / Wilbur Wright's Trial: The Conquest of the Air. The strength of this collection is the introduction and postcards detailing Wilbur Wright and his 1908 experimental and demonstration flights in Le Mans, France.
Wilbur Wright was born on April 16, 1867 near Millville, Indiana. His brother, Orville, was born in 1871. When they were young, they had a small model helicopter bought by their father Milton during his travels as a bishop. The toy inspired Wilbur and Orville to develop a life-long interest in flying. In 1889, the brothers started their own newspaper, and in 1892, they opened a bicycle shop. Eventually, using their experience, tools, and equipment from the bicycle shop, the brothers began experimenting with flight and traveled to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina for the strong winds. They flew the first free, controlled flight of a power-driven airplane on December 17, 1903. Because many were reluctant of their efforts, the brothers traveled to Europe in 1908, where people were much more receptive. In 1908 and 1909, they gained popularity and began to sell airplanes in Europe and then the United States. The Wright brothers are considered the "fathers of modern aviation." Wilbur died of typhoid fever at 45 years old on May 30, 1912 in Dayton, Ohio.
The collection consists of Essais de Wilbur Wright, Le Mans - 1908: La Conquete de l'Air / Wilbur Wright's Trial: The Conquest of the Air, which is a pamphlet with an introduction and 24 tear-out postcards illustrating Wilbur Wright and his 1908 experimental and demonstration flights, in Le Mans, France. The pamphlet in the collection was prepared by the Bolle family and the City of Le Mans to be distributed at the dedication of the Wilbur Wright Memorial in Le Mans in 1920.
Gift of Larry E. Tise
Encoded by Lindsay Flood, April 4, 2008
Processed by Aleck Tan, February 2020
Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.