Search Results

Creator:

National Air and Space Museum (U.S.)  Search this

Ford Motor Company.  Search this

Science Museum of London  Search this

Names:

Ford Motor Company.  Search this

National Air and Space Museum (U.S.)  Search this

Science Museum of London  Search this

Christman, Louis  Search this

Taylor, Charles Edward, 1868-1956  Search this

Wright, Orville, 1871-1948  Search this

Wright, Wilbur, 1867-1912  Search this

Extent:

9.3 Cubic feet ((3 48"x36"x3" drawers))

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Drawings

Date:

1928-1986

Scope and Contents:

This collection consists of drawings of the 1903 Wright Flyer executed at various times during the life of the aircraft: Science Museum of London Drawings -- commissioned when the aircraft was on loan to the Museum; Ford Drawings -- sponsored by the Ford Motor Company which were supervised by Orville Wright and Charles Taylor; Christman Drawings -- drafted by Louis Christman who consulted with Orville Wright and other sources; and the National Air and Space Museum Drawings -- commissioned by the Museum during the 1985 restoration of the Wright 1903 Flyer. These drawings include three view drawings as well as both the airframe and engine components.

Biographical / Historical:

The Wright 1903 Flyer holds a special place in aviation history as the vehicle in which mankind first achieved controlled, powered, and sustained flight. The Wrights made no drawings of the aircraft when they originally built it and they continuously modified the craft during flight tests. The aircraft also underwent modifications due to damage suffered following its last flight, and the reconstruction work of 1916 and 1925-1927. Thus, there will always be some doubt about the exact configuration of the aircraft during the 1903 flights.

General:

NASMrev

Provenance:

NASM, Science Museum of London, Ford Museum, Gift/Transfer, 1986-0152, Some NASM

Restrictions:

Some restrictions on distribution.

Rights:

Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests

Topic:

Aeronautics  Search this

Aeronautics -- 1903-1916  Search this

Wright (Brothers) 1903 Flyer  Search this

Genre/Form:

Drawings

Identifier:

NASM.1986.0152

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/pg2e91f7f58-dceb-4aa7-9d68-ac2e5e920fb3

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nasm-1986-0152

Creator:

Coffyn, Frank, 1878-1960  Search this

Names:

Brookins, Walter R.  Search this

Burgess, William Starling  Search this

Hoxsey, Arch  Search this

Parmalee, Phillip Orin  Search this

Prince, Norman, Sergeant  Search this

Taylor, Charles Edward, 1868-1956  Search this

Welsh, Arthur L. "Al"  Search this

Wright, Orville, 1871-1948  Search this

Wright, Wilbur, 1867-1912  Search this

Extent:

0.1 Cubic feet (2 folders)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Logbooks

Date:

bulk 1910-1917

Summary:

This collection consists of a series of 68 "Field Reports" completed by Frank T. Coffyn logging flight activities of Wright (Brothers) aircraft, for the period from May 5, 1910, through February 24, 1911

Scope and Contents:

This collection consists of a series of 68 "Field Reports" completed by Frank T. Coffyn logging flight activities of Wright (Brothers) aircraft, for the period from May 5, 1910, through February 24, 1911. (One report is for March 26, 1917, and appears to list Coffyn's flights for that day.) The reports were completed on preprinted forms with columns for "Machine Number, Operator [pilot]," "Passenger," "Time of Flight," "Wind Direction," "Wind Velocity," "Length of Flight (Time and Distance)," and "Remarks." Spaces were also provided for Date, Gasoline Used, and Oil Used, and a signature. Fifty-six of the reports are signed by Frank Coffyn; the remaining sixteen appear to be in Coffyn's handwriting. Most are carbon copies. The reports cover flights made at Huffman Prairie, Ohio; Indianapolis, Indiana; Montreal, Canada; Atlantic City and Asbury Park, New Jersey; Hartford, Connecticut; and Augusta, Georgia. Besides Orville and Wilbur Wright, most of the pilots and passengers listed were students who became members of the Wright Exhibition Team. Pilots and passengers include: Griffith Brewer, Walter Brookins, William Starling Burgess, Frank Coffyn, Arch Hoxsey, Ralph Johnstone, Duval LaChapelle, Albert B. Lambert (President St. Louis Aero Club), Phillip O. Parmalee, Norman Prince, Frank H. Russell (first manager of the Wright Co.), Charlie Taylor, and Arthur L. "Al" Welsh [spelled by Coffyn throughout as "Welch"], and Lorin Wright. Most notable is the report of May 25, 1910, which lists the only flight Orville and Wilbur Wright made together, and the first and only flight taken by their father, Bishop Milton Wright. Remarks include notes on modifications and damage to the aircraft, reasons for takeoff failures, and (in some cases) altitude attained in flight. Additional notes on the earlier reports record total flight hours to date for several of the pilots.

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged at the item level; pages from log are displayed chronologically.

Biographical / Historical:

Wilbur Wright was born April 16, 1867, his brother Orville Wright on August 19, 1871. They, along with sister Katharine and brothers Reuchlin and Lorin, were raised near Millville, Indiana and in Dayton, Ohio by their mother, Susan Wright, and father, Milton Wright, bishop of the United Brethren Church. As young men, Wilbur and Orville launched a printing business and a bicycle shop. An interest in aeronautics, spurred by the accounts of the experiments of Otto Lilienthal, prompted Wilbur to request information on the subject from the Smithsonian Institution in 1899. In August of 1900, Wilbur built his first glider and that year and the next the brothers tested gliders at Kitty Hawk. The Wrights constructed a wind tunnel to gather accurate aeronautical data and, benefiting from this new information, another glider was built in 1902. In 1903, the brothers were ready to began construction of a powered craft. With the assistance of mechanic Charles Taylor, they added a 4-cylinder, 12-horsepower engine and propellers to the 1903 Flyer and it was sent to Kitty Hawk for testing. At 10:35 am, December 17, on Kill Devil Hill, Orville achieved a flight of 12 seconds--traveling a distance of 120 feet. By 1908 the Wrights were demonstrating their machines in Europe. The U.S. Army Signal Corps advertised for bids for a two-seat observation aircraft and in 1908 and 1909, the Wrights flew at official Army trials at Fort Myer, Virginia. (It was here that powered flight's first fatality occurred: the tragic death of Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge.) The Army was to purchase the Military Flyer (Signal Corps No. 1) for {dollar}30,000 in 1909. In that same year, The Wright Company was established to manufacture Wright aircraft. Wilbur died in Dayton, Ohio on May 30,1912. Orville Wright would live until January 30, 1948

Provenance:

Unknown, Unknown, Unknown, NASM.XXXX.0641

Restrictions:

No restrictions on access.

Rights:

Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.

Topic:

Aeronautics  Search this

Flight training  Search this

Genre/Form:

Logbooks

Citation:

Wright (Brothers) Flight Logs, NASM.XXXX.0641, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:

NASM.XXXX.0641

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/pg2cee37f93-e413-4b61-b345-04a0ed08a183

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nasm-xxxx-0641

Creator:

Taylor, Charles Edward, 1868-1956  Search this

Names:

Wright-Martin Aircraft Co.  Search this

Taylor, Charles Edward, 1868-1956  Search this

Wright, Orville, 1871-1948  Search this

Wright, Wilbur, 1867-1912  Search this

Extent:

0.23 Cubic feet ((1 slim legal document box))

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Correspondence

Biographies

Date:

1928-1966

bulk 1928-1956

Scope and Contents:

This accession includes Taylor's correspondence with his son, Rueben W. Taylor, (1928-1948), and the Garrison Machine Works, (1953-1956), makers of gears used in the Wright flyer engines. The letters to Rueben Taylor are originals, while the Garrison Machine Works correspondence are mostly xerox copies. Also included are brief biographical sketches of Taylor.

Biographical / Historical:

Charles Edward Taylor (1868-1956), sometimes referred to as 'the first airplane mechanic,' worked intermittently from 1901 to 1920 for Orville and Wilbur Wright and the Wright-Martin Company. Born in Nebraska in 1868, Taylor built the first engine that powered an airplane in flight, a little four-cylnder, gasoline engine which was used in the Wright 1903 Flyer at Kitty Hawk on December 17, 1903.

General:

NASMrev

Provenance:

Charles Edward Taylor, II, Gift, 1986, 1987-0006, NASM

Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Rights:

Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests

Topic:

Airplanes -- Motors  Search this

Airplanes -- Design and construction  Search this

Airplanes  Search this

Wright (Brothers) 1903 Flyer  Search this

Aeronautics -- 1903-1916  Search this

Aeronautics  Search this

Genre/Form:

Correspondence

Biographies

Identifier:

NASM.1987.0006

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/pg279aad7d1-3a4d-42df-a2d7-5554e5b51fd5

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nasm-1987-0006

Creator:

Clime, W. S.  Search this

Names:

Knab, Frederick, 1865-1918  Search this

Lahm, Frank Purdy, 1877-1963  Search this

Selfridge, Thomas Etholen  Search this

Taylor, Charles Edward, 1868-1956  Search this

Wright, Orville, 1871-1948  Search this

Wright, Orville, 1871-1948  Search this

Extent:

0.05 Cubic feet (1 folder)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Photographic prints

Place:

Fort Myer (Va.)

Date:

1908-1909

Summary:

The US Army Signal Corps advertised for bids for a two-seat observation aircraft and in 1908 and 1909, the Wrights flew the Wright 1908 Military Flyer at official Army trials at Fort Myer, Virginia. This collection consists of 45 black and white photographs, of varying sizes and including some duplicates, taken by photographer W. S. Clime at the 1908-1909 official army trials.

Scope and Contents:

The US Army Signal Corps advertised for bids for a two-seat observation aircraft and in 1908 and 1909, the Wrights flew the Wright 1908 Military Flyer at official Army trials at Fort Myer, Virginia. On September 17, 1908, Orville Wright and Lieutenant Thomas Etholen Selfridge made a flight as a part of these trials. While in the air, a blade on the propeller broke and the aircraft fell from 75 feet up and landed on Wright and Selfridge. Both men sustained severe injuries. Wright broke a leg and several ribs, and Selfridge was taken off the field unconscious. Selfridge died shortly after the accident from his injuries and became powered flight's first fatality. The Army was to purchase the Wright (Co) Type A Military (Signal Corps No. 1) for $30,000 in 1909.

Arrangement:

Collection is in original order.

Biographical / Historical:

This collection consists of 45 black and white photographs, of varying sizes and including some duplicates, taken by photographer W. S. Clime at the 1908-1909 official army trials at Fort Myer, Virginia. Shown in the images are the Wright 1908 Military Flyer in flight and on the ground; the crash that injured Orville Wright and killed Thomas Selfridge; and Thomas S. Baldwin with an Army dirigible. Other persons shown in the photographs include mechanic Charles W. Taylor; Major George O. Squier; Lieutenant Frank P. Lahm; Lieutenant Benjamin D. Foulois; Augustus Post; and Mrs. M. Longworth. The collection also contains one unrelated photograph of A. Roy Knabenshue making a flight over Washington, DC.

Provenance:

A. S. Clime, Gift, Unknown, NASM.XXXX.0904

Restrictions:

No restrictions on access.

Rights:

Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests

Topic:

Wright (Co) Type A Military (Signal Corps No. 1)  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographic prints

Citation:

Fort Myer Army Trial Flight Photographs, NASM.XXXX.0904, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:

NASM.XXXX.0904

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/pg28cfe3bcf-c059-405f-a540-25b900353832

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nasm-xxxx-0904

Author:

DuFour, Howard  Search this

Arehart, James D  Search this

Battino, Rubin  Search this

Subject:

Taylor, Charles Edward 1868-1956  Search this

Physical description:

xix, 244 p. : ill. ; 26 cm

Type:

Biography

Place:

United States

Date:

1998

C1998

Topic:

Aeronautics--History  Search this

Aviation mechanics (Persons)  Search this

Call number:

TL540.T39 D846 1998

Data Source:

Smithsonian Libraries

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_sil_613249

Author:

DuFour, Howard R  Search this

Vaughan, David Kirk  Search this

Unitt, Peter J  Search this

Subject:

Taylor, Charles Edward 1868-1956  Search this

Physical description:

ix, 195 p. : ill. ; 29 cm

Type:

Biography

Place:

United States

Date:

1997

C1997

Topic:

Aeronautics--History  Search this

Aviation mechanics (Persons)  Search this

Call number:

TL540.T39 D84 1997

Data Source:

Smithsonian Libraries

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_sil_559922