Dr. Tom Crouch: The Prairie Patch - Huffman Prairie as an American Place

September 9, 2004
7:00pm

In honor of the 100th anniversary since the Wright brothers started flying at Huffman Prairie, Dr. Crouch, Senior Curator of aeronautics at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum and biographer of the Wright brothers, offers a look at the history of this one small piece of Ohio landscape. The Prairie has witnessed more than its share of history since the day in 1802 when pioneer Israel Ludlow first surveyed the site. The Adena people raised mounds to the dead less than two miles away. Roads and railroads that linked the Miami Valley to the world passed along the edge of the Prairie. It was in this field, in 1904 and 1905, that Wilbur and Orville Wright transformed their marginally successful flying machine into the world's first practical airplane. The Prairie became the focus of national and world attention between 1909 and 1915, when the Wrights operated their flying school and testing ground here. From that time to this, men and women have written history in the sky over Huffman Prairie.

This event will be held at the Engineers Club of Dayton, 110 East Monument Street, Dayton, Ohio.
The event is free and open to the public.

Need more information?
Contact park staff at 937-225-7705

Plan Your Visit

Learning Center

Park Partners

Cultural Resources

Press Room

Park Facts

Interactive Timeline

History of the
Wright Brothers

The Quest for
Practical Flight

Kings of the Air

The Paul Laurence
Dunbar Story