WRIGHT BROTHERS NATIONAL MEMORIAL

NORTH CAROLINA

The morning of December 17, 1903 was bitterly cold and windy as Wilbur and Orville Wright prepared their Flyer, a bi-plane design with a wingspan of 40 feet and 4 inches, powered by a four cylinders, aluminum block, 12 horsepower gasoline engine with two eight and a half-foot propellers. With the help of four local men and a sixteen-year old boy, they moved the Flyer into position. At 10:35 am, Orville assumed the prone position in the U-shaped hip cradle on the lower wing of the Flyer. With a start of the engine and release of aircraft, the machine began to roll slowly down a monorail into the 27 mph wind. After a 40 foot run down the rail the machine lifted into the air and climbed to a height of 10 feet. It darted erratically up and down several times and swooped to the ground 120 feet from the take off point. It was the world's first powered flight.

In December 2003, the world will be celebrating the centennial of the December 17, 1903 first powered flight achieved by the Wright brothers on the sand flats of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, now the site of Wright Brothers National Memorial. The Wright brothers' success of the first powered flight is one of our country's greatest engineering and scientific achievements. It is the story that goes directly to the core of what we hold dear as Americans, the freedom to pursue a dream to reality and ultimately change the world.

Authorized by Congress on March 2, 1927 and established in 1928, the 425-acre Wright Brothers National Memorial on the Outer Banks of North Carolina commemorates the achievements of Wilbur and Orville Wright. A commemorative boulder, which marked the liftoff point of the first powered flight, was laid in 1928. Orville Wright attended the dedication, as well as his guest, Amelia Earhart. The Wright Monument, atop the Big Kill Devil Hill, is 61 feet high and sits on a foundation shaped like a five-pointed star; the same shape as the base of the Statue of Liberty. The 61 ft Wright Monument sits atop the Big Kill Devil Hill, a sand dune which was used by the Wright brothers for over 1,000 glider flights. The park’s visitor center was recently designated a National Historic Landmark due to its modernist design and significance to the National Park Service Mission 66 program.

DID YOU KNOW

• There were actually four Wright brothers - Ruchlin, Loren, Wilbur, and Orville. There was also a sister - Katharine.
• The Big Kill Devil Hill actually moved 450 feet to the southwest during the 25 years from the Wrights' first flight in 1903 until 1928, when the park was established.
• The Wright Monument is the largest monument in this country built to a living person. Orville Wright attended the Monument dedication in1932.
• The Wrights never patented their 1903 Wright Flyer. Their patent was based on the control system of their 1902 glider.
• The Wrights first became interested in flight as children, when Wilbur was eleven years old and Orville seven years old, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, when their father gave them a small flying toy.
• Famous African American poet Paul Lawrence Dunbar was childhood friend of the Wrights. They published some of his early works in their Dayton newspaper "The West Side News". The Paul Lawrence Dunbar Home is a partner park of Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park.

DON'T MISS ATTRACTIONS

For detailed information on the First Flight Centennial Celebration, check www.firstflightcentennial.org

• December 13-14, 2003 - REMEMBER THE PAST, IMAGINE THE FUTURE: This two-day festival will celebrate aviation's impact over the last century and will feature appearances by historic aviators, exhibits chronicling this history of flight, aircraft demonstrations, and entertainment.
• December 15, 2003 - PROTECTING THE HOME OF THE BRAVE: Celebrating the impact of aviation in the military, this day is designed to honor those men and women who developed and flew military aircraft through the years. Highlights include military aircraft dating back to World War I and participation from the U.S. Military stationed around the world.
• December 16, 2003 - IN HISTORY'S FOOTSTEPS, CELEBRATING 100 AVIATION PIONEERS: The North Carolina Centennial Commission will hold a ceremony to honor 100 aviation heroes, as selected by the commission. In addition, the historic contributions of these individuals will be examined through film and exhibits. (Well-known Master of Ceremonies to host event; Lee Greenwood on the Main Stage at 1 p.m.)
• December 17, 2003 - 12 SECONDS THAT CHANGED THE WORLD: The celebration will culminate with the EAA's re-creation of the single-most significant moment of the last century - the Wright brothers' first heavier-than-air powered flight which took off at precisely 10:35 a.m. and lasted 12 seconds, traveling 120 feet. Dignitaries, celebrities and aviation legends will be on hand to celebrate and commemorate this occasion.

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE PRIORITIES

Park partners are the cornerstone in planning and implementation of the First Flight Centennial Celebration. The Service's key partners in the event are the North Carolina First Flight Centennial Commission, a State of North Carolina organization established to commemorate the centennial; and the First Flight Centennial Foundation, a nonprofit funding raising organization. Significant roles in the event are held by the Experimental Aircraft Association, the U.S. Air Force, North Carolina Outer Banks, and First Flight Society. The National Park Service is also working closely with numerous federal, state, local, and private sector partners in this complex event.

Numerous donors to the First Flight Centennial have made both in-kind and financial contributions to ready Wright Brothers National Memorial for the event. By investing in capital improvements and educational programming at the park, these contributors recognize the importance of inspiring the next generation of innovators.

The National Park Service expresses sincere gratitude to all the agencies and individuals who have assisted in event and site preparations. Without our partners, this wondrous event would never have gotten off the ground.

LINKS:

Wright Brothers National Memorial Home Page»

Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park»

Partnering & Managing for Excellence Report»