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Tyril Falconer Mrs. Edmonson English I-B2 23 March 2012

Wilbur Wright was born on April 16, 1867 in Millville, Indiana, and his brother, Orville, on August 19, 1871 in Dayton, Ohio. Although the boys showed genius at birth, neither bothered to graduate from high school. Wilbur planned on going to Yale University to study to be a clergyman but he suffered a facial injury during a game of hockey. Their parents were Susan and Milton Wright. They lived in Dayton, Ohio. They opened a bike sales and repair shop in Dayton. Soon they were making and selling their own bikes. The bikes were $18.00 each The boys had a lot of influence for joining the inventing business. Their favorite toy as kids was a little helicopter made from paper, cork, and bamboo. They also thought their mother could fix anything that was broken. They watched her and learned to take things apart. They liked to figure out how things worked. So they started to watch birds fly to understand. But one of their main influences would have to be Otto Lilienthal, a German engineer who tried to build a glider. In 1896 while testing one of his gliders, a sudden shift of wind sent his plane to the ground and him to his death. The brothers chose to look into flight. They did some experiments and when their work seemed wrong they conducted new and more thorough experiments. They decided that the first step should be to build a steering mechanism. In 1900 they made their first trip to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina to conduct experiments on the sand hills there. They figured the sand would make a soft landing and cause little damage to them and the aircraft. Back in Dayton they built the first wind

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tunnel of lift-pressures for various wing surfaces and wind speeds. Their tests proved to the brothers that it is possible to build a self-powered airplane that could safely carry passengers. They built their first plane in 1899. It weighed 750 pounds and could travel at 31 miles per hour. The engine, which they had to build themselves, had four cylinders and developed 12 horsepower. The first flight was attempted by Orville. It lasted only 12 seconds during which the airplane flew 120 feet. They modified the plane by adding a special tail to it. The fourth flight by Wilbur lasted 59 seconds and traveled 852 feet. On December 17, 1903, the brothers flew their new plane , Flyer I in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. Suspecting that they were about to make history, they advertised in several newspapers about the test flight, but no reporters thought the experiments were newsworthy. Their only audience was five men, two boys, and a dog. In 1908 they were finally recognized when they demonstrated the inventions in Europe. Soon they were selling planes to the government, France, Germany, Italy, and the United States, adding to their income and fame. In 1908 the United States war department contracted for a Wright Flying Machine for the army. In 1809 they formed the American Wright Corporation and proceeded to manufacture their improved planes and train pilots. Wilbur died of typhoid fever in May of 1912. Wilbur, who continued to test fly all of the planes, retired from the aircraft manufacturing business to pursue his own research interests. But Wilburs death left Orville feeling depressed and alone. He sold all of his rights to the firm and gave up his interest in manufacturing in order to turn to experimental workings in 1915. He died on January 30, 1948.

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The Wright brothers successfully invented self-powered airplanes that could safely carry passengers. They will forever be known as the most creative and imaginative inventors of society.

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