In
August of 1900, Wilbur built his first glider. He then
contacted the U.S. Weather Bureau for information on windy
regions of the country. Reviewing the list, he chose a remote
sandy area off the coast of North Carolina named Kitty Hawk,
where winds averaged 13 m.p.h. He and Orville then journeyed
to Kitty Hawk where they tested the 1900 glider. The following
year, they tested a new and improved glider with a 22-foot
wingspan. A disappointing performance by the 1901 glider
prompted the Wright brothers to construct a wind tunnel to
test the effectiveness of a variety of wing shapes. Using the
results of the wind tunnel experiments, they constructed their
1902 glider. Testing it at Kitty Hawk in October, they met
with success, gliding a record 620 feet. Once again they
returned to Dayton and began work on developing a propeller
and an engine for their next effort, a flying machine.
Having designed
a propeller with the same principles thy used to design their
wings, Wilbur and Orville then built their own 4-cylinder,
12-horsepower engine. They built the 1903 Flyer in sections in
the back room of their cycle shop at 1127 West Third in
Dayton. When completed, it was shipped down to Kitty Hawk and
assembled. On December 14, 1903, Wilbur won a coin toss and
made the first attempt to fly the machine. He stalled it on
take-off, causing some minor damage. The plane was repaired,
and Orville made the next attempt on December 17. At 10:35
a.m., he made the first heavier-than-air, machine powered
flight in the world. In a flight lasting only 12 seconds and
covering just 120 feet, Orville did what men and women had
only dreamed of doing for centuries, . . . he flew.
