On December
17, 1903, at 10:35 a.m., Wilbur and Orville Wright made the world’s
first sustained, powered, and controlled flight in a heavier-than-air
flying machine, thereby realizing one of mankind’s oldest
and most persistent aspirations—human flight. To commemorate
this achievement and to celebrate the centennial anniversary of
that great event, the Library of Congress has created a special
presentation within its American Treasures Gallery. The Dream
of Flight presents
the Wrights’ achievement and also
uses some of the Library’s rarest and most significant materials
to explore the notion that flight, whether fanciful or actual,
historically
has inspired and occupied a central place in most cultures. Drawing
on the Library’s Wilbur and Orville Wright Collections as
well as the complementary materials in the papers of their mentor
and friend, Octave Chanute, this special display culminates in
the compelling story of two motivated and inspired American bicycle
mechanics single-handedly acquiring an understanding of the scientific
problem of flight and aerodynamics and, through determination,
courage, will, and ingenuity, teaching themselves and
the world to fly.
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