By: Javin Russell
Their father was a bishop at the United Brethren Church, and wasn't home very much. He was often out doing church business and could not spend much time with them. Milton, their father, would bring home presents to them often. In 1878 he brought a rubber band powered helicopter home, and Wilbur and Orville, the wright brothers, started rebuilding it. Orville dropped out of high-school in 1889, which was the same year that their mother, Susan, died of tuberculosis.
The Wright Brothers gained interest in building an airplane in 1896 because none had been created with controls. In 1899 Wilbur created a system where the pilot could bend the wings in order to turn the plane left or right. The Wrights tested a glider twice but both tests failed, so they began performing experiments to see which wing shape is the best. They flew their first successful flight in 1902, which was the first fully controllable aircraft. In 1903 with help from Charlie Taylor, a mechanic, they made airplane propellers and made a gasoline airplane engine.
Impact on History
The Wright Brothers made a significant impact on history and were some of the first to create and advance the way plane controls work and how planes fly. Their work has evolved into what it is today, a huge convenience used for traveling daily by thousands of people. News helicopters are used often and helicopters are also used in the military along with planes. Airplanes effect the world in many ways, and are almost essential to society now.
Wright Brothers Biography
Questions for the Video
- What was the Wright Brothers' father named?
- What technique did the brothers experiment with?