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Orville Wright 1871 - 1948

Orville Wright was born on August 19, 1871 in Dayton, Ohio USA to Susan Catherine (Koerner) Wright and Milton Wright, and had siblings Wilbur Wright, Katharine Wright, Reuchlin Wright, Lorin Wright, Ida Wright, and Otis Wright. Orville Wright died at age 76 years old on January 30, 1948 in Dayton, and was buried on February 2, 1948 at Woodland Cemetery in Dayton.

Orville Wright

August 19, 1871

Dayton, Ohio, USA

January 30, 1948

Dayton, Ohio, USA

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Orville Wright Orville Wright (1871 - 1948)

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Orville Wright's History: 1871 - 1948

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Introduction

Along with his brother, Wilber, Orville Wright is known for being a pioneer in aviation in the U.S. They invented, built, and flew the world's first successful motor-operated airplane in 1903. Their first enterprise was a bicycle shop - they repaired and sold bicycles! Neither of the brothers had middle names as their father wanted to give them "unique enough" first names.
08/19

1871

Birthday

August 19, 1871

Birthdate

Dayton, Ohio USA

Birthplace

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Ethnicity & Family History

English and Dutch from his father (Milton Wright) German and Swiss from his mother (Susan Catherine Koerner) It is said that his grandmother (Milton's mother) is a descendant of the Vanderbilt family.
Nationality & Locations

Orville was born in in Dayton, Ohio in 1871. As his father was a Bishop in the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, the family moved a lot including spending time in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (1878-1881), Richmond, Indiana (1881-1884), and eventually moved back to Dayton, Ohio in 1884.
Early Life & Education

Orville attended public high school and was quoted saying he grew up in a home where“there was always much encouragement to children to pursue intellectual interests; to investigate whatever aroused curiosity.” He ended up dropping out of high school junior year to open a printing business in 1889 with his brother Wilbur. The two brothers started a weekly paper titled " West Side News" with Orville as publisher and Wilbur as editor.
Religious Beliefs

Not much is said about Orville's religious beliefs, but it is known that their father was a Bishop in the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, Orville was named after clergyman "Orville Dewey", and he never worked on Sundays, used tobacco or drank alcohol (similar to the beliefs of his father).
Professional Career

In 1889, the bothers opened a writing business and began a weekly newspaper by the name of “West Side News”. Their next venture began in 1892, when the brothers opened a bike repair and sales shop called “the Wright Cycle Exchange” which spurred due to the national bicycle craze. IN 1892 they began manufacturing their own bikes and changed the name of the shop to the “Wright Cycle Company. This business gave the two the monetary funds to start their flight research. In 1899 the brothers began testing out wing warping, by building and flying a biplane kite which would be their start towards the first successful flight. The brothers then moved to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina to further their flight studies and theories and begin their first test flights. Once in Kitty Hawk the brothers worked on gliders using other known facts at the time to improve and better their flying capabilities. Some information has led us to believe that Wilbur did all of the gliding until 1902 as his big brother duty to protect younger brother Orville. After more testing, they built their third full scale glider that ran perfectly during test flights at Kill Devil Hills in Sept 1902. In the Winter of 1902, they built a wind tunnel, a gasoline engine powerful and light enough to propel a plane, airplane propellers, and a powered aircraft. With all of this ready, they headed back to Kill Devil Hills to assemble and test their powered flying machine for 7 weeks in September 1903. It was on December 17 1903 that Orville made the first successful flight flying a distance of 120 feet in 12 seconds. The brothers then took turns trying to beat each others record for a total of 4 flights that day. 1st flight Orville: 120 feet, 12 seconds 2nd flight Wilbur: 175 feet, 12 seconds 3rd flight Orville: 200 feet, 15 seconds 4th flight Wilbur: 825 feet, 59 seconds
Personal Life & Family

Inventor, Aviation
01/30

1948

Death

January 30, 1948

Death date

Heart attack

Cause of death

Dayton, Ohio USA
Death location

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02/2

1948

Gravesite & Burial

February 2, 1948

Funeral date
Woodland Cemetery in Dayton, Ohio USA
Burial location
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Orville Wright lived 4 years longer than the average family member when died at the age of 76.

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Memories

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20 Memories, Stories & Photos about Orville

AncientFaces

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05/07/2023

The Wright brothers

The Wright brothers at the International Aviation Tournament, Belmont Park, Long Island, N.Y., Oct. 1910

Date & Place: 1910

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05/07/2023

Wright brothers flight

Photo taken during a Wright brothers flight,

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

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AncientFaces

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05/07/2023

Wright brothers flight

Photo taken during the historical Wright brothers flight.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

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01/11/2012

Orville Wright and Lieutenant Lahm

Orville Wright and Lieutenant Lahm of the United States Signal Corps making the world's record flight at Fort Myer, on July 27--The aeroplane made fifty miles at a speed of about forty miles an hour

Date & Place: July 27, 1909

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September 1908 Orville Wright Plane Crash

Daniel Pinna

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09/09/2020

September 1908 Orville Wright Plane Crash

During flight trials to win a contract from the U.S. Army Signal Corps, pilot Orville Wright and passenger Lt. Thomas Selfridge crashed in a Wright Flyer at Fort Myer, Virginia. Wright was injured, and Selfridge becomes the first passenger to die in an airplane accident.

Another image of this crash can be found at: Pilot Orville Wright plane crash kills Lt. Selfridge - 1st airplane fatality

Date & Place: September 17, 1908 at Fort Myer in Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia 22211, United States

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Pilot Orville Wright plane crash kills Lt. Selfridge - 1st airplane fatality

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01/10/2012

Pilot Orville Wright plane crash kills Lt. Selfridge - 1st airplane fatality

Tending to pilot Orville Wright or passenger Lieutenant Thomas E. Selfridge after the crash of the Wright Military Flyer at Fort Myer, Virginia

The plane crashed when a propeller broke and the Lieutenant became the first passenger killed in an airplane crash.

Another image of this crash can be found at:
September 1908 Orville Wright Plane Crash

Date & Place: September 17, 1908 at Fort Myer, in Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia 22211, United States

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AncientFaces

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09/09/2020

Does flying scare you or thrill you? Today in 1908 Orville Wright broke new records when he flew a plane solo for over an hour. Then on Sept 17 he crashed while flying, killing his passenger Lt. Thomas Selfridge, making him the first person to die in a powered airplane crash. This is the aftermath of the flight on Sept 17.

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