A Dream is Born

"From the time we were little children, my brother Orville and myself lived together, played together, worked together, and in fact, thought together." -- Wilbur Wright

Wilbur was born on a farm near Milville, Indiana, April 16 , 1867. The family moved to Dayton, Ohio, where Orville was born on August 19, 1871, at 7 Hawthorn Street. They had two older brothers, Reuchlin & Lorin, and a younger sister, Katharine. (Parker, Steve p.5)

Their father, Milton Wright, became a bishop of the United Brethren Church. He was sometimes away from home for long periods and taught his sons that with hard work and a will to succeed, they could achieve almost anything. During their schooldays Orville and Wilbur were always messing about with machines and playing with kites. (Parker, Steve p.5)

As boys, Wilbur and Orville loved to build and fix things. One of the first things they built together was a lathe -- a machine for cutting and shaping pieces of wood. Their father encouraged the boys in their building projects. On his return home from one of his trips, Pastor Wright brought his sons a flying toy. It was made of cork and paper and was powered by rubber bands. The toy fascinated Wilbur and Orville. (Santella, Andrew p.8)

In 1884, the Wrights moved back to Dayton, Ohio, home of the United Brethren Publishing House. By that time, Pastor Wright was a bishop in the church and editor of the church newspaper. At around the same time, Susan Wright became ill with tuberculosis. Wilbur stayed home to take care of his mother, but sadly her condition became worse, and she died in 1889. 

Afterwards, Wilbur began to help his father produce the church newspaper. He contributed articles and invented a machine to fold papers in half for delivery. Orville left school and started his own printing business. With Wilbur's help, he built a printing press and started a weekly newspaper called the West Side News. Wilbur became the newspaper's editor. (Santella, Andrew pp. 9-10)

Next, the brothers and Ed Sines set up as Wright and Wright, Job Printers. They worked hard, producing posters, ads, leaflets, and cards, and built up the business. Soon bicycles took over from printing. Ed Sines was put in charge of the printing business.

Beginning in 1892, Wilbur and Orville set up the Wright Cycle Company. They opened a shop at 1127 West Third Street, Dayton, then started more shops. They sold bicycles, repaired and rented them, and began to design and make their own models. In future years, the money from the cycle business would allow the Wrights to spend many months on their flying machines. (Parker, Steve p.7)

The Wrights constantly taught themselves more skills with machines and mechanics. They worked with metals and woods and used tools such as drills and lathes. They even made a small combustion engine to power their workshop machinery.

During the late 1890s, the Wright brothers' interests moved on again. Gliding was in the news. It was said that one day a person would achieve real powered flight. Whoever did this would become famous and wealthy. Remembering the kites and "bat" toy of their childhood, the Wrights decided that they wanted to build a flying machine. (Parker, Steve p.8)

Next: Early Efforts