Published Writings of Wilbur and Orville Wright - NASA's History Office

1966—1975
Gibbs-Smith, Charles H. A Directory of and
Nomenclature of the First Aeroplanes, 1809-1909.
London: H. Majesty s Stationery Office, 1966, 120 pp.
Wright aeroplanes and engines are discussed and
listed, pp. 79—85, 98. Section titled Surviving
Aircraft, pp. 101—102, lists four Wright aircraft; section
titled Surviving Engines, pp. 102—103, lists six
Wright engines; and section titled The First
Aerodromes, pp. 107—110, discusses Huffman
Prairie and Kitty Hawk, and the Kill Devil Hills.
Haggerty, James J. The U.S. Air Force; A Pictorial
History in Art. New York and Washington, D.C.: Books,
Inc., 1966, 261 pp. +illus.
Comprises reproductions from the Air Force Art
Collection. Included, pp. 2—7, are The Wright
Brothers First Powered Flight, by Harvey Kidder;
Lieutenant Lahm s First Flight [with Orville
Wright], by Richard Green; and The Wright
Brothers at Fort Myer, by John McCoy.
Meyer, Jerome S. Let s Build a Glider with One of Those
Gas Engines in it, Great Accidents in Science that
Changed the World. New York: Arco Publishing Co.,
1967, pp. 64—71, +illus.
Accounts of the discoveries of nine scientists
whose attention to trivial or accidental things led to
great advances, including the Wright brothers.
Includes illustration of the Wright s first patent granted
on a practical airplane.
Brennan, Dennis. Adventures in Courage: The
Skymasters. Chicago: Reilly & Lee, 1968, 159 pp., +illus.
Exploits of famous, including the Wright brothers,
and some forgotten aviation pioneers. Append. pp.
155—159.
Loening, Grover. Takeoff into Greatness: How American
Aviation Grew so Big so Fast. New York: G. P. Putnam s
Sons, 1968, 256 pp., +illus.
The author, who was Orville Wright s assistant for
a period of time, describes the men and major events
that comprised the rise of the aircraft industry in
America. In his discussion, he includes the Wright
brothers, the Wright Company, the Wright
Aeronautical Company, and Wright—Martin Aircraft.
Andrews, Robert Hardy. Flying Fools Who Started It
All. Mankind, Apr. 1969, pp. 22—31, +illus.
Popular overview of the early history of flight, from
the 1600s to the Wright brothers to John Glenn s
orbital spaceflight.
Aeroplanes and Flights
Dwiggins, Don. Adventures in Flight Famous Flyers
and the Ships They Flew. New York: Grosset & Dunlap,
Inc., 1969, 149 pp.
Begins with a discussion of the Wright brothers
achievement, then describes the development of
numerous aircraft, their pilots and the records they set.
Includes many photographs as well as a list of books
for further reading.
Hildreth, Charles H., and Nalty, Bernard C. 1001
Questions Answered about Aviation History. New York :
Dodd, Mead & Co., 1969, 419 pp., +illus.
Includes numerous popular questions about the
Wright brothers.
Bibliography pp. 385—386.
King, Horace Frederick. Edited by John W. R. Taylor.
Janes 100 Significant Aircraft, 1909-1969. London:
Jane s Yearbooks, 1969, 157 pp.
Detailed description of the Wright Flyer, including
photographs and drawings, pp. 8—9.
Two other editions under varying titles are also
available: Milestones of the Air: Jane s 100
Significant Aircraft, New York: McGraw—Hill, 1969;
and Kitty Hawk to Concorde: Janes 100 Significant
Aircraft, London: Jane s Yearbooks, 1969.
Wallhauser, Henry T. Illustrations by Jack Woodson.
Pioneers of Flight. Maplewood, New Jersey: Hammond
Incorporated, 1969, 93 pp., +illus.
Important personalities and events in the history
of flight from the Wright brothers in 1903 to the
supersonic transport in 1969, for secondary school
level. Illustrated by drawings and photographs.
Includes an index.
Harris, Sherwood. First to Fly American Heritage,
June 1970, pp. 60—69, +illus.
Describes the Wright brothers flights at Kitty
Hawk in 1903 and their invention of a control system
still used on airplanes today.
Schirra, Walter M., Jr. Excerpts from Sherwood Harris
The First to Fly: Aviation s Pioneer Days. Raw
December Day at Kitty Hawk, Smithsonian, June 1970,
pp. 28—31, +illus.
Introductory commentary by Capt. Schirra on the
Wrights achievement. Features portions from original
letters and narratives by Orville and Wilbur Wright
about their first flights in 1903.
Burchard, Peter. Pioneers of Flight; From Early Times to
the Wright Brothers. New York: St. Martin s Press, 1970,
48 pp., +illus.
Traces the history of man s attempts to fly from
A Bibliography 67