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

plane, it was the world s first passenger plane, carrying
Charles Furnas on April 6, 1908. The author
describes the Wright brothers entrance into the world
of business with the signing of their first contract with
the U.S. Signal Corps. Includes illustration of the
1905 airplane, with specifications.
Christy, Joe. First to fly Blue Ridge. In his High
Adventure: The First 75 Years of Civil Aviation. Summit,
Pennsylvania: Tab Books, Inc., 1985.
Describes the significant events and circumstances
that influenced the course of the development of nonmilitary
aviation in the United States, beginning in the
first chapter with the Wright brothers and the controversy
with Glenn Curtiss.
Roland, Alex. Model Research: The National Advisory
Committee for Aeronautics 1915-1958. Washington,
D.C.: NASA SP-4103, 1985, 769 pp. (2 vols.), +illus.
Comprehensive and detailed history of the National
Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), established
in 1915 and replaced by NASA in 1958.
Though often critical of some of its particular policies,
the author describes NACA as a model research
organization. Bibliographic essay pp. 305—320, chapter
notes pp. 321—391. Includes an index.
1986—1995
Crouch, Tom D. How the Bicycle Took Wing. American
Heritage of Invention & Technology, Summer 1986, pp.
10—16, +illus.
Popular journal article discussing the influence of
the bicycle on the development of the airplane both
for the analogy of bicycling and flying in the public
mind, and for the technical problems that had to be
solved particularly the problem of control and balance
in all three axes of motion and the need for
weight reduction. The author argues that the Wright
brothers experience with the bicycle was an important
factor, but it was their genius that was the decisive
factor in their invention of the airplane.
Harris, Patrick. Exhibition Era of Early Aviation in
Oregon, 1910-1915. Oregon Historical Quarterly, Fall
1986, vol. 87.
Based on Oregon newspaper articles. Includes
photos and 98 bibliographic notes. Describes demonstrations
by the Glenn Curtiss and Wright brothers
troupes; such events helped spark aviation fever in
the Oregon press, public, and budding designers and
flyers.
Carson, Annette. Foreword by George C. Larson. Flight
Aeroplanes and Flights
Fantastic: The Illustrated History of Aerobatics.
Sparkford, England: Haynes Publishing Group, 1986,
320 pp.
A well-researched, detailed study of aerobatics,
including the role of the Wright brothers, with numerous
photographs, sketches, as well as diagrams of
maneuvers.
References on pp. 319—320.
Culver, Edith Dodd. Talespins: A Story of Early Aviation
Days. Santa Fe, New Mexico: Sunstone Press, 1986, 128
pp., +illus.
Reminiscences by the author, of the pioneers of aviation
in the United States, and of her life as the wife
of H. Paul Culver, the first pilot to fly a regularly
scheduled air mail route between Washington, D.C.,
and New York in May 1918. Includes passing references
to the Wright brothers and their sister Katharine,
and an approving quote attributed to the people of
Dayton that without Kitty Wright there wouldn t
have been any Kitty Hawk. Includes an index and
some photographs.
Gibbons, Gail. Flying. New York: Holiday House, 1986,
[32 pp.]
Presents a brief history of flight, from balloons to
space shuttles, including the Wright brothers.
Walker, Lois E., and Wickam, Shelby E. From Huffman
Prairie to the Moon: The History of Wright-Patterson
Air Force Base. Washington, D.C.: United States Air
Force Logistics Command, 1986.
Excellent quality photographs, with history and
general information on Huffman Prairie (1914-1916),
various Wright airplanes, Wright School of Aviation,
Dayton-Wright Airplane Company, establishment of
Wilbur Wright Field.
Includes extensive index.
Christy, Joe. With contributions by Alexander T. Wells.
American Aviation: An Illustrated History. Blue Ridge
Summit, Pennsylvania: Tab Books, Inc., 1987, 394 pp.,
+illus.
Designed as an aviation history textbook for college
level aviation programs. Each chapter begins
with a list of the major objectives to be covered and
ends with a list of review questions. The Wright brothers
are discussed in pp. 1—11. Includes numerous photographs
and an extensive index; appendix B contains
the answers to the objective questions.
Boyne, Walter J. Smithsonian Book of Flight.
Washington, D.C: Smithsonian Books, 1987, 288 pp.,
+illus.
Also published by New York: Orion Books.
A Bibliography 71