Dayton Aviation National Historical Park

After Wilbur and Orville Wright proved to the world that flight was possible in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, they returned to Dayton to improve their airplane and figure out how to fly for more than a few seconds. They got a local farmer to allow them to use his land, Huffman Prairie Flying Field, where they experimented, tinkered, and learned how to fly an airplane in relative secrecy.

They used a launching beam to launch their airplane, similar to what they did in North Carolina. However, Ohio didn't have the sustained winds they had in North Carolina, and the winds often shifted. The result: they would be all set to launch their airplane, the winds would shift, and then they would have to reposition their launch. So, Wilber and Orville created a catapult to launch their airplane from. (What is there now is a reproduction). They also folded up and stored their airplane in this shed after each flight (the shed is a replica built on the site of their 1905 shed).

Slowly, people learned what the Wright brothers were doing in this remote field and would come out to watch. One funny story we came across is that they took their 80-year-old father up in an airplane and flew him around for a few minutes. Before that, the two brothers flew together for the first and only time--having promised their father they would never do that, as he was terrified of their dying. Overall, Dayton Aviation was much more interesting than I had anticipated it being. I really enjoyed the field and learning about their story more than just the "first flight." We didn't get to see their bicycle shop, as it was closed the day we were there. But all the more reason to return in the future.