As long as humans have observed creatures in flight, we have dreamed of taking to the skies ourselves. But Wilbur and Orville Wright were determined to be the ones to turn the dream into reality. So what did they need to learn from the early aviation pioneers who preceded them? And how did these two bicycle makers with no college education succeed where others had failed?

This is a Short History of The Wright Brothers.

Written by Linda Harrison. With thanks to Alexander Rose, author of Empire of the Sky: Zeppelins, Aeroplanes, and Two Men’s Epic Duel to Rule the World. 

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