Archival Manuscript/Mixed Formats (Collection)Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright papers, 1809-1979
Main title
- Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright papers, 1809-1979 (bulk 1900-1948).
Links
Links
- Wilbur and Orville Wright Papers at the Library of Congress : Selected Material http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/collmss.ms000022 opens in a new window
- Finding aid http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms998012 opens in a new window
- Finding aid (PDF) http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms998012.3 opens in a new window
More Information
LCCN Permalink
Description
- 32,250 items.
- 120 containers plus 14 oversize.
- 61 linear feet.
- 15 microfilm reels.
Access advisory
- Open to research.
Finding aids
- Finding aid available in the Library of Congress Manuscript Reading Room and at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms998012 opens in a new window
Local shelving no.
- 0331L
- Oversize 0112Q
- Oversize 3:14
- Oversize 6: Top of cabinet
- Microfilm 17,424-1N-1P
- Microfilm 17,705-14N-14P
Former title
- Wright brothers papers
- Papers of Wilbur and Orville Wright
Variant title
- Wilbur and Orville Wright papers
Portion of title
- Wilbur Wright papers
- Orville Wright papers
Related titles
- Wilbur and Orville Wright Papers at the Library of Congress
Related names
- McFarland, Marvin Wilks, 1919-1985, editor. Papers of Wilbur and Orville Wright, including the Chanute-Wright letters and other papers of Octave Chanute. 1953.
- Wright, Milton, 1828-1917. Milton Wright diaries. 1901-1907.
- Wright, Orville, 1871-1948. Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright papers. 1809-1979.
- Wright, Wilbur, 1867-1912. Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright papers. 1809-1979.
- United States. National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. United States. National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics records.
- Wright and Wright. Wright and Wright journals and ledgers.
- Wright Cycle Company. Wright Cycle Company journals and ledgers.
Biography/History note
- Aviation pioneers and inventors.
Organized/Arranged
- Arranged in eight series. Series 1: Diaries and Notebooks, 1900-1919; Series 2: Family Papers, 1881-1973; Series 3: General Correspondence, 1888-1951; Series 4: Subject File, 1809-1964; Series 5: Scrapbooks, 1902-1948; Series 6: Marvin W. McFarland File, 1880-1979; Series 7: 2019 Addition, 1907-1931; and Series 8: Oversize, 1889-1950.
Summary
- Correspondence, diaries, minutes, notebooks, writings, reports, business and legal papers, genealogical material, printed matter, patents, blueprints, photographs, and other papers relating primarily to the invention of the airplane and the development of aviation. Documents the lives and work of the Wright brothers who designed, built, and piloted the first machine to achieve powered, sustained flight in 1903 and the first practical airplane in 1905.
- The papers include scientific data, formulas, and computations related to aerodynamic and design factors and describe the brothers' experimentation with flight at Kitty Hawk, N.C., 1900-1903, at College Park, Md., in 1909, and at Montgomery, Ala., in 1910, and their trips abroad making flight demonstrations. Subjects include the sale of the Wright airplane to the U.S. Army and others; business concerns involving the Wright Company, Flint and Company, Brewer and Son, Thierry Brothers, and companies established in Great Britain, France, and Germany to produce and sell Wright aircraft; the Wright brothers' patents in the U.S. and abroad as well as airplane patents by others; and the brothers' dispute with Smithsonian Institution over whether S.P. Langley had created an aircraft capable of flight prior to the Wrights' flight in December 1903.
- Also includes journals and ledgers from Wright and Wright printing company and Wright Cycle Company; records of the U.S. National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics; typescripts, research material, and photographs collected for The Papers of Wilbur and Orville Wright, edited by Marvin Wilks McFarland and published in 1953; and Wright family papers including transcripts of Milton Wright's diaries, 1901-1907. The 2019 Addition includes a 1919 letter from Orville Wright concerning his test flight of the first military airplane, Signal Corps No. 1, on July 30, 1909.
- Wright family correspondents include Katharine Wright Haskell, Lorin Wright, Milton Wright, and Reuchlin Wright. Other correspondents include Henry Harley Arnold, Hart O. Berg, Griffith Brewer, Octave Chanute, Robert J. Collier, Earl N. Findley, Benjamin D. Foulois, Fred C. Kelly, Roy Knabenshue, Frank Purdy Lahm, Charles A. Lindbergh, Grover Cleveland Loening, Glenn L. Martin, Charles Stewart Rolls, G.A. Spratt, Paul Tissandier, Harry A. Toulmin, and Pliny W. Williamson.
LC Subjects
- Arnold, Henry Harley, 1886-1950--Correspondence.
- Berg, Hart O., 1865-1941--Correspondence.
- Brewer, Griffith, 1867-1948--Correspondence.
- Chanute, Octave, 1832-1910--Correspondence.
- Collier, Robert J. (Robert Joseph), 1876-1918--Correspondence.
- Findley, Earl N. (Earl Nelson), 1878-1956--Correspondence.
- Foulois, Benjamin D., 1879-1967--Correspondence.
- Haskell, Katharine Wright, 1874-1929--Correspondence.
- Kelly, Fred C. (Fred Charters), 1882-1959--Correspondence.
- Knabenshue, Roy, -1960--Correspondence.
- Lahm, Frank Purdy, 1877-1963--Correspondence.
- Langley, S. P. (Samuel Pierpont), 1834-1906.
- Lindbergh, Charles A. (Charles Augustus), 1902-1974--Correspondence.
- Loening, Grover, 1888-1976--Correspondence.
- Martin, Glenn L. (Glenn Luther), 1886-1955--Correspondence.
- Rolls, Charles Stewart, 1877-1910--Correspondence.
- Spratt, G. A. (George Alexander), 1880-1934--Correspondence.
- Tissandier, Paul, 1881---Correspondence.
- Toulmin, Harry A. (Harry Aubrey), -1942--Correspondence.
- Williamson, Pliny W., -1958--Correspondence.
- Wright, Lorin--Correspondence.
- Wright, Milton, 1828-1917--Correspondence.
- Wright, Reuchlin--Correspondence.
- Wright family.
- Wright family--Correspondence.
- United States. Army--Procurement.
- Brewer and Son.
- Flint and Company.
- Signal Corps No. 1 (Airplane)
- Smithsonian Institution.
- Thierry Brothers.
- Wright Company.
- Aeronautics.
- Aircraft industry--France.
- Aircraft industry--Germany.
- Aircraft industry--Great Britain.
- Aircraft industry--United States.
- Airplanes.
- Bicycle industry--Ohio--Dayton.
- Flight.
- Patents.
- Printing--Ohio--Dayton.
- Wright Flyer (Airplane)
- College Park (Md.)--History.
- Kitty Hawk (N.C.)--History.
- Montgomery (Ala.)--History.
- Aviators.
- Inventors.
Notes
- Some photographs transferred to Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
- Collection material in English, with French and German.
Acquisition source
- Bequest, Orville Wright, 1949.
- Other gift, transfer, and purchase, 1949-2016.
Cite as
- Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container or reel number, Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Constituent unit
Additional formats
- Selected material from the papers of Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright available through the Library of Congress Web site at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/collmss.ms000022 opens in a new window
- Microfilm addition of diaries available; no. 17,424.
- Microfilm edition of scrapbooks available; no. 17,705.
- Microfilm produced from originals in the Manuscript Division. Washington, D.C. : Library of Congress Photoduplication Service, 1950-1979.
LCCN
- mm 78046706
Other standard no.
- MSS46706
Language code
- eng fre ger
Repository
- Library of Congress Manuscript Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA dcu http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.home opens in a new window
Type of material
- Archival Manuscript/Mixed Formats (Collection)
Item Availability
CALL NUMBER
- Microfilm 17,705
- Print negative
- Set 1
- Print negative do not circulate.
Request in
- For copy information call Photoduplication, 202-707-5640
Status
- c.1 Cont. 86, Reel 1 64 ft. In Process 04-17-2015
- c.1 Cont. 87, Reel 2 76 ft. In Process 04-17-2015
CALL NUMBER
Request in
- Manuscript Reading Room (Madison, LM101)
Status
- Not Charged
CALL NUMBER
- Oversize 0112Q
- OV 4-13
Request in
- Manuscript Reading Room (Madison, LM101)
Status
- Not Charged
CALL NUMBER
- Oversize 3:14
- OV 1, 2, & 3A
Request in
- Manuscript Reading Room (Madison, LM101)
Status
- Not Charged
CALL NUMBER
- Microfilm 17,705-14P
- Scrapbooks.
- Copy 1
Request in
- Manuscript Reading Room (Madison, LM101)
Status
- Not Charged
CALL NUMBER
- Microfilm 17,424-1P
- Diaries.
- Copy 1
Request in
- Manuscript Reading Room (Madison, LM101)
Status
- Not Charged
CALL NUMBER
- Microfilm 17,705-5P
- Scrapbooks : containers 86-90.
- Copy 2
Request in
- Manuscript Reading Room (Madison, LM101)
Status
- Not Charged
CALL NUMBER
Request in
- Manuscript Reading Room (Madison, LM101)
Status
- Not Charged
CALL NUMBER
- Microfilm 17,705
- Master negative
- Set 1
- Master negative do not circulate.
Request in
- ~To buy a copy call Photoduplication Service 202-707-5640
Status
- Not Charged