Honoring the states we serve · North Carolina

Wright Brothers National Memorial: Where Humanity First Took Flight

On the windy sand of North Carolina's Outer Banks, on December 17, 1903, two brothers from Dayton, Ohio did what people had dreamed of for centuries. Wilbur and Orville Wright made the world's first successful powered, controlled flights in a heavier-than-air machine, and the place where it happened is now a national memorial.

Black-and-white photograph of the Wright Flyer lifting off the sand at Kill Devil Hills on December 17, 1903, with Orville Wright at the controls — Wright Brothers' First Flight, 1903 · Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. Photo: John T. Daniels, December 17, 1903 (public domain).

Two brothers from Dayton

Wilbur and Orville Wright ran a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio. They had no college degrees and no government funding, but they had patience, curiosity and a habit of careful experiment. They studied birds, built their own wind tunnel, and learned that the real problem of flight was not lifting off but controlling the machine once it was in the air.

Why North Carolina

The brothers needed steady wind, soft sand for landings and privacy for their work. Based on information from the U.S. Weather Bureau, they chose the remote dunes near Kitty Hawk on the Outer Banks. Beginning in 1900 they returned year after year, camping near Kill Devil Hills and testing gliders from the tall dunes, improving their designs with each season.

December 17, 1903

On a cold, windy morning, Orville lay at the controls of their powered Flyer while Wilbur steadied the wing. The machine rose from its wooden launching rail and flew for 12 seconds, covering 120 feet. The brothers took turns and made four flights that day. The last, piloted by Wilbur, covered 852 feet in 59 seconds.

Only a handful of people were there, including men from the nearby lifesaving station. One of them, John T. Daniels, had never used a camera before. Orville set up his camera and asked Daniels to squeeze the bulb if the machine took off. The photograph he took is the one above, and it became one of the most famous images in history.

The memorial today

Congress authorized the site as Kill Devil Hill Monument in 1927. A 60-foot granite monument was dedicated in 1932 atop Big Kill Devil Hill, and in 1953 the site was renamed the Wright Brothers National Memorial. Today, small markers show where each of the four flights began and ended, and reconstructed wooden buildings recreate the brothers' 1903 hangar and living quarters.

Planning your visit

Address: 1000 North Croatan Highway, Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948.
Hours, fees and programs: check the National Park Service website before you go.
Nearby: the beaches and towns of the Outer Banks, Jockey's Ridge State Park and the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

Making a home in North Carolina

From the Outer Banks to Raleigh, Charlotte, Greensboro and the mountains around Asheville, North Carolina keeps drawing families who want room to grow. Beyond Financing, Inc. is licensed in North Carolina as a mortgage broker and correspondent lender. Whether you are buying your first home, are self-employed, or file taxes with an ITIN, our team will compare programs from several lenders and explain every step in English, Português or Español.

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Sources

National Park Service, Wright Brothers National Memorial
Wikipedia, "Wright Brothers National Memorial"
U.S. National Archives, photograph of the first flight, December 17, 1903

Part of our series honoring the communities in the nine states where Beyond Financing, Inc. is licensed. Beyond Financing, Inc., NMLS #2394496. Equal Housing Opportunity. This is not a commitment to lend; all loans are subject to credit approval and program guidelines. Not affiliated with the National Park Service or Beyond Finance, LLC.