Exploring the Skies ~ Samuel Langley & the Wright Brothers

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2022: Week 36 (EXPLORATION)

The Wright Brothers are my 6th cousins 4x removed on my mother's maternal line. 

Wilbur (Will) Wright
BIRTH 16 APR 1867 • Millville, Henry County, Indiana, USA
DEATH 30 MAY 1912 • Dayton, Montgomery, Ohio, USA
&
Orville (Orv) Wright
BIRTH 19 AUG 1871 • Dayton, Montgomery, Ohio, USA
DEATH 30 JAN 1948 • Dayton, Montgomery, Ohio, US

Also through this line is the man who almost beat them to flight, Samuel Pierpont Langley, my 7th cousin 4x removed

Samuel Pierpont Langley
BIRTH 22 AUG 1834 • Boston, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 27 FEB 1906 • Aiken, South Carolina

I wonder if they knew they were 7th cousins working toward the same goal - FLIGHT.

Exploring the skies was the dream at the time. 

Samuel Pierpont Langley had great ideas and plans, but he didn't successfully make it happen. 

The Wright Brothers get credit for flight, but looking at the folks who were working toward this goal at the time it appears to me they didn't execute it alone. 

For more information about Samuel Langley's contribution to flight check the sources below.

When the cousins get together to make history!!!

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***

Photos:

Langley aerodrome N°5, Smithonian. Retrieved September 8th 2022 from
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Langley_aerodrome_N%C2%B05,_Smithonian.jpg

Samuel Langley and Charles Manly.  Vaeth, J. Gordon (Joseph Gordon). 1966. Langley, man of science and flight, New York : Ronald Press Co. Page 77. Retrieved September 8th 2022 from https://library.si.edu/image-gallery/99423

Samuel Pierpont Langley - Potomac experiment 1903. Retrieved Septembe r8th 2022 from 
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Samuel_Pierpont_Langley_-_Potomac_experiment_1903.jpeg

Sources:

1903-The First Flight. Wright Brothers. National Park Services. National Memorial North Carolina. Retrieved September 8th 2022 from
https://www.nps.gov/wrbr/learn/historyculture/thefirstflight.htm

Gierke, C. David. The Man That Almost Beat the Wrights Into the Air. History Net. Originally published June 12th 2018. Retrieved September 8th 2022 from https://www.historynet.com/samuel-langley-aviation-pioneer/

Samuel Pierpont Langley. Wright Brothers History: The Tale of the Airplane. The Wright Brothers Page: Wilbur and Orville Wright. Retrieved September 8th 2022 from 
http://www.wright-house.com/wright-brothers/inventors/Langley.html

Samuel P. Langley Collection. Smithsonian Institute Virtual Archives. Smithsonian Institute. Retrieved September 8th 2022 from
https://sova.si.edu//record/NASM.XXXX.0494

Samuel Pierpont Langley. Earth Observatory. NASA. Retrieved September 8th 2022 from 
https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/Langley/langley_2.php

Samuel Pierpont Langley, Your Dictionary. Biography. Retrieved September 8th 2022 from
https://biography.yourdictionary.com/samuel-pierpont-langley

Links:

Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/52-ancestors-in-52-weeks/

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