FUN WITH MAPS – ISSUE 2023-55 DAILY FEATURE:

By Steve Kovacs (Introduction by Chuck Gibson)

LOVELAND, OH (March 23, 2023) – In today’s edition of Fun with Maps from Steve Kovacs, we learn an interesting morsel on the Wright Brothers “patented” flying machine. (NOTE: long before Boeing…)  

IT’S A BIRD — NO A FLYING MACHINE

The Wright Brothers of Dayton, Ohio applied for a patent on their Flying Machine 120 years ago today – March 23, 1903.  Even at that time, things moved slowly in the government, and the actual patent – No. 821343 – was issued on May 22, 1906.

The Wright Brothers had already experimented with a glider at Kitty Hawk the previous year, but returned in late 1903 to install an engine and try again. 

Their first successful flight in the new improved version happened on December 17, the first “controlled, powered, and sustained heavier-than-air human flight.”

When the Wright Brothers sold their business in 1916, there were only two uses for airplanes – military and exhibition flying.  Today airplanes are an important part of shipping transportation, and commercial passenger airlines have replaced ships as the favored mode of overseas excursions.

The Ohio Commission issued this pictorial map of Ohio in 1933.

Steve Kovacs and his wife Theresa reside in Loveland, Ohio where they raised their two children. He is a passionate collector of antique maps.

Visit his antique map boutique world-on-paper online. Watch for his daily feature Steve Kovacs: Fun with Maps here on Loveland Beacon.