Skip to main content
Collections Menu
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA.
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA.
Piece of the Wright Flyer
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA.
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA.

Piece of the Wright Flyer

Artifact ID1985.00650.01
Object Type Component, Aircraft
Gifter
Maker (Wright Brothers, American aviator, 1871-1948)
Maker (Wright Brothers, American aviator, 1867-1912)
Date 1903
Medium Fabric, Paper, Ink, Metal (aluminum), Glass
Dimensions12 1/2 × 12 1/4 in. (31.8 × 31.1 cm)
Physical DescriptionA framed airplane fragment with a small fabric piece from the 1903 Wright Flyer. The blue text around the fabric piece states, "NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. This piece of fabric is from the 1903 Wright Flyer, the world's first airplane to achieve sustained flight under the control of a pilot. The fabric was carried on the Space Shuttle Discovery, Mission 51-D, April 12-19, 1985. Presented to President Ronald W. Reagan on the occasion of the premiere of 'The Dream Is Alive' June 19, 1985." The bottom is signed by Walter J. Boyne, Director of the National Air and Space Museum
Historical NoteOn December 17, 1903 Orville and Wilbur Wright were the first to fly in a "powered, heavier-than-air machine to achieve controlled, sustained flight with a pilot aboard," the Wright Flyer, at Kitty Hawk, NC. At 10:35 am Orville flew 120 feet in 12 seconds, traveling at 6.8 miles per hour. The Wright Flyer was installed at the Smithsonian in 1948, where it is currently on display at the National Air and Space Museum. The flyer was restored in 1985 with the worked performed in full view of the public. A piece of the original fabric was removed, and flown in space on the Shuttle Discovery STS-51-D April 12-19, 1985. It was then presented to President Reagan by Walter J. Boyne, Director of the National Air and Space Museum, on June 19 when he attended the world premiere of The Dream is Alive, an IMAX movie about NASA's Space Shuttle program. President Reagan said “the closest thing to being in space ourselves” was “seeing it on that 5 story screen.”
Additional Details
Custodial History NoteThe item was a gift from a member of the general public to President Ronald Reagan during the Reagan administration. It was received through the Executive Office of the President Office of Correspondence and maintained there until its transfer to the National Archives in January, 1989 for deposit with the Reagan Presidential Library.
National Archives Catalog CollectionRecords of the White House Gift Unit (Reagan Administration) (National Archives Identifier 6816362) and
National Archives Catalog SeriesGifts from the General Public (National Archives Identifier 6816363)
Use Restriction StatusUnrestricted
Use Restriction NoteReproduction or other use of these holdings or images thereof is unrestricted.
In Collection(s)
Exhibition HistoryGifts to the President (2006-2007), Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
Related LinksMonday Minute: Wright Flyer

President Reagan's Diary entry for Wednesday, June 19, 1985 

Photograph: Premiere of the Film "The Dream is Alive," Photo Ops. at the National Air and Space Museum 06/19/1985: c29888-01