15. Milton Wright, Orville and Wilbur’s father, brought home a toy model helicopter in 1878, igniting the interests of his young children and inspiring them to study in detail the true-to-life aeronautical design of his gift
Milton’s position as Bishop in the Church of the United Brethren in Christ demanded consistent travel to perform his duties. Upon his return from prolonged absences, it became routine that the family patriarch would produce a small gift for his seven children. In 1878, when Wilbur was 11 and Orville 7, Milton brought home a toy helicopter for the pair; this toy was anatomically designed on the real-life creation of French aeronautical inventor Alphonse Pénaud. Made from bamboo, cork, and paper, with a rubber band to power the rotor, the device was approximately a foot in length.
Captivating the young brothers’ attention the pair played with the toy until it broke, at which point they deconstructed the model and crafted new ones themselves. Continuing to obsess over the toy, Orville was caught working on the construction of one by a teacher during class; when asked to explain himself, Orville replied that one day he and his brother were going to build one large enough to carry them both into the sky. In their later lives, both brothers would frequently reminisce about their father’s gift, identifying it as a crucial formative experience that ignited their passions in the subject of aeronautics.