Introduction to the Wright Brothers Collection

The Wright Brothers Collection housed in Special Collections and Archives in the Wright State University Libraries is one of the most complete collections of Wright material in the world. It includes the Wrights’ own technical and personal library, family papers including letters, diaries, financial records, genealogical files, and other documents detailing the lives and work of Wilbur and Orville Wright and the Wright Family. It also includes awards, certificates, medals, albums, recordings, and technical drawings. Perhaps the most valuable part of the collection are the thousands of photographs documenting the invention of the airplane and the lives of the Wright Family.

The Wright Brothers Collection was deeded to Wright State University in 1975 by the Wright Family. The initial collection was described in The Wright Brothers Collection: A Guide to the Technical, Business and Legal, Genealogical, Photographic, and Other Archives at Wright State University, published in 1977. Since that time, numerous additions to the collection and donations of related collections have necessitated the revision and updating of the original collection inventory. Through this volume, published in the centennial year of the Wrights’ first successful, controlled powered flight, we offer a detailed and more complete guide to the papers of the Wright Family housed at Wright State University.

This volume would not have been possible without the efforts of the dedicated staff of Special Collections and Archives in the Wright State University Library. Jane Wildermuth, Toni Jeske, John Armstrong, Bessie Schina, and Debby Jennings-Ryan were instrumental in the reprocessing of the collection and the creation of a more complete inventory. Stephen Foster, University Librarian, offered constant support and encouragement.

Dawne Dewey
Head, Special Collections and Archives
Wright State University Libraries
July, 2003