Getting the story Wright: Collecting Letters of Wilbur Wright- Their Historical Content and Values

Updated December 24, 2024

Typed and hand written letters by Wilbur Wright are at times offered for sale to aviation collectors. I have compiled a list of 80+ letters of Orville Wright's that have been offered at auction over the past 34 years, and will be adding to that list. Wilbur Wright letters, on the other hand, have been offered to collectors much less frequently, and it will therefore take me much time to find a comparable number. I currently list 28. Two factors account for this. Firstly, Wilbur died May of 1912, while Orville lived on through January of 1948, thus giving Orville many more years of correspondence. Secondly, the years of most interest to museums such at the Smithsonian, were from 1899 through 1915, the period of the Brothers experimentation, eventual success, flights, and sales of the Wright machines. All of the Wilbur Wright letters fall within this time period, and therefore many have been absorbed into museum, library, and university archive collections.

Portion of October 18, 1903 letter Wilbur Wright to "Sterchens", his nickname for sister Katharine. Wilbur tells of humorous event of Orville fighting wind and rain as he attempts to waterproof the roof of their shed at Kitty Hawk, complete with sketches. Courtesy of the Library of Congress. Postcard from Author's collection.

I will continue to add to this list of WW letters as I find time. Typing the content of each letter is a bit time consuming, and I've likely made an occasional error, though I've attempted to be careful. Wilbur's hand writing is difficult at times to discern, and so I may have mistyped an individual's name within the body of the letter in some cases.

Many of Wilbur's letters have sold for a considerable amount of money when compared to those written by his brother Orville. Content is important, and certain subject matter may have historical significance, while other subject matter a more personal appeal. For example, Wilbur writes to Mr. Tissandier March 25, 1910, "We have sold our American business to a company of very rich men, and after this year will be able to devote our time to scientific experiment." So sad that Wilbur had to instead devote his time to fighting infringement suits from 1910 through May of 1912, weakening his body's defenses to typhoid fever.

Comparing the content of the letters listed in this post to the price paid for each letter doesn't necessarily provide a reliable guide for value. These letters were offered for sale in various auctions, at different times, over a span of many years, and so a direct comparison of one letter's content to that of another naturally would not have occurred. Performing that exercise now, we may come to the conclusion that one letter's sale price was too high, and another's too low. Additionally, a previous sales price doesn't necessarily set the value of the letter. The market changes over time. Bidders at times make an emotional purchase, and pay too much. A current example of this is the sale of 1903 Wright fabric and wood fragments that were carried on the Apollo 11 mission by Neil Armstrong. The first encapsulated wood fragment offered sold for $275,000 in 2018. The next four sold for $112,500, $125,000, $150,000, and $175,000 in 2019. In 2024, the one purchased for $125,000 in 2019 was re-sold in auction for $68,750. That is quite a loss considering a buyer's premium of perhaps 20% went to the auction house, leaving the seller $55,000. Previous sale price does not establish future value.

As there is no published compilation of sales results specifically for Wilbur's letters except as can be gleaned through individual auction site historical sale results, one of my goals of preparing this post is to provide a price reference as a tool in evaluating potential worth of letters that come to auction. The sold prices I've listed may or may not include buyer's premium (BP) if I haven't specifically noted it as such.

Letters of Wilbur Wright, listed by date:

1902 March 3 WW to Edmond M. Doyle, 1pg, typed, The Wright Cycle Company 1127 West Third letterhead, "Mr. Edmond M. Doyle, San Francisco, Cal. Dear Sir: The December number of the Journal of the Western Society of Engineers may be obtained of the secretary, Mr. J. H. Warder, Monadnock Building, Chicago, Ill. The price of single numbers is fifty cents each. Yours truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by RR Auction, May 10, 2010, $11,497 (includes BP).

1902 April 5 WW to Douglas W. Smeaton, 1pg, handwritten on Wright Cycle Company letterhead, with envelope, "Answering yours of Apr. 2nd. Our frame work in gliding machines is made of spruce and 2nd growth ash. The joints are made by lashing with linen cord. We use no nails at all, except brads to hold pieces in place prior to lashing with cord. Where metal is used it is lashed fast. Yours very truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by Bonhams, November 3, 2021, $19,062 (includes BP).

1903 December 28 WW and OW to Carl Dienstbach of the Illustrirte Aeronautische Mitteilungen, 2pgs, Wright Cycle Company letterhead, with envelope, "We have given out no description or photographs of our 'flyer' and the account given in the dispatch from Dayton, that you read, probably came nearer to the truth than the other accounts. On the morning of the 17th inst. we made four flights, my brother and myself each making two. The wind at the time of the trials was blowing a little over twenty miles an hour.....The government anemometer at Kitty Hawk recorded from 24 to 27 miles an hour at the time of our trials. We started all four flights from the level, and not from the side of a hill as we had formerly done with our gliding machines. The machine was given no assistance in starting, and depended entirely upon the power of the engine and the thrust of the propellers to give its initial speed. After a run of 35 to 40 feet on the monorail, which held it only eight inches from the ground, the flyer rose gradually from the track and by the time it had gone 50 to 75 feet it would reach a height of about 10 feet from the ground....Our measured speed....was ten miles per hour, which, added to the speed of the wind, gave us a speed through the air of 31 to 35 miles per hour. We used a four cylinder engine...of the four cycle type of our own design and construction. The engine speed while in flight was about 1035 turns to the minute on account of the gears used, and was not the maximum power of the engine. We had no propellers either above or below the machine to give it lifting power, but depended entirely upon two aerocurves, superposed, for that purpose. We used two air propellers, placed at the rear....to propel the machine forward. The weight of the machine and operator was 745 pounds. The area of the main lifting surfaces was 510 square feet. Our methods of control are entirely different from those used by Lilienthal, Pilcher, or Chanute, and were found to be highly effective....Our longest flight was 59 seconds from the time of lifting from the rail to that of landing.... Only those who have had actual experience in the air can appreciate the significance of the fact that the first trials of our successful machine were made in the midst of a gusty wintry gale." Sold by Christie's, November 15, 2005, $20,400. Previously sold by Christie's, May 14, 1992, $15,400 (includes BP).

Comment on the above letter- This letter is unsigned, which is odd, perhaps an oversight in the heat of the moment to get the word out. With original stamped, postmarked envelope. Included was letter from Dienstbach to the Wright Brothers, dated December 18, 1903, 2pgs, signed.

1904 February 5 WW to Editor of the Independent, 2pgs, typed, "My attention has this day been called to a case of most unmitigated impudence in the Independent of February 4th. On page 242 an article 'The Experiments of a Flying Man', was published under my name which I did not write and which I had never seen. The bulk of the article consisted of carelessly arranged or garbled extracts from two addresses, which I delivered before the Western Society of Engineers....published in the Journal of that Society....Following this came extracts from two press dispatches....A few sentences from a strange source were interpolated, in which an attempt was made to describe the methods by which the power machine was sustained and propelled. This part was entirely fanciful an untrue. The pictures which accompanied the article were not obtained from us....I have never given to any person permission or encouragement to palm off as an original article extracts from these copy-righted addresses, and newspaper dispatches. Neither have I given the Independent, or to any one, the least permission or excuse for using my name....Nor have I given the faintest permission to attach my name to any article of any kind in any paper, excepting the statement which my brother and I gave to the 'daily' papers on January 6, 1904. Our attention had previously been called to cases in which conscienceless but enterprising reporters had utilized these addresses as mines from which to draw material for pretended interviews, but it remained for the Independent to serve them in the form of a forged signed article. Yours truly, Wilbur Wright." Sold by Christie's, December 9, 1998, $8625.

Comment on the above letter- Letter is printed in pages 129/130 in "Miracle at Kitty Hawk, The Letters of Wilbur and Orville Wright", Edited by Fred C. Kelly, 1951.

1904 February 29 WW to Editor of the Independent, 2pgs, typed, Wright Cycle Company 1127 West Third letterhead, "Dear Sir: Your letter of the 23rd received. I wish to call your attention to the fact that the note in the INDEPENDENT last week contains no intimation that the main body of the pretended original article to which my name was attached consisted of verbatim extracts from copy-righted addresses published by the Journal of the Western Society of Engineers in 1901 and 1903. I am informed by the secretary, Mr. Warder, that its consent was not obtained for the reproduction of this matter in the INDEPENDENT. I also call your attention to the fact that your note makes no mention ["of the" crossed out] that the bogus article contains matter which never came from me directly or indirectly, and which is entirely false. Your note however is equivalent to an assertion that I furnished the matter for the article but objected only because my name was used. This is not true at all. Mr. Willey did not obtain copies of these addresses from me or my brother. Nor did we consent to the reproduction of extended verbatim extracts from them except on consent of the Western Society of Engineers, a condition which was not fulfilled. I must therefore ask you to explain to your readers that the article was in large part made up of matter stolen from the Journal of the Western Society of Engineers, and in part of matter whose correctness I absolutely deny. Your note of last week is not a true presentment of the facts in the case and is not satisfactory to me. Yours truly, Wilbur Wright." Sold by Bonhams, September 27, 2017, $6250 (includes BP).

Comment on the above two letters- For a discussion on the above subject with pictures of the Independent "statements of correction", see related post "The Wright Brothers- Getting the Story Wright"

1904 December 21 WW and OW to Carl Dienstbach, 2pgs, typed, plain paper, signed "Wilbur and Orville Wright per O. W." Sold by Christie's, $19,800.

1905 October 10 WW to Mr. J. T. Daniels, 1pg, handwritten on Wright Cycle Company 1127 West Third letterhead, "Mr. J. T. Daniels, Dear Sir, We were very glad to receive your letter. If you will go over and make an invoice of the goods we left in the buildings and send to us the list we will pick out such things as we can not easily replace, and you can have the rest. We wish the buildings to be left standing for another year at least. If we decide to come down next year ["will" crossed out] we will put on a new roof, and new foundation. We have been having excellent success with our experiments. Last Tuesday Orville made a flight of sixteen miles; on ["Wedde" crossed out] Wednesday he made one of twenty one miles, and on Thursday I went over twenty four miles. As we fly here in light winds our speed over the ground is about four times as great as in the flights at Kitty Hawk. We go nearly forty miles an hour. Please give our regards to the Captain and to the members of the crew whom we know. Yours truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by Heritage Auctions, May 30, 2013, $72,000 (includes BP).

Comment on the above letter- Written just days after the historic flights at Huffman Prairie establishing the 1905 Flyer as the world's first practical airplane, a very cool letter. Milton Wright wrote to Mr. L. N. Countryman, Minneapolis, Minn, June 22, 1909, ".....In a few days, I go to Washington, Ft. Myer, to see Orville fly. I saw him fly 21 miles, at Simm's station, 8 miles from Dayton, in 1905, and Wilbur fly 24 miles...." (1)

1905 November 17 WW/OW to Mr. Diensbach, 1pg, typed, on Wright Cycle Company letterhead, with envelope, "As you requested...an account of the progress made with our flyer, we take pleasure in sending you the following particulars, now that the season is over. Our field of experiment in 1905 was situated eight miles east of Dayton, on what is known as the Huffman Prairie. A number of changes in the machine since 1904 made it necessary to almost relearn the art of management, so that for some time the flights were not equal to our best of last year; and it was not until the 6th of September that we succeeded in equalling our former record. Progress from that day on was rapid, and on the 26th of September we made a flight of 17,961 meters in 18 minutes and 9 seconds; September 29, 19,570 meters in 19 minutes and 55 seconds; September 30th, a flight of 17 minutes and 15 seconds; October 3rd; 24,535 meters in 25 minutes and 5 seconds; October 4th, 33,456 meters in 33 minutes and 17 seconds; and October 5th; 38,956 meters in 38 minutes and 3 seconds. The flights of September 26th, 29th and October 5th were terminated through the exhaustion of the fuel supply; those of September 30th, October 3rd and 4th through the heating of transmission bearings which had no oil cups. On October 3rd we increased the size of the gasoline reservoir so as to carry enough fuel for an hour's run of the engine....On this day, after giving the engine a test run of about 20 minutes, the machine was put to flight. Unfortunately, we neglected to refill the gasolene reservoir and the flight was stopped at the end of 38 minutes for lack of fuel. But besides the gasolene carried were several iron bars, which represented in weight fuel enough for a flight of more than an hour and a half additional. The machine is now in excellent condition, and we intended to put the record above the hour, but at this point we were compelled to suddenly discontinue the experiments on account of the attention they were beginning to attract, in spite of our efforts to maintain secrecy. It was not our desire that the construction of our machine should become public. These flights were witnessed by several hundred persons altogether, among whom were the farmers working on the surrounding farms, and many well known citizens of Dayton. We were sorry that your business engagements prevented you from making us a second visit last Summer, as you had intended.....Wilbur and Orville Wright per O.W." Sold by Christie's, $19,800.

Comment on the above letter- A second letter written on the same date was sent to Diensbach, seen below.

1905 November 17 WW/OW to Mr. Diensbach, 2pgs, typed, Wright Cycle Company 1127 West Third letterhead, "Dear Mr. Diensbach: A good deal of doubt seems to exist in Europe as to whether there is any truth in the reports that have been made concerning our flights of 1903 and 1904; and it is not at all surprising, under the circumstances, since there has never been any account of any one having seen them, except the inventors themselves. There have been a number of witnesses to every flight we have made in the last three years. The flights near Kitty Hawk were seen by nearly all the the [sic] men at the U.S. Kill Devil Life Saving Station, who were present, and by the Captain of the Kitty Hawk Station, who viewed the flights through a glass. The flights in 1904 were witnessed by the farmers on the surrounding farms, besides a number of citizens of Dayton, whom we had invited. Mr. A. I. Root, of Medina, Ohio, was also present a number of times, and wrote an account of what he saw for his journal, "Gleanings in Bee Culture", for January 1st, 1905. The longer flights this year were witnessed by a number of citizens of Dayton, among whom were Mr. Torrence Huffman, President Fourth National Bank; Mr. C. S. Billman, Secretary West Side Building & Loan Company; and Mr. Edgar W. Ellis, Assistant Auditor of City of Dayton. If you or the Editor of your journal wish to make a personal investigation of the matter, we have no doubt any of these gentlemen would take pleasure corraborating the fact that they were present when flights of fifteen to twenty-four miles were made. We would not want their names published, as they would no doubt be flooded with inquiries. None of these gentlemen have any financial interest in our machine, either directly or indirectly. Respectfully yours, Wilbur and Orville Wright. Per O. Wright. We are sending you under separate cover copy of Gleaning of Jan. 1st, 1905. [signatures and note all in Orville Wright's hand]. Sold by Heritage Auctions, July 11, 2014, $24,000 (includes BP). Previously sold by Christie's, May 14, 1992, $14,300 (includes BP).

Comment on the above letter- Letter is printed in pages 153/154 in "Miracle at Kitty Hawk, The Letters of Wilbur and Orville Wright", Edited by Fred C. Kelly, 1951.

1906/7 undated WW to David Beard, witness of flights at Simms Station 1904-05, 1pg, handwritten, Wright Brothers 1127 West Third letterhead, "My dear Mr. Beard This will introduce the Count La Valette of Paris, one of my French friends who wishes to look at the grounds where we did our flying in 1904-1905. With best regards Yours truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by Sotheby's, Otto Kallir Collection of Aviation History, June 14, 1993, $4888.

1907 September 26 WW to E. W. Ellis, Secretary of the Annual Club of the Ten Dayton Boys, Dayton, Ohio, 2pgs, handwritten on Conrad Uhl's Hotel Bristol, Berlin letterhead, with envelope, ...."It came to my mind today that I would soon be owing the club 4 shillings 'tuppence', or five francs fifteen centimes, or four marks, 14 pfennings, and as I feared I might not have the right change in either currency, I thought I would write you a letter as an I.O.U. and settle later. Is is more than four months since I left home in such a hurry and it has been a rather exciting time, in some parts more exciting than I can ["put" crossed out] safely describe on paper. It is too soon yet to say just how far we will get this year with our negotiations. At one time we had practically sold a half interest in our European business for $300,000 cash, when a fool spoiled everything for the time, and forced us to take a different course. We have been 'warm', as the children say in some of their games, on other occasions, but we have not yet settled anything. We are working both the governments and the private financial interests and feel certain that matters will turn out all right in the end, though there may be delay till next year. We are in communication with and have the confidence of some of the most powerful business men in both France and Germany and are in good position to form a company and deal with governments through it, in case we find it takes too long to reach agreements on our present plans. Of course all this is very confidential at present. I am sorry not to be at the meeting this year especially as it is the 20th anniversary of the founding of the club, I believe. But I send my best wishes and hope you have a jolly good time. Yours truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by Heritage Auctions, December 18, 2012, $18,000 (includes BP).

1909 January 9 WW to Louis Corwin, 1pg, handwritten on Hotel Meyerbeer stationary, "Dear Sir, I have received your note and in reply would say that my present stay in Paris is so breif, and my time so fully occupied as to make it quite impossible to come to Clamart for the sittings you request. With very much regret I beg to remain Yours very truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by University Archives, May 15, 2024, $14,000.

1909 March 13 WW to George Tharel, 4pgs, handwritten on stationary, "Dear Mr. Tharel, We have returned the blue prints of the motor to you. So far as we can see they are correct. I understand that several people from countries outside of France have offered to the French company for instruction by Comte de Lambert. It is my opinion that the company ought to number no engagements ["until" crossed out] which would interfere with its own business. It is my opinion that it is too soon to make outside engagements. Several months ago I told Mr. Berg to bring before the board of directors the matter of having men ready to take the place of my mechanics when I leave Paris as I intended to take my men away with me. I offered to give such men instruction, if they were properly broken in for handling the motor, the tracks & ropes, and making repairs, &c, &c. I also spoke with Comte d Lambert about it a number of weeks ago, and he informs me that he wrote you, but has no response. If Astra and the Chantier de France are charging the time and expenses of Delbe and Chateau as labor for which our company pays, these men should be recalled at once. They are of no value to us here. The drawings from Astra have not yet arrived. We will examine them and return them to you without delay. Yours truly Wilbur Wright (see next page) I think one of the machines of which my brother superintends the construction should be sent to Paris for the Comte de Lambert in this training work. The old machine should be laid aside before it is entirely worn out, if there is any intention of preserving it. The order to economise time two machines should always be kept in readiness at the training quarters. W.W. " "Capt. Guardville is still in Paris. What instruction have you to give regarding him? W.W." Sold by Sotheby's, November 30, 2005, $14,000.

1909 June 6 WW to Paul Tissandier, 4pgs, handwritten on stationary, "My Dear Mr. Tissandier, We were very glad to receive your nice letter, and to know that you were having such a good success with your flying work. I notice that you say that you are still using the old machine, though it is almost worn out. I was told that the machine which was erected at Paris under the direction of my brother, was sent to Pau and used there instead of the old one. Was not this done? If not, where was it sent? Who has it now? You ought to have a good machine for teaching purposes. Then you could stay in the air with your pupil about 20 minutes each time, and teach them in less than 10 lessons. It is not well to make the lessons too short, since too large a portion of the good part of the day is consumed in returning to the track and getting started again. Before you permit a pupil to fly alone be very sure to caution him to rise not higher than three or four meters from the ground. They should rise higher only after they have learned to land safely from any height with the motor stopped. Since we have arrived home we have been very busy at work on a new machine to use at Ft. Myer. We hope Orville will begin flying there about the 20th of June, but we may be delayed a few days. We have never had any doubts but that you would do good work on the flyer, and your long flights have not been surprising to us. No doubt, before the year ends, you will be record man of the world! We wish you continued success. With best regards from my brother and sister as well as myself, Yours truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by RR Auction, May 23, 2013, $40,879 (includes BP).

Comment on the above letter- "Since we have arrived home we have been very busy at work on a new machine to use at Ft. Meyer. We hope Orville will begin flying there about the 20th of June, but we may be delayed a few days." Milton wrote to his Grand-Niece Grace Frazier July 22, 1909, sharing, "Reuchlin and I went to Washington the 28th of June and staid near four days.....In the afternoons, we saw the Wright brothers fly at Fort Myer- Thursday evening, some ten miles at one flight. Late word is that Orville, Tuesday evening, 20th, flew one hour and twenty minutes." (1)

1909 December 22 WW to James M. Beck Jr., 3pgs, handwritten on stationary, with envelope, "Dear Sir, Some time ago while at College Park I received a copy of your school paper containing an article by you regarding my flights at Hudson Fulton Celebration. I was very much interested in noting how the subject appealed to a young man and thought to write to you expressing my appreciation but laid the paper aside and only ran across it again recently. I am always interested in young men and their ways of looking at new things. With best wishes for a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year." Sold by RR Auction, November 29, 2012, $14,348 (includes BP). Previously sold by Freeman's / Hindman, May 31, 2012, $8000.

1910 March 4 WW to Hart O. Berg, 1pg, Wright Brothers stationary. "Your letter received. It is not certain just when one of us will be in New York next but hope to be there before Mr. Peartree leaves. We have word that the new German motors are giving about 5 h.p. more than the French 108mm. The increase in size would account for more than two horse power. The Germans seem to get about the same as we do here in America. Please give our regards to Mr. Peartree....The Compagnie Generale writes that it has sent a statement of account to you. Have you received it?...Sold by Christie's, May 14, 1992, $6050 (includes BP).

1910 Advertisement for Wright Flyers by the Compie Genale De Navigation Aerienne (C.G.N.A.), listing history of famous flights, from the 1903 17 Decembre Kitty Hawk fights, Wilbur in 1909 flying around the la statue de la Liberte in New York, etc. (2)

1910 March 25 WW to Mr. Tissandier, 1pg, handwritten on Wright Brothers 1127 W. Third letterhead, "My dear Mr. Tissandier, We are hoping you will not fail to make a trip to America some time this year. The Summer season is very hot but October is usually a beautiful month, the finest of all the year. We have no fog as in Paris. Then the international aeronautical Gordon Bennett baloon [sic] and aeroplane races occur about that time also. Orville is now at Montgomery Alabama training some men to operate flyers. Our new machines are much steadier in strong winds and easier to control than the older ones. We have sold our American business to a company composed of ["the" crossed out] very rich men, and after this year will be able to devote our time to scientific experiment. With our best regards, Your's truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by RR Auction, May 23, 2012, $65,851 (includes BP).

Comment on the above letter- "Orville is now at Montgomery Alabama training some men to operate flyers." Milton Wright wrote to his Grand-Niece Grace Frazier, March 18, 1910, a week prior to Wilbur writing the above letter, "The children are all at home and have all been well. The boys have been at Washington, New York & Buffalo. They, so far, triumph in the courts. The Wright Company have set up temporarily a manufacturing plant here and are working on some 25 flying machines. They are setting up a winter flying ground at Montgomery, Alabama. They are very busy." (1)

1910 July 5 WW to Hart. O. Berg, 1pg, on The Wright Company letterhead, "You may forward us by express, the medals and the originals of the patents which have been accumulating in your safe. Have the stock certificates in French and German companies been delivered? If so, please forward them also. You will have seen by the newspapers that the injunctions against Curtiss and Paulhan were dissolved. I think our mistake was in permitting new matter to be brought in after the lower court's decision without having the lower court act upon it. However, it is too late to correct the blunder now. You have, doubtless, also noticed that Mr. Brookins has established at Indianapolis, a new record for height of 4939 feet and what is much more remarkable a record for a complete turn of 6 2/5 seconds. This latter was the most hair-lifting performance I ever saw, and I think the record will stand a long time. The turn was made so quickly, that its centrifugal force was nearly double that of gravity and the total strain on the machine about 2-1/2 times normal...." Sold by Christie's, $8800.

1910 November 16 WW to Hart O. Berg, 2 pgs, Wright Company letterhead. "As for the American Wright Company, it has made a net profit of more than a hundred thousand dollars this year. Orville and I will take out more than fifty thousand clear for our share, so that in the past 16 months we have received about two hundred thousand dollars in cash in America: $30,000 from the Army; $15,000 from the Hudson-Fulton celebration; $100,000 from The Wright Company on organization, and a little over $50,000 from this year's dividends and royalties...I am sorry the German and French companies did not send men over to America this year to learn how to build and take care of machines and learn what real flying is. It would have paid them well...." Sold by Christie's, May 14, 1992, $13,200 (includes BP).

Comment of the above letter- Letter is printed in page 375 in "Miracle at Kitty Hawk, The Letters of Wilbur and Orville Wright", Edited by Fred C. Kelly, 1951.
Milton Wright in a letter to his Grand-Niece Grace Frazier dated November 28, 1910, 12 days after the letter above, wrote, "..Orville reached Germany safely; he is in Berlin. Wilbur got home safely from Chicago, to which he went to be at Mr. Octave Chanute's funeral. Chanute was 79, an adroit on aeronautical affairs. He often came to see Wilbur and Orville. Wilbur and Orville are not so rich as you might think. I suppose each has made over $100,000 net. The expense of the Wright Company is great, and they get only a third it makes. Their Company was wonderfully pleased to vote them ten thousand, and declare a dividend the first year of 10 per cent, which was $80,000." (1)

1911 May 8 WW to George Tharel, director of the Compagnie Generale de Navigation Aerienne, Hotel Esplanade postcard, handwritten, "My dear Thorel. Many thanks for your letter and the very amusing enclosure. I have laughed very much over it. Yours truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by RR Auction, November 21, 2013, $11,004 (includes BP). Included four photos and 1911 C.G.N.A advertising leaflet.

Comment on the above letter- Would be interesting to see the enclosure that gave Wilbur such a chuckle.

1911 July 18 WW to Hart O. Berg, 2pgs, on Hotel Esplanade stationary, "My circular letter has naturally made some people pretty mad, but apparently the result I was after has been attained. Rathman does not desire an open fight, and when at first he would not consider the abrogation of the U. A. G. contract, now he is willing to discuss terms of settlement. The A. E. G. answer to my letter has not been sent to me so far. A copy may have been sent to America. If you have a copy, please send it to me, so I may know what they have to say. I am quite well aware that when a man changes his tactics, he may not at all change his purpose, and I shall scrutinize his proposals with great care...." Sold by Christie's, May 14, 1992, $4950 (includes BP).

1911 October 21 WW to E. L. Jones, 2pgs, handwritten, Wright Brothers 1127 W. Third letterhead, "Dear Mr. Jones: I enclose a copy of a translation of the official report of Gen. Mensier chairman of the commission appointed by the Minister of War to supervise the trials of the Ader machine. You will see from this report that (1) That the Avion never rose from the ground at all, either on the 12th or the 14 of October 1897. The legend that it flew 300 meters on the 14th is entirely without foundation. (2) No real attempt to fly was ever made with it. The trials were mere runs on the ground with only about one third of the power turned on. (3) When the machine was running along the ground at about 11 miles an hour in a direction crosswise to the course of the wind, the wind lifts one wing and the aeroplane rolled over and was wrecked. (4) The ["report" crossed out] experiments of 12 & 14 October were preliminary to the real trials intended to be made later before the full commission, but the results of the preliminary efforts were so far from satisfactory that the commission was never assembled for a real attempt at flight, and the War Department refused to advance any further funds. (5) The Avion never flew, and never showed indication of being near to successful flight. In ["the" crossed out] "Aeronautics" of August 1911 is an article showing a device for equalizing the pressures on ailerons. Can you give me the name of the person who communicated this to you? Or the name of any other persons who have invented similar devices? Yours truly Wilbur Wright. Sold by Heritage Auctions, December 19, 2013, $42,000 (includes BP). Included signed copy of Clement Ader's book, Military Aviation.

1911 October 26 WW to E. L. Jones, Editor, Aeronautics, 1pg, typed on The Wright Company Dayton Ohio letterhead, "My dear Mr. Jones: I have your letter making inquiry about the Ader report. The facts are as follows: About four years ago, and officer of the French Engineers who was connected with the camp at Sartory and who was present when the Ader machine was tried, told me privately that the machine did not fly at all, but while running along the ground was rolled over and wrecked. These trials, of course, were secret and the official report relating to them was naturally a secret state paper, but as the event had lost all special importance as a secret, my brother and I thought that the War Office might permit the publication of this report as a matter of historic interest, and about two years ago we wrote to the Minister of War requesting that this report might be made public in justice to all parties. The Minister replied that at that time, it was not practicable to publish the report; but about a year ago, a discussion arose in France between the friends of Ader and the friends of Santos Dumont over the question of who was the first to fly in France, and Mr. Arch Deacon, and others, were so persistent in their request to the War Office that they finally obtained a copy of the report for publication and it was published as I understand, in several of the French papers among the others, Aero. When I was in France at the trial last spring, I obtained a copy from which this translation is made. During the trial it was admitted on all hands that the Ader legend had no foundation and my brother and I were given full credit for being the first men to fly. No question of authenticity of this report has ever been raised in France. The translation is made from the "Aero" of 27 Nov. 1910. Many thanks for the information regarding the equilibriating device. With best regards, I remain Yours truly, Wilbur Wright. Sold by Heritage Auctions, December 19, 2013, $24,000 (includes BP).

1911 November 10 WW to Lieut. H. H. Arnold, 2pgs, typed on The Wright Company Dayton Ohio letterhead, "Dear Lieutenant:- Your letter of recent date seems to have disappeared and it is possible that it is lying at Kitty Hawk. I am answering the main points of the letter as I remember them. The screws of the 'B' machine should run inside a closed shed 425 turns per minute. With an old motor in good condition they have been run more than 440 turns a minute. If the result is below 410 the motor is palpably in need of attention. Each five turns per minute indicates a difference of one horse power, but as the screws may vary a trifle after they have been out a while, a variation of five is not abnormal. The motors gain in power as they become older if well cared for, the gain at the end of the year being about three horse power. It is very important that the motor should never be run without plenty of water in the radiator, and oil in the tank. If the motor overheats the cylinders warp a trifle and a month may elapse before the motor again comes up to the old mark. Mr. Coffyn at Detroid recently carried three men and a set of hydroplanes, a total load of more than 600 lbs. above weight of machine. If you will time the motor or screws indoors and give us the result of the test last preceding the time when the water begins to boil, we can tell you whether or not the motor is allright [sic]. Always stop as soon as the water begins to boil. It is best to repeat the test several times to make sure of the results. It is very important in a new motor that the spark should not be advanced more than three inches as measured on the fly wheel. On an old motor three and one half inches is all right. The propellers and chains have a large factor of safety and if the sudden jerks are avoided, will easily carry 25% more power than our present motors give. I do not remember any other points upon which you wished information, but we are always pleased to have you ask for any needed information and to have you tell us from time to time what things about the machine you find unsatisfactory, or capable of being changed to afford better satisfaction. Yours truly, Wilbur Wright." Sold by RR Auction, September 22, 2011, $60,367 (includes BP).

Comment on the above letter- Carbon copy without letterhead and WW signature is within Library of Congress General Correspondence of Arnold, Henry H. 1911-1913, 1919-1931, 1938-1947, Part of Wilbur and Orville Wright General Correspondence.
Wilbur writes in above letter, "Your letter of recent date seems to have disappeared and it is possible that it is lying at Kitty Hawk." Orville, his brother Lorin, and Lorin's son Horace, with Mr. Ogilvie left for Kitty Hawk the evening of October 7, 1911, to return October 31. Milton, in a letter to his Grand-Niece Grace Frazier dated October 13, 1911, wrote, "....After I came home, Wilbur went St. Louis, but has now gone to New York. Lorin and Orville, Horace and Mr. Ogilvie, went to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina for a two weeks outing, or more. Horace was greatly excited, but did not give the least manifestation of it. He did not sleep a wink in the sleeper. Lorin took a glider, with no engine, for the sport of gliding, and the demonstrate how birds soar on upward trends of air..." (1) October 24th, Orville set a soaring record of 9 minutes, 45 seconds, that was not surpassed until 1921. Milton states that Lorin took the glider to Kitty Hawk. This occurred the week prior, apparently seeing it safely there and ready for Orville to utilize. Milton mentions in his diary entry of October 1 "Lorin is at home from Kitty Hawk". It appears Lorin left for Kitty Hawk September 18, likely just after Leontine's 13th birthday of the 17th.

1912 Working manuscript "L. P. Mouillard- What he did- by Wilbur Wright", published in Aero Club of America Bulletin, April, 1912, 6pgs, typed, with hand corrections. Not a letter, but included here, signed on last page by Wilbur Wright. Sold by RR Auction, April 8, 2020, $34,769 (includes BP). Previously sold by Sotheby's, June 14, 1993, $4888.

Comment on the above document- Manuscript prepared by Wilbur, and signed. Note the difference in sales price from the 1993 auction to the 2020 auction.

1912 January 25 WW to M. W. de Hevesy, 4pgs, handwritten, blank stationary, with envelope, "Dear Mr. Hevesy: I was very much pleased to receive your nice letter of 14 December. During the past three months most of my time has been taken up with law suits and I have been away from home most of the time. I am hoping to be freed from this kind of work before another year has ended. It is much more pleasant to go to Kitty Hawk for experiments than to worry over law-suits. We had hoped in 1906 to sell our invention to governments for enough money to satisfy our needs and then devote our time to science, but the jealousy of certain persons blocked this plan, and compelled us to rely on our patents and commercial exploitation. We wished to be free from business cares so that we could give all our own time to advancing the science and art of aviation, but we have been compelled to spend our time on business matters instead, during the past five years. When we think what we might have accomplished if we had been able to devote this time to experiments, we feel very sad, but it is always easier to deal with things than with men, and no one can direct his life entirely as he would choose. Yet these years have not been without their pleasant spots, and we look back with much enjoyment to the friendships made during this period. If you should come to America do not forget Dayton. Yours very truly Wilbur Wright." Sold by RR Auction, April 21, 2016, $13,317 (includes BP).

Comment on above letter- By far one of the most personal heart felt letters by Wilbur, written 4 months, 5 days before his life was taken by Typhoid. So much time devoted to defending their patent, in lieu of devoting the time to experiments, his true desire. Milton Wright wrote to Grand-Niece Grace Frazier October 28, 1912, "Orville has been considerably tossed about by a pending lawsuit at at [sic] Buffalo. It is a suit against a company and against Glenn Curtiss for infringement of the Wright Company's patent.......Men with valuable patent rights have to fight for them. They are not exceptions to the rule. This costs much time and money. Wilbur prepared this case mostly for trial. This was unfavorable for him in preparing for and warding off the typhoid fever." (1)

1912 February 3 WW to Robert J. Collier, President of the Aero Club of America, Dayton, Ohio, 1pg, typed on The Wright Company Dayton, Ohio letterhead, "Dear Sir: In the interest of good sport the Wright Company will permit representatives of foreign nations to participate in the 1912 race for the Gordon Bennett cup, regardless of any question as to whether their aeroplanes do or do not infringe patents owned by this company. The Wright Company will not bring suit against the representatives of foreign clubs because of their participation in this contest for the Gordon Bennett Cup. Yours truly, The Wright Company, Wilbur Wright." Sold by Bonhams, September 27, 2017, $8750 (includes BP). Previously sold by Nate D. Sanders Auctions for $9500. Previously sold by Christie's, $4400.

1912 April 7 WW to Frank Coffyn, 1pg, handwritten, Wright Brothers Dayton, Ohio letterhead, Dear Frank, I was immensely pleased on my return from Augusta to find a telegram from Mr. Levino stating that you were doing so well, and that you had become father of a little ["dau" crossed out] daughter. Please accept for yourself and Mrs. Coffyn the congratulations and best wishes of my father, my sister my brother and myself. I hope that ere this you are up and flying again, but not over the side of bridges. Yours truly Wilbur Wright. Sold by Sotheby's, Otto Kallir Collection of Aviation History, June 14, 1993, $5750.

Frank Coffyn auto accident, March 20th, 1912. Lamppost caught the vehicle, but Coffyn was thrown 20' down to the road below. Wilbur wrote Coffyn in letter above, "I hope that ere this you are up and flying again, but not over the sides of bridges."

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Monday, December 23, 2024

Collecting Letters of Wilbur Wright- Their Historical Content and Values

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