Ohio inventions and firsts · Company innovation · 1910-1911
First U.S. factory built specifically for airplanes
The Wright Company (formed November 22, 1909) built its Dayton factory in 1910-11 to a design by William Earl Russ; about 120 aircraft were built 1910-1915. The site joined the National Register in 2019.
At a glance
- Year
- 1910-1911
- Company
- Wright Company
- Place
- Dayton, Montgomery County ZIP 45417 · Dayton · Montgomery County
The story
After the 1903 flights the Wrights spent years proving their airplane to governments and building a business. On November 22, 1909 they formed the Wright Company with industrialists from New York and Detroit. The company's offices were in New York City, but the building of the airplanes was in Dayton.
The Dayton factory was built in 1910 and 1911 to a design by architect William Earl Russ. It was the first in the United States built specifically as an airplane factory. Orville estimated that the company built about 120 airplanes between 1910 and 1915, from sport biplanes to experimental aircraft and floatplanes.
The company spent much of its energy on protecting the Wright patents and seeking royalties from rivals, rather than on new design. Wilbur died in 1912. Orville owned 97 percent of the stock by 1914 and sold the company on October 15, 1915. In 1916 it merged with the Glenn L. Martin Company to form Wright-Martin.
The factory later housed AC Delco, and the site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2019.
Timeline
- 1909-11-22: The Wright Company is founded. (New York / Dayton) source
- 1910-1911: The Dayton airplane factory is built to William Earl Russ's design. (Dayton, OH) source
- 1912: Wilbur Wright dies. (Dayton, OH) source
- 1915-10-15: Orville sells the company. source
- 1916: The company merges with Glenn L. Martin to form Wright-Martin. source
- 2019: The factory site is added to the National Register of Historic Places. (Dayton, OH) source
What it changed
- About 120 airplanes built between 1910 and 1915.
- The first U.S. building made specifically for building airplanes.
Why it matters
First purpose-built airplane factory in the U.S.
Further reading
Sources
Confidence. Medium: the main facts were confirmed, but some details (often an address or ZIP code) were not.