Mr. Hawthorne and I decided to play tourists the other day
and visit the Monument to a Century of Flight.
The monument depicts the history of flight
and man's journey in a single century
from being earthbound to traveling to the moon and beyond.
Groundbreaking for the monument was on June 17, 2003.
The monument was dedicated on November 8, 2003,
just in time for the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' flight,
which was quite a whoop-de-doo down here.
Now, here's a bit of trivia for you.
Whenever you've heard about the site of the
Wright Brothers' historic flight,
you've heard Kitty Hawk.
Actually, the site is in what is now Kill Devil Hills.
Kitty Hawk, which has been around for several generations,
is actually about 6 miles away.
And Kill Devil Hills didn't become a town until 1953.
Another piece of trivia:
Which brother made the first flight?
(Answer at end.)
Upon entering the monument site,
we see a granite marker engraved with the poem, High Flight,
written by James Magee, a 19 year old fighter pilot, shortly before his death.
President Reagan recited the poem in his address to the nation in 1986,
following the Challenger disaster, and in 2003
the poem was again used to honor the astronauts
lost in the Columbia shuttle.
There's a time capsule located here, scheduled to be opened in 2103.
The monument consists of 14 stainless steel wing-shaped
pylons ascending in height from 10 feet to 20 feet
in an orbit of 120 feet, which is the distance traveled
by the Wright Brothers in their first flight on December 17, 1903.
More information on the monument
can be found here.
Oh ... Orville was the first to fly.
"The monument was dedicated on November 8, 3003"
ReplyDeleteMethinks you all down there were time traveling, huh?
Thanks, Ticky.
ReplyDeleteI'm just trippin' down here.
RH
PS It was a FREAKIN' TYPO!