For some reason, early aviation is mired in muck and smoke. There are disputes over who really pioneered manned flight, with allegations of payoffs and friendships interfering with claims. Laying aside early glider experiments (after all, we are talking about self-propelled machines when we discuss airplanes), there is still the hotly pursued claim that Glenn Curtiss really owns the title.

The Wright Brothers have strong connections to Michigan, so I think people in my area tend to favor their claim. Their mechanic, Charlie Taylor, worked for Henry Ford and Hank loved the Brothers (their home and bicycle shop were installed at Greenfield Village). Orville spent a fair amount of time in the Grosse Pointe area (where Ford's race cars staked his claim to fame). Perhaps the biggest connection is that the origin of the first international flight - another matter mired in mud and smoke - reportedly occurred as a short flight over Lake St. Clair or the St. Clair River between Michigan and Ontario (again, with Orville at the controls).

Our local air base is named after Lt. Thomas Selfridge, the first military person killed in an airplane while on duty. Orville was showing Selfridge the potential uses of planes for the military when he crashed and killed his passenger (in Virginia). The air base is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.