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Charles Edward Taylor (1868-1956), sometimes referred to as 'the first airplane mechanic,' worked intermittently from 1901 to 1920 for Orville and Wilbur Wright and the Wright-Martin Company. Born in Nebraska in 1868, Taylor built the first engine that powered an airplane in flight, a little four-cylnder, gasoline engine which was used in the Wright 1903 Flyer at Kitty Hawk on December 17, 1903.
NASM.1987.0006
Taylor, Charles Edward, 1868-1956
1928-1966
bulk 1928-1956
Charles Edward Taylor, II, Gift, 1986, 1987-0006, NASM
0.23 Cubic feet ((1 slim legal document box))
National Air and Space Museum Archives
This accession includes Taylor's correspondence with his son, Rueben W. Taylor, (1928-1948), and the Garrison Machine Works, (1953-1956), makers of gears used in the Wright flyer engines. The letters to Rueben Taylor are originals, while the Garrison Machine Works correspondence are mostly xerox copies. Also included are brief biographical sketches of Taylor.
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Airplanes -- Motors
Airplanes -- Design and construction
Airplanes
Wright (Brothers) 1903 Flyer
Aeronautics -- 1903-1916
Aeronautics
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Correspondence
Biographies