Friday’s Photo: Kitty Hawk, North Carolina and Early Flights Found in the Baylor County Banner

First flight, December 17, 1903. Orville Wright at the controls and Wilbur Wright
running alongside to balance the machine just after releasing his hold on the wing.

“Some airplanes went over on Tuesday and another one yesterday. They did not stop or give any account of themselves. Perhaps after awhile airplanes will be so common that no mention will be necessary about them. In fact, even now some of the oil men at Ranger have purchased planes to be used in going to and from Fort Worth.”

— Baylor County Banner, 22 May 1919

Years ago, while searching the Baylor County Banner on microfilm, I came across the newspaper item transcribed above. It has remained one of my favorites because it says so much about how quickly things change. In 1919, airplanes were still unusual enough to be worth mentioning in the local paper, but before long, they became an ordinary part of life.

I remembered the little article last Friday when we took a day trip to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, where we visited the Wright Brothers National Memorial and the museum there. It did a wonderful job of telling the story of the Wright brothers, not just the first flight, but everything that led up to it and all that followed. The first successful powered flight took place in 1903, and yet by World War I, airplanes were already being used in the war, even while horses were still important on the ground.

 

Baylor County Banner, 22 May 1919
as found on microfilm

Later, when I tried to find the Baylor County article at the Portal to Texas History, I discovered that it was not there. But while looking, I found several other Baylor County Banner articles about early flight. Since I have written very little about Baylor County and the Banner lately, I decided this was a good excuse to share some of them.

 

“Cheapest Aeroplane $7,500. New York, May 12.—The minimum price of a Wright aeroplane has been established at $7,500. But if a high speed machine, suitable for war purposes and carrying two passengers, be ordered, the aviator may raise the price to $25,000. This schedule of prices was announced last night by Orville Wright, who with his brother, Wilbur, started for Dayton, Ohio, today, after being tendered a reception here. ‘Of the sixty odd aeroplanes which we now have under construction at our Dayton plant,’ said Orville, ‘the cheapest will be $7,500. We have received orders for a number of these from individuals, and they will be delivered as rapidly as possible.”

— Baylor County Banner, 28 May 1909

“Jas. A. Russell left Monday for the Fair and said he was going up in the aeroplane with Art Smith. Hope we see our old friend alive again.”

— Baylor County Banner, 28 October 1915

“K. C. Plants and W. B. Craddick were in Haskell Tuesday to see the flying machine at the picnic there.”

— Baylor County Banner, 6 July 1916

“The prettiest sight we have seen in a great while was the airplane that passed over Monday afternoon; it was just low enough that the boys could be seen from a distance and answered our waving.”

— Baylor County Banner, 16 June 1921

“Mr. M. W. Coy came in Monday to report on his experience in going up in the airplane. He and Mrs. Coy each took a ride Sunday afternoon with Daredevil Lirette and enjoyed the experience immensely. In fact, Mr. Coy says he would not take $500 for his ride and his wife would not take $1,000 for her air ride. Mr. Coy has been living here for 30 years or more and has seen all of this country from the ground, but it was the first time he had ever seen the country from the air. He was up 2,000 feet, and the Brazos River looked like a little branch. Big farms looked like garden plots, and the court house seemed like a mere toy. Neither one of them had the least bit of fear about going up.”

— Baylor County Banner, 22 September 1921

“An airplane passed over here Saturday and Sunday, which reminds us of ‘Lady Mary’s’ remarks, that she did not understand why the airplane had not become common for passenger use in America. This will be coming before a great while. Not long ago Edward Stinson of Mineola, N. Y., who at one time did some stunt flying at Dallas, remained in the air for 26 hours, 19 minutes and 35 seconds. He and his companion would have been able to beat that if their oil pump had not broken. France evidently believes the airplane will figure largely in the next war, so she is working on the biggest plane the world has yet seen.”

— Baylor County Banner, 2 February 1922

 

The 1903 machine rests on the launching track at Big Kill Devil Hill before the December 14 trial. Four men from the Kill Devil Hills Life-Saving Station helped move it from the shed to the hill, accompanied by two small boys and a dog. This hill, where the monument now stands, was one of four massive sand dunes. The brothers climbed these dunes thousands of times while carrying out experiments in the years before their first flight.

If you would like to learn more about the families I research, follow my Facebook page, where I share each post along with other genealogical finds.

Diana

© 2026

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), 28 May 1909, newspaper; digital image, The Portal to Texas History ( https://texashistory.unt.edu/ : accessed 16 April 2026); crediting Baylor County Free Library.

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), vol. 16, no. 4, ed. 1, 28 October 1910, newspaper; digital image, The Portal to Texas History ( https://texashistory.unt.edu/ : accessed 16 April 2026); crediting Baylor County Free Library.

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), vol. 16, no. 6, ed. 1, 11 November 1910, newspaper; digital image, The Portal to Texas History ( https://texashistory.unt.edu/ : accessed 16 April 2026); crediting Baylor County Free Library.

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), vol. 21, no. 6, ed. 1, 28 October 1915, newspaper; digital image, The Portal to Texas History ( https://texashistory.unt.edu/ : accessed 16 April 2026); crediting Baylor County Free Library.

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), vol. 21, no. 42, ed. 1, 6 July 1916, newspaper; digital image, The Portal to Texas History ( https://texashistory.unt.edu/ : accessed 16 April 2026); crediting Baylor County Free Library. 

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), 22 May 1919, page 4, column 4, untitled item beginning “Some airplanes went over on Tuesday,” microfilm in author’s possession.

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), vol. 24, no. 38, ed. 1, 16 June 1921, newspaper; digital image, The Portal to Texas History ( https://texashistory.unt.edu/ : accessed 16 April 2026); crediting Baylor County Free Library.

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), vol. 24, no. 52, ed. 1, 22 September 1921, newspaper; digital image, The Portal to Texas History ( https://texashistory.unt.edu/ : accessed 16 April 2026); crediting Baylor County Free Library.

Baylor County Banner (Seymour, Texas), vol. 17, no. 19, ed. 1, 2 February 1922, newspaper; digital image, The Portal to Texas History ( https://texashistory.unt.edu/ : accessed 16 April 2026); crediting Baylor County Free Library.

Diana Quinn, five color photographs of exhibits and views at Wright Brothers National Memorial and museum, Kill Devil Hills, Dare County, North Carolina, taken April 2026; privately held by Diana Quinn, Virginia Beach, Virginia, 2026.

Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, “[1903 machine on the launching track at Big Kill Devil Hill, prior to the December 14th trial …],” photograph, 14 December 1903; digital image, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Online Catalog (https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2001696493/

 : accessed 16 April 2026), reproduction no. LC-DIG-ppprs-00612, call no. LC-W86-21 [P&P]; from Wright Brothers Negatives; “No known restrictions.”

Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, “[First flight, 120 feet in 12 seconds, 10:35 a.m.; Kitty Hawk, North Carolina],” photograph, 17 December 1903; digital image, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Online Catalog (https://loc.gov/pictures/item/00652085/ : accessed 16 April 2026), reproduction no. LC-DIG-ppprs-00626, call no. LC-W86-35 (Cabinet A) [P&P]; from Wright Brothers Negatives; “No known restrictions on publication.”

Mexia Weekly Herald (Mexia, Texas), vol. 11, ed. 1, 8 December 1910, newspaper, Dode Fisk Shows advertisement; digital image, The Portal to Texas History (https://texashistory.unt.edu/  : accessed 16 April 2026).