Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park

Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park is a must-visit for anyone interested in aviation history. The park is a testament to the ingenuity and bravery of the Wright Brothers, who achieved the very first powered flight in Kitty Hawk, NC, in 1903. I have had the privilege of visiting both sites both in Kitty Hawk and here. I have been here 3 times now.

The park's visitor center is a beautifully designed facility that is both modern and informative. The center houses several exhibits that chronicle the history of aviation, including a replica of the Wright Flyer and artifacts from the early days of flight. Additionally, there are also several tours available that provide an even greater understanding of aviation history and the National Park Service team does a wonderful job of bringing history to life through their knowledge and enthusiasm.

The park features a number of historic sites that are must-see destinations for history buffs. These include the Wright Brothers' cycle shop, where the brothers worked on their early flying machines, and the Paul Laurence Dunbar House, the home of the poet and writer who was a close friend of the Wright Brothers. We went to the cycle shop this time around, but we did not make it to the Paul Laurence Dunbar House, unfortunately.

Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park is a perfect destination for families, history enthusiasts, and aviation fans. It is a unique place that offers visitors an opportunity to step back in time and experience one of the most significant periods in human history. I highly recommend it.

This location is home to the Wright-Dunbar Interpretive Center, which features some very neat art on the plaza and the side of the building, so it's immediately eye-catching, even as you walk up from the parking lot in the back. There are several picnic tables available along the plaza, which would be wonderful in warmer than the 20 degree weather with whipping wind that greeted us when we visited. We were happy to go inside and warm up while taking a look at all of the neat exhibits. We were greeted by a friendly ranger who gave us the rundown: they offer two short films, one about the Wright brothers on the ground floor, and the second about the life of Paul Laurence Dunbar on the second floor. There is a replica of a Wright glider right next to the desk, a small gift shop, displays and exhibits about the life and times of the Wright brothers (including a display print shop, a replica of a corner store they would have shopped in, and more). Besides their groundbreaking work on flight, the Wright brothers were also really interesting historical figures since they were very involved in other aspects of life at the time, as they also ran cycle shops and a printer shop (which also formed a connection with other notable Dayton resident of the time, Paul Laurence Dunbar, as they printed some of his work). Fortunately, the NPS also managed to get one of the cycle shops, located directly across the plaza, and you can let them know at the desk if you'd like to visit (it was locked when we came, but a ranger walked us over and let us in, gave us an overview and invited us to look at the exhibits). The second floor of the interpretive center is also home to the Aviation Trail Parachute Museum - Aviation Trail is a nonprofit organization that has partnered with NPS to help spread the word about the many aviation sites in the surrounding area. The parachute museum is a one room space with exhibits and displays. The Wright Dunbar interpretive center offers a Junior Ranger program too.

So much to learn and free

The museum focuses on the Wright brothers and Paul Dunbar. Lots of information about their life and history with timelines of their accomplishments.

Replica of the Wright plane, printing press business. They also have one of the original buildings that their bike shop was in.

Great little park. Doesn't seem like it is in that great of the area but you do see a lot of places in the area under construction for improvement. Park has its own parking.

Could easily spend 2 to 3 hours here.

Even though I grew up here, I had never been to this museum before. I was pleasantly surprised upon entering. It was free first of all which is almost always pleasant! Second they had some really interesting exhibits including a parachute room. You could also walk across the court yard and got to the bike shop portion of the museum. The docent was very knowledgeable and friendly. We also got our park passport stamped... first one in the mid west. Whoop

The National Park Service never disappoints. Not all of them have grand vistas or geysers that erupt on a regular schedule . . . . some simply tell the story of the United States (I almost wrote 'America' but my wife, originally from Mexico, takes great pleasure in correcting me that there are two whole continents of Americans.) and tell it beautifully!

This is the site of one of Orville and Wilbur Wright's bicycle shops where they invented better brakes for bicycles, worked on gliders, and planned the eventual building of the first airplane.

But along with telling a part of the Wright brothers' story it also tells the story of one of their high school friends.

Their classmate, Paul Laurence Dunbar, was the editor of the high school newspaper. His talent for the written word was widely regarded, but he was denied a job at the local newspaper because he was African American. This did not dissuade him however, and he published his own paper . . . . printed by his friends the Wrights.

Dunbar went on to be a respected and world renowned poet, giving readings in many countries. The Wrights often printed the tickets for his performances.

Sadly, illness cut Dunbar's life short at the age of 33.

Definately consider stopping here if you're passing through like I was. And if you live here, and have already been . . . . it's time to go again.

Interesting museum containing not just facts on the Wright Brothers, but of the building and other notable Dayton historical figures.
We were able to have a tour of the bike shop, I honestly would never thought a bike would have cost $100 in the 1890s crazy.
They have an activity for kids that if they complete it they can become junior rangers and get a badge and do a little swearing in. The kids were super excited about that. Spent a couple hours here.

Very cool site with info on the Wrights and Paul Laurence Dunbar. It's part of a network of aviation sites in Dayton, and the only one I hadn't been to. One building housed one of the Wrights' print shops, among other things, and the other was one of their bike shops.

The main building has displays about the Wrights' theories and testing, and Dunbar's life and work, and Dayton history in general. Upstairs is the "National Parachute Museum," essentially one room with brief background on parachute history, and interactive displays.

Across the pathway is a small shop that was their bike shop during the time they were forming their interest in flight. Rangers at both are very friendly and informative. Across the street you can see a hole in the block of buildings where another of their bicycle shops was moved to Greenfield Village. Their house, also at Greenfield, was a block or so away from here, so this neighborhood was very important. The Dunbar museum is a couple of blocks away, and definitely worth a visit while you're here.

I'd allow about an hour for this, though there is a movie I didn't watch that I think is another half hour. Be sure to check out the other sites on the Aviation Heritage Trail. The Air Force Museum, of course, but also Carillon Park, Huffman Prairie, and if you want to go farther afield the Waco Museum in Troy and the Champaign Aviation Museum in Urbana.

Beautiful park with an abundance of history. Husband and I were passing through and thought we would stop by. We spent 3 hours there and could have stayed another 3 hours if we had the time. A real treat to see the first "controlled" sustained aircraft. The volunteers were well versed in all aspects of the museums. And more than willing to offer addition facts. They have the right volunteers in place. I would highly recommend.

This museum is devoted to Henry and Orville Wright. They have a wonderful information center, and the best part of this museum is the video. It's about 20-25 minutes long, but it recaps Henry and Orville Wright's lifetime accomplishments. The movie is well done and gives a great picture of these two historical figures.

Since it is a historical site and natural park, they do have tour guides that are part of the museum. Next to the information center, they have the actual bike shop where Henry and Orville first started their business. This was a workshop for them to use when creating bicycles and then also used this shop to help them get started with working with planes. Lots of history here. If you can take a tour, do it!

They also have very nice bathrooms in case you need a pit stop.

This is a self guiding tour but so many wonderful things to see as you walk through. You also get 2 visual short films you can choose to see. More than one building in the little area and a great mural outside! Also don't forget to look at the sidewalks, I saw a few names I knew and a few I took pictures of to learn more of later. Oh, and I got some great things from their store!