ng bicycles for friends, and then started their own repair business. They opened up a bicycle shop in 1893, and three years later, made their own bicycles called Van Cleves and St. Clairs. While caring for Orville, who was sick with typhoid in 1896, Wilbur read about two events; the death in a flying accident of Otto Lilienthal, the celebrated German experimenter with gliders, and the successful launching of powered models by Samuel Langley. This struck Wilbur with excitement.
             The Wright's serious work in aeronautics began in 1899 when Wilbur wrote to the Smithsonian Institution for information on aeronautical research. Within a few months after writing to the Smithsonian, Wilbur had read all that was written about flying. He then defined the elements of a flying machine: wings to provide lift, a power source for propulsion, and a system of control. Wilbur alone recognized the need to control a flying machine in its three axes of motion: pitch, roll, and yaw. They quickly developed their own theories, and for the next four years devoted themselves to the goal of human flight.
             In August of 1900, Wilbur built his first glider. They sought an arrangement where pr
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