Glenn Curtiss's Hydroplanes

Glenn Curtiss

Look there in the sky! It's a bird, no it's a plane, no its one of Glenn Curtiss's hydroplanes!!!! Born in 1878, Glenn Curtiss also known as the "Father of Naval Aviation" had a fascination with the idea of working with motors and aviation. He began his career with motor cycles, working hard he became one of the fastest men on the planet. His top speed reached 136 miles per hour. But this was never enough for Curtiss he turned his sights up to the skies above for thrill and adventure. In 1908 Curtiss was first to fly in the publically viewed flight. (Curriculum Central Bio cards)

Glenn Curtiss was then becoming an early aviation pioneer. In 1908, he turned his attention to designing a sea plane that could take off and land on water. Three years later, he successfully flew the "hydroplane" in San Diego Bay, landing on a naval ship. His landing marked the birth of U.S. Naval aviation, and convinced the Secretary of the Navy to buy the Navy's first aircraft. (Jarret book)

Then came the tragic fights the Wright Brothers, considered the fathers of modern heavier-than-air-flight, had tried to lock up the skies after their patenting of the ideas used to build their airplanes. They had a long, bitter legal battle with Glenn H. Curtiss who also made airplanes; Curtiss is credited with being "the first to make a public flight in the United States, the first to sell a commercial airplane, the first to fly from one American city to another, and the first to receive a U.S. pilot license". It wasn't until World War 1 that they put aside differences to fight for the common good.

Curtiss did not just stop at the hydroplane though, in 1912curtiss developed a larger "flying boat". In 1919, he constructed the first airplane to cross the Atlantic ocean for the U.S Navy. (Jarret book) He also went on to create his own company; it built the