Name: Orville and Wilbur Wright

Famous For: Invented the airplane, i.e., successfully completed the first powered heavier-than-air flight. In 1903 the Wright brothers achieved the first powered, sustained and controlled airplane flight; they surpassed their own milestone two years later when they built and flew the first fully practical airplane.

Wilbur and Orville always took shared credit for their innovations, and maintained a close relationship throughout their lives. Behind the scenes, however, there was a division of labor. With his sharp instincts, Wilbur was the business mind and executive of the operation, serving as president of the Wright Company.

Jobs: Inventors + Bicycle Shop Owners

Birth Date: Orville:1871

Wilbur: 1867

Death Date: Orville: 1948 (age77)

Wilbur: 1912 (age 45)

Quote: "If we all worked on the assumption that what is accepted as true is really true, there would be little hope of advance."