The History: In Orville's personal diary, he writes, "Saw eagle sail out from top of Big Hill, rising higher and higher till it finally sailed away." He also notes laths [thin pieces of wood, probably used as roof shingles] were applied to their building's addition, their kitchen was moved to the new part of the building and they constructed beds under the roof.

The Wrights' 1902 Campsite Kitchen

Chanute writes to Wilbur that he is not sure whether or not the Lamson machine has been shipped. The multiple-wing machine was shipped to Elizabeth City, N.C. on September 4th by "Amer'n Express" for $11.15. Chanute sent Wilbur a check for $20 to cover the costs.

Chanute has spoken to both Mr. Avery and Mr. Herring regarding their availability to test Chanute's machines in the Kitty Hawk area.

Finally, Chanute asks the brothers to be careful as they test the flying machines. "I hope you will be very careful in carrying on your experiments. It is better to accomplish little than to try for a great success at risk of an accident."

Today Orville saw an eagle over Big Hill. Compare the eagle's flight path against the buzzard on September 5th. What's different? What did Orville learn from the eagle's flight? Both of the Wrights observed and studied birds to gain insight into solving the problem of flight.

The Wrights intended on living in comfort this year at their campsite. However, to make themselves comfortable they generally needed to build everything themselves. They even built two beds up in the building's rafters (the beams that support the roof), which they called "the second floor". They reached their beds by climbing a ladder.

The photo of their kitchen shows how neat, well planned and organized the Wrights were. Everything was in its place — all the supplies, dinnerware and kitchen utensils lined up or mounted on the walls. Although there is no official record, it is said the 5 eggs in the picture were numbered, so they knew which egg was the oldest (they would use that one first). The photo also demonstrates their construction talents.

These same organizational, planning, construction and observational skills were clearly very beneficial in the development of their flying machines.