To celebrate the centennial in a big way, the birthplace is expanding its regular festival in June from one day to three, from an average of 800 in attendance to an expected 8,000 to 10,000.

The Centennial of Flight Festival: Fun is in the Air! will attract attention during those three days – June 20-22 – but the birthplace is hoping the attention coming its way will promote the birthplace in the long term.

Tucked away in the beautiful countryside of Henry County, Indiana, this rural, out-of-the-way center has come a long way since its inception less than 10 years ago.

There is so much to see at the birthplace, such as a full-scale replica of the 1903 Wright Flyer, which was painstakingly built over a 10-year time period; an extensive history of the Wright family; original Wright items, such as a pitcher and an organ; and a new addition that depicts life in the early 1900s, complete with printing shop, bike shop, general store, school and several storefronts.

The museum campus encompasses several buildings, such as the smokehouse, outhouse, wood shed, barn and chicken house. The farmhouse that stands today is actually the third home to be built on the original spot of the Wright home.

A tour of the Wilbur Wright Birthplace & Interpretive Center includes a look in the museum gift shop, a walk through the farmhouse, a demonstration at the smokehouse and a video and educational tour of the museum.

In the gift shop is a miniature model of what historians believe the Wright homestead looked like.

The plane in the center of the campus is an F84F of the Korean War era. Beyond the plane is the second replica of the home, decorated with many furnishings from the late 1800s.

In the museum, a short movie gives some history of the Wright brothers and their fascination with the possibilities of flight. In the lower level of the building is a full-scale copy of the original 1903 Wright Flyer.

There’s also a sample of a wind tunnel that explains how the brothers studied the effects of wind on flight.

In the new addition (see story below), visitors can experience what life was like for Orville and Wilbur when they were inventing the plane.

The Wilbur Wright Birthplace & Interpretive Center is one place that you don’t want to miss! Bring your family and friends and find out what this Indiana gem is all about.

Wilbur Wright was born on April 16, 1867, at a rural location on 750 East, the third son of Milton and Susan Koerner Wright. The birthplace is located on a five-acre parcel about two miles northeast of Millville in eastern Liberty Township, Henry County, Ind.

The original birth home was destroyed by fire in 1884. Another house was built on the site, perhaps using some of the original beams from the original home. On April 1, 1929, the state of Indiana purchased the site but did not develop it. The state rented out the home for about 20 years.

Orville Wright had visited the site twice, once in 1923 to see the small museum the current owner had set up in the smokehouse and again in 1947 to see the replica that had been built. His signature on a guest book is on display in the birthplace museum.

The state of Indiana had bought the property but neglected it for years. By 1955, the state decided to bulldoze the home, much to the dismay of local residents who protested.

The first replica was torn down, despite the protests. The current birth home was built in 1974 by the state, which later added a shelter house.

The state put a mobile home on the site for a residence for a caretaker, and it added a Korean Conflict-era F-84F fighter. The site was operated by the state until 1988, when it was decided the site was too expensive to maintain for the limited number of visitors.

The future of the site was questioned. One suggestion was selling the land as a residence. Another seriously considered plan was to move the birthplace museum to Summit Lake State Park for supposedly more accessibility to visitors.

A local group was formed to maintain the site at no cost to the state and the birthplace was able to keep its current location. This group couldn’t keep it going and the idea of moving the birthplace to Summit Lake again came up. Another group formed, with members of the original group, and they offered to keep the site maintained and open to the public.

With the help of a state representative and state senator, the group, which formed under the name of Wilbur Wright Birthplace Preservation Society and was incorporated on May 21, 1993, took over ownership of the site, as long as it was maintained to the requirements of the Department of Natural Resources.

The group met those requirements, and on July 20, 1995, the DNR board voted unanimously to deed the site to the preservation society. The deed was delivered in December 1995.

Designed by June Luellen of Mooreland, the addition depicts life at the turn of century when the Wright brothers would have been inventing the first powered airplane. The "street" is brick, and there are park benches were visitors can sit and rest. There are even street lights. In this "town," there are many places that would have been in existence at the turn of the century, such as a one-room schoolroom, a general store, a dress shop and a barber shop. The two most important parts, however, are the print shop and the bicycle shop.

Wilbur and Orville Wright operated a print shop and a bicycle shop. In their bicycle shop, they performed many of their aviation experiments. They also designed and used a wind tunnel to test their ideas.

In the bicycle shop in the new addition, bicycle tires hang from the rafters. A sign on one wall invites visitors to come back to where "Wilbur" is working on a bike. This piece of artwork makes a person stop when the image of Wilbur comes in to view. The artwork, a cutout of Wilbur with his back to visitors, was created by Charlene Manifold of Mooreland.

Manifold also painted the new mural behind the 1903 Wright Flyer replica (opposite). The mural is of a blue sky, clouds and seagulls. This is quite a sight when visitors come to the top of the Kittyhawk room.