Museum Will Display A Model Of The First Airplane To Fly In The State

If you're heading to Wisconsin anyway for the EAA Airventure at Oshkosh, you might consider going a little early, and plan a side trip to Wausau. The Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame (WAHF) has planned a series of 2009 events celebrating Wisconsin’s Centennial of Flight, including history presentations and a traveling exhibit of a quarter-scale model of the first airplane that flew in Wisconsin. It happened when Arthur Pratt Warner flew a Curtiss aircraft from a farmer’s field in Beloit, Wisconsin, on November 4, 1909.

To celebrate this historic event, Michael Goc will present, “The First Thing I Knew, I Was Flying.” Sponsored by the Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame and Wausau Flying Service, this lively presentation tells how Warner brought Wisconsin into the age of aviation. The presentation takes place on Wednesday, July 15 at 6:30 p.m. in the terminal building at the Wausau Downtown Airport (AUW). Visitors will be able to see the centennial exhibit and the quarter-scale Warner Curtiss model, built by EAA Chapter 60 members in Beloit/Janesville. The public is invited and there is no charge for this event.

The Model will be on display at the airport from Tuesday, July 7 through Sunday, July 19.

Michael J. Goc is the author/editor of more than 80 books on historical subjects, including aviation, business, education, industry, natural resources, and community and economic development. Eight of those books have received Awards of Merit from the Wisconsin Historical Society, including Forward in Flight, the History of Aviation in Wisconsin. The Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame published Forward in Flight, a comprehensive history of aviation in our state, in 1998. Currently, Michael serves as vice-president of the Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame.

FMI: www.aviationhalloffamewisconsin.com