Wright Brothers' $17M 'Flyer' Home: More Hawthorn Than Air
In 1914, Orville Wrightâyes, the aviation genius who flew a wooden & fabric sewing-machine-sewn plane for 12 seconds in 1903âdecided he deserved a mansion. Not just any mansion, but Hawthorn Hill: 6,200 square feet of Georgian Revival pricey real estate just outside Dayton, Ohio, built on a $19,000 plot with $40,000 construction money (equivalent to a millionaire's crib today). Orville, who shunned crowds but loved practical jokes, shared it with his sister Katharine and their dad, Bishop Milton Wright. Before he died in 1948 with $1.3 million net worth (aka $17.4 million in 2025 bucks), Hawthorn Hill hosted a who's who list from FDR to Edison. Now a museum charging $16 for you to peek where winged muses and airplane props hang out, itâs a fancy shrine to flightâand the private life of a man who rarely wanted to fly in front of cameras.
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Orville Wrightâs idea of flying high? Dropping $59,000 (aka a millionaireâs salary) on a mansion instead of a party. The secret to 12-second flight success? Hide in a 6,200 sq ft house and prank your family.
The Wright brothers turned a sewing machine and $17.4 million into a mansion so fancy even the hawthorn trees felt underdressed.
Who needs jet fuel when youâve got $40,000 in 1914 to build a house that screams 'I invented flying, so Iâm basically royalty'?
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 9/30/2025 | Author: Talia Lakritz
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