Technology & Innovation

The Wright brothers inaugurated the aerial age and helped fashion a radically new world with their historic first flights at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on December 17, 1903. The first glimpses of what that world would become are reflected in .... Shortened snippet. View full page for more details.

When British and French gliding enthusiasts tested gliders propelled by small engines in 1922, they created a new type of low-cost "ultralight" airplane. But the idea didn't get off the ground until 1975, when John K. Moody installed a 12½-.... Shortened snippet. View full page for more details.

This major exhibition examines how transportation—from 1876 to 1999—has shaped our American identity from a mostly rural nation into a major economic power, forged a sense of national unity, delivered consumer abundance, and encouraged a degree.... Shortened snippet. View full page for more details.

This exhibition tells the history of the re-created, 2 1/2-story, Georgian-style house that stood at 16 Elm Street in Ipswich, Massachusetts, and five of the many families who occupied it from the mid-1760s through 1945. The exhibition explores.... Shortened snippet. View full page for more details.

This exhibition of more than 900 objects, related to the individuals who have held the nation's highest office, explores the public, personal, ceremonial, and executive boundaries of the presidency. Composed of 11 thematic sections, the .... Shortened snippet. View full page for more details.

By the turn of the 20th century, nearly 10,000 letter carriers worked in over 400 cities. The nation's population was expanding at top speed, and with it, the nation's mail volume and the need for personal mail delivery. This gallery focuses on.... Shortened snippet. View full page for more details.

Faced with the challenge of moving the mail quickly, the postal service looked to trains, automobiles, airplanes, and buses to deliver the mail, all of which are the focus of the museum's 90-foot-high Atrium gallery. Mail by Rail: After the .... Shortened snippet. View full page for more details.

This gallery provides an overview of mail service in America from colonial times through the 19th century, stressing the importance of written communication in the young nation. As early as 1673, regular mail was carried between New York and .... Shortened snippet. View full page for more details.