National Soaring Museum facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
National Soaring Museum

Established	1969
Location	Elmira (Harris Hill), New York
Type	Aviation Museum

Harris Hill Overlook, where gliders take off.

The National Soaring Museum (NSM) is a special museum all about motorless flight, which means flying without an engine! It's located on top of Harris Hill, near Elmira, New York, in the United States.

This museum works to save and share the exciting history of gliders and soaring. It's the official home for the Soaring Society of America's important records and items. In 1975, the museum also became home to the Soaring Hall of Fame, which honors amazing people in the world of gliding.

The museum has a huge collection of old and famous gliders. It also runs a program called the National Landmark of Soaring. This program celebrates important people, places, and events that have made a big difference in the history of flying without an engine.

The Wing Monument at Harris Hill.

History of Soaring at Harris Hill

Elmira and Harris Hill have a long and important connection to soaring in the USA. A famous glider maker, Schweizer Aircraft, was based in Elmira. Also, the first 13 National Soaring Contests were held here between 1930 and 1946. This made Harris Hill a very special place for gliding.

How the Museum Started

During the US National Soaring Contests in the 1950s, pilots and organizers started talking about creating a national museum for soaring. At that time, a local museum in Elmira had a small display about gliders.

In the 1960s, this small collection of gliders was moved to Harris Hill. This happened thanks to the hard work of the Harris Hill Soaring Corporation and Paul A. Schweizer, who helped start Schweizer Aircraft.

By 1969, the Soaring Society of America decided that Harris Hill was the perfect spot for the future National Soaring Museum. The museum officially started as its own non-profit group. In 1972, the New York State Department of Education recognized it as a non-profit educational place.

Growing the Museum

The museum's first building was damaged by fire. So, in 1979, a new building was built. It was about 16,000 square feet (1,486 square meters) in size. The museum kept growing! In 1989, another 12,000 square feet (1,115 square meters) were added. Then, in 1993, a 3,200 square foot (297 square meters) annex was completed to hold more of the collection.

Having the National Soaring Museum at Harris Hill also helped bring other aviation museums to the area. For example, the National Warplane Museum (now called Wings of Eagles) moved nearby in 1997. These museums, along with the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport, New York, attract many visitors to the Elmira region.

In 2013, the original building, known as the Warren E. Eaton Motorless Flight Facility, was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it's recognized as an important historical site.

Amazing Glider Collection

The National Soaring Museum has an incredible collection of gliders from different times and places. These gliders show how flight without an engine has changed and improved over the years. You can see many unique and historic aircraft here, including:

See also

• List of aerospace museums
• List of gliders
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Chemung County, New York