National Soaring Museum facts for kids
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| Established | 1969 |
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| Location | Big Flats, New York Elmira postal address |
| Type | Aviation Museum |
The National Soaring Museum (NSM) is a special place that helps us remember the exciting history of flying without an engine! It's located in Big Flats Town, New York, on top of a place called Harris Hill, near Elmira.
This museum is the official home for the Soaring Society of America's historical items. In 1975, the Soaring Hall of Fame, which honors important people in motorless flight, was moved to the National Soaring Museum.
The museum has a huge collection of old and important gliders. These are aircraft that fly without engines, using air currents.
The museum also runs a program called the National Landmark of Soaring. This program celebrates people, places, and events that have been very important in the history of flying without engines.
History of the Museum
Elmira and Harris Hill have always been important places for soaring in the USA. A company called Schweizer Aircraft, which made many gliders, was located in Elmira. Also, the first 13 National Soaring Contests were held here between 1930 and 1946. This made the area famous for gliding.
In the 1950s, people who flew gliders and organized contests 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, the glider part of this small collection was moved to Harris Hill. This happened thanks to 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 was set up as its own non-profit organization. In 1972, the New York State Department of Education officially recognized it as a non-profit educational place.
The museum's first building was damaged by fire. In 1979, a new building was built. It was about 16,000 square feet. Later, in 1989, another 12,000 square feet were added. In 1993, a special annex for collections, about 3,200 square feet, was finished.
Having the National Soaring Museum at Harris Hill helped convince the National Warplane Museum to move to the area in 1997. This museum is now called Wings of Eagles. Together with the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport, New York, these three aviation museums attract many visitors to the Elmira area.
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 a fantastic collection of gliders. Here are some of the cool aircraft you can see:
- Backstrom EPB-1C Flying Plank
- Baker-McMillan Cadet
- Berkshire Concept 70
- Bölkow Phoebus C
- Bowlus BS-100 Super Albatross
- Bowlus BA-100 Baby Albatross
- Bowlus BA-102 Two-Place Baby Albatross
- Bowlus Senior Albatross
- Briegleb BG-6
- Briegleb BG-12BD
- Chanute-Herring 1897 glider
- Culver Rigid Midget
- DFS Olympia Meise
- Elmira Dagling Primary
- Franklin PS-2 (Three examples)
- Franklin-Stevens PS-2
- Glasflügel BS-1
- Glasflügel H-301 Schuemann Libelle
- Glasflügel H-301B Libelle
- Göppingen Gö 3 Minimoa
- Göppingen Gö 1 Wolf
- Gross Sky Ghost
- Hall Cherokee II RM
- Hall Ibex
- Herring-Arnot 1897 glider
- Hutter H-17
- Laister LP-15 Nugget
- Laister-Kauffman LK-10A
- Marske Genesis I
- Mitchell Nimbus III
- Mitchell U-2
- Nelson BB-1 Dragonfly
- Nelson Hummingbird (two examples)
- Peel Z-1 Glider Boat
- PZL-Swidnik PW-5 "Smyk"
- Perl PG-130 Penetrator
- Pratt-Read PR-G1
- Prue IIA
- Prue 215
- Rogallo Hang Glider
- Ross R-6
- Ross-Johnson RJ-5
- Scheibe L-Spatz 55
- Schleicher ASW 12
- Schleicher Ka-6E
- Schreder HP-8 Airmate
- Schreder HP-10
- Schreder HP-11A Airmate
- Schreder HP-16
- Schreder HP-18
- Schweizer SGP 1-1
- Schweizer SGU 1-7
- Schweizer SGU 1-19 (three examples)
- Schweizer SGS 1-23D and 1-23HM
- Schweizer-Burr SGS 1-24 "Brigadoon"
- Schweizer SGS 1-26
- Schweizer SGS 1-26E
- Schweizer SGS 1-29
- Schweizer SGS 1-35
- Schweizer SGS 2-8
- Schweizer SGS 2-12
- Schweizer SGU 2-22
- Schweizer SGS 2-32 (two examples)
- Slingsby UT-1 Dawydoff Cadet
- Slingsby Kirby Gull
- Slingsby T-3 Grasshopper Primary
- Slingsby Type T43 Skylark III
- Waco CG-4A
- Wright 1902 Glider (Replica)
- Wright 1911 Glider (Replica)
- Zoegling Primary
See also
- List of aerospace museums
- List of gliders
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Chemung County, New York
