Patent 154,654: Micajah Clark Dyer’s Flying Machine
Address: Micajah Clark Dyer Grave coordinates(34.79732, -83.88594); Replica of machine(1 Town Sq, Blairsville, GA 30512)
Description: The patent for the flying machine that predated the Wright Brothers first flight by more than 2 decades
History: This patent, granted to late inventor, Micajah Clark Dyer, was granted to him on September 1st, 1874, well over 20 years after the Wright Brothers first flight. This specific patent was for an "Apparatus for Navigating the Air." Legend holds that a few people libing in the Choestoe area including Virgil Waldroop, Reverend John Lance, and others even once saw the machine catch air and take flight. Other common legends hold that the Wright Brothers once visited Micajah Clark Dyer to inquire about his machine and that after Micajah Clark Dyer's death that his wife, Morena, sold the machine to the Redwine Brothers of Atlanta, who then sold it to the Wright Brothers. Today, Micajah Clark Dyer sits on the "Wall of Honorees" at the Smithsonian Museum of Air and Space in Washington D.C.. There is also a display for Micajah Clark Dyer at the Museum of Aviation at the Warner Robins Air Force Base. There is also a highway in Union County, Highway 180, named in Micajah Clark Dyer's honor which is known as "The Aviator Highway".
Fun Facts: 1. Micajah Clark Dyer sits on the "Wall of Honor" as an honoree in the Smithsonian Institute's Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C..
2. It is believed that other Union Countians of the 1800's witnessed Micajah Clark Dyer "flying machine" actually getting air when taking flight off of Rattlesnake Mountain.
3. Micajah Clark Dyer's granddaughter, Sylvia Dyer Turnage, is the author of the book "Georgia's Pioneer Aviator: Micajah Clark Dyer", telling about the life and flight trials of her grandfather, Micajah Clark Dyer. This book is available for purchase in the Union County Historical Society Museum.
4. It is believed to be possible that this flying machine was eventually sold to the Wright Brothers years after Micajah Clark Dyer's death.
5. A portion of Georgia Highway 180 is named the "Micajah Clark Dyer Parkway", in honor of Micajah Clark Dyer.
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