What award did the Wright brothers receive from the U.S. government in 1909?

The Wright brothers received the Congressional Gold Medal from the U.S. government in 1909.

Congress awarded the medal to Wilbur and Orville Wright to recognize their pioneering work in the development of heavier-than-air flight. The brothers received it during a period of growing public recognition, after demonstrations in the United States and Europe had established their aircraft’s capabilities.

The award was one of the nation’s highest civilian honors. It recognized the brothers jointly rather than honoring only the pilot of the first flight, reflecting the shared nature of their engineering, experimentation, construction, and business work.

The medal is sometimes confused with later aviation honors, including the Langley Medal or the Collier Trophy. Those awards belong to different organizations and dates. The Congressional Gold Medal specifically refers to the federal recognition granted to the Wright brothers in 1909.