There's something in the air...

The American Heritage History of Flight, Simon and Shuster 1962

Samuel Langley was an early pioneer in aviation who had made several successful flights with models as early as 1896, some lasting as long as 3/4 of a mile. Working partially with government funds, he built a full scale piloted aircraft and made two attempts at flight. 
Catapulted from a houseboat in the Potomac river, the first takeoff by pilot Charles Manly on October 7 1903 was unsuccessful, the picture above shows the plane breaking up and falling during the second launch on December 8, 1903. 
Nine days later, the Wright brothers achieved the first successful powered heavier than air flight.