Introducing Family Lore

Charles Frederick Page, a Louisiana man born into slavery, allegedly designed and built an airship prior to the Wright brothers' historic flight at Kitty Hawk. His grandson, 87-year-old Air Force veteran Joseph P. Page, maintains this family legacy, which persists despite the skepticism of a society that historically marginalized Black innovators. Growing up in the segregated South, Joseph navigated blatant discrimination while holding onto the story of his grandfather—a "Renaissance man" who worked as a timberman and cobbler but possessed a sophisticated engineering mind. Inspired by the flight patterns of mosquito hawks, Charles Page meticulously designed a flying machine with the intent of debuting it at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition. This narrative challenges the singular focus on the Wright brothers by examining how systemic racism and oral traditions shape the complex origins of American aviation.