Orville Wright and Katharine Wright Feeding Cattle at Pau, France, February 1909

Orville Wright and Katharine Wright joined their brother, Wilbur, in France in early 1909. Wilbur had completed a series of impressive demonstration flights the previous fall, and the three siblings were celebrated throughout the country as heroes. Despite all the attention from monarchs, politicians, and business titans, the Wrights remained unaffectedly true to their Midwestern modesty.