Download or read book A Yankee Inventor's Flying Ship written by Rufus Porter and published by Minnesota Historical Society Press. This book was released on 1969 with total page 72 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Artist, inventor, publisher, writer and sometime philosopher, Rufus Porter was a veritable poor man's Leonardo da Vinci. He founded ( and immediately sold) the magazine Scientific American, left a vigorous trail of mural art across the New England states, and built what was probably the first working model of a power-driven airship. His plans for this 'aerial locomotive' or 'Aeroport' were set in two pamphlets published in 1849 and 1850 -- both of which are now rare and sought after pieces of Americana. They are reprinted in this handsome edition limited to 2000 copies with illustrations and notes from originals owned by the Minnesota Historical Society.