Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Caucasus - Geghard Monastery, Armenia
Armenia • 15 days, 14 nights
Caucasus Road Trip: Azerbaijan, Georgia & Armenia
from
Taktsang Lhakhang, also known as the “Tiger’s Nest”.
Bhutan • 11 days, 10 nights
Festivals & Temples of Bhutan
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
The museum, designed to look like a manuscript.
Etihad Museum
Current appearance
Base of the Column of Arcadius
Abington Friends Meeting House.
Abington Friends Meeting House
Muc Lien’s 18 Gates of Hell.
Muc Lien's 18 Gates of Hell
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The sign declares this the number-one gumbo shop in town.
Gumbo Hut Shioya
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
The Codex Gigas (the Devil’s Bible) open to the portrait of the devil.
Codex Gigas: Who Drew the Devil in This Massive Medieval Bible?
about 6 hours ago
USDA and Washington State agriculture officials tagged this Asian giant hornet. Sept. 10, 2021.
What Ever Happened to the Murder Hornets?
1 day ago
The exterior of the Hall of Records.
Atlas Obscura Mailbag: Urban Exploration, Illegal Carvings, and Repeat Vacations
3 days ago
Biosphere 2 campus (2016)
Biosphere 2: How Volunteers Survived for 2 Years in an Airtight Habitat
4 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States New York State New York City Hammondsport Glenn H. Curtiss Aviation Museum

Glenn H. Curtiss Aviation Museum

Curtiss is a forgotten figure in the early history of flight.

Hammondsport, New York

Added By
Sarah Laskow
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
  Sarah Laskow
  Sarah Laskow
  Sarah Laskow
  Sarah Laskow
The Curtiss “Jenny”   lovelymeg520 / Atlas Obscura User
The Curtiss “Jenny”   lovelymeg520 / Atlas Obscura User
  MichaelD / Atlas Obscura User
  arc459 / Atlas Obscura User
  arc459 / Atlas Obscura User
  Sarah Laskow
  Sarah Laskow
  Sarah Laskow
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Driving a country highway in upstate New York, you don't expect to see a shining metal plane from World War II on the side of the road.

This Curtiss C-46 "Commando" marks the entrance to the Glenn H. Curtiss Aviation Museum, an aviation collection dedicated to the memory of one America's earliest pilots. 

Curtiss was born in Hammondport, New York, in 1878. He made his early reputation building and racing bikes and motorcycles, but in the early 1900s he became fascinated with flight and turned his attention to building a flying machine. Five years after the Wright Brothers' iconic flight, Curtiss announced his own. He took the "June Bug" up in the air and flew 5,000 feet. It was, according to the museum, the "first pre-announced, public flight in America."

Inside, the museum has a nice collection of aircraft, cars, boats, and motorcycles, Curtiss' first great mechanical love. The collection includes a replica of the June Bug, as well as the first airplane to take flight in Canada, an early Navy plane, and other early planes. 

Related Tags

Airplanes Aircraft Motorcycles Museums And Collections Museums

Community Contributors

Added By

Sarah Laskow

Edited By

lovelymeg520, arc459, MichaelD

  • lovelymeg520
  • arc459
  • MichaelD

Published

July 10, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Glenn H. Curtiss Aviation Museum
8419 State Route 54
Hammondsport, New York
United States
42.398806, -77.233369
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

T.M. Younglove Octagon House

Hammondsport, New York

miles away

USA Field

Bluff Point, New York

miles away

The DeGeorge Barn

Branchport, New York

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Hammondsport

Hammondsport

New York

Places 2

Nearby Places

T.M. Younglove Octagon House

Hammondsport, New York

miles away

USA Field

Bluff Point, New York

miles away

The DeGeorge Barn

Branchport, New York

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Hammondsport

Hammondsport

New York

Places 2

Related Stories and Lists

25 Places Where Planes Are Right at Home on the Ground

List

By Jonathan Carey

Related Places

  • A Curtis P-40N Warhawk flown by the Flying Tigers.

    Robins Air Force Base, Georgia

    Museum of Aviation

    A fascinating aviation museum where you can chat with the veterans who once flew the aircraft on display.

  • Cosmosphere.

    Hutchinson, Kansas

    Cosmosphere

    The world’s largest combined collection of U.S. and Russian aircraft got its start in a poultry building.

  • Auto & Technik Museum Sinsheim.

    Sinsheim, Germany

    Auto & Technik Museum Sinsheim

    It has an American Dream Car exhibit, Europe's largest Formula One collection, and many, many mannequins.

  • Aircrafts Museum, housed within a disused plane

    Dhangadhi, Nepal

    Aircrafts Museum

    Nepal's first aviation museum found a logical home in the most unexpected place.

  • Tillamook Air Museum

    Tillamook, Oregon

    Tillamook Air Museum

    The largest wooden building in the world now houses a fascinating collection of aircraft.

  • Tucson, Arizona

    Pima Air & Space Museum

    Browse an impressive collection of passenger and military aircraft dating back to World War II.

  • Ashland, Nebraska

    Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum

    Once a slice of Cold War-era military history, this museum is finding its future in the stars.

  • The NB-8, with its foldable wings and lightweight design, was cutting-edge technology for early 1930s aviation.

    Marshall, Missouri

    Nicholas-Beazley Aviation Museum

    This interactive museum preserves the big aviation history of this small Missouri town

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.