2003 marked the 100th anniversary of the first flight by the Wright brothers. But how many airplane buffs knew that 2006 marked the 100th anniversary of the Wright brothers' flying machine patent?

The legal profession knew. And now the attorney who oversaw that patent has been honored with an 8-foot-tall bronze statue on Main Street in downtown Springfield, Ohio.

At the dedication on October 10, Harry Toulmin was hailed as a pioneering patent lawyer, whose legal defense of the Wrights' intellectual property rights withstood more than 20 years of challenges and court battles.

The statue stands across the street from the Bushnell Building, where Toulmin had his office. [10/15/2006]

November 26, 2009