A Brief History of Ballooning
Ballooning began in France in 1783 when the Montgolfier brothers
thought it would make a wonderful promotional device to display
their wallpaper patterns.
In the beginning they thought, after watching smoke rise from chimneys,
that smoke rather than heat was the mysterious element with which
they could make a balloon rise. To that extent they purposely made
the fires that heated their balloons as smoky as possible by throwing
on damp straw or even old shoes!
In any case, ballooning began in France and through the efforts
of Benjamin Franklin was introduced to America 10 years later. The
first balloon flight in America launched from Philadelphia---our
nation’s Capitol at the time-- in 1793.
Ballooning was very popular, especially in Europe, as a hobby and
spectacle for about 100 years. Once the airplane was developed,
ballooning became impractical by comparison. You could now actually
pick your destination and fly much faster!
It wasn’t until the 1950’s when modern fabrics and propane
burner systems were developed that ballooning, as we know it today,
began to re-evolve and become the safe and practical sport it is
today.
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