Can you elaborate on the provenance of the item hanging up in the Smithsonian ( ex- U.K.Science museum ) ... as the 1903 Flyer ...?
The eye witness, A. D. Etheridge, who was at the Nags Head Lifesaving Station on March 12, 1935, amongst other things, said:
"
They (the Wright brothers) said they were going to take the engine back with them and the wings of the plane they left with me. Later I got a letter from a man in Philadelphia telling that Wilbur had written and told him that I had the old plane and that he wanted to buy it if I would dispose of it; so I wrote him a letter that I would sell it to him for $25.00. He sent me a check for it, and it is right here that I lost a fortune if I had kept it."
see:
http://www.pprune.org/aviation-histo...ml#post8494651
The official story is that Orville Wright rebuilt the 1903 Flyer, the first time in 1916:
"
Orville first rebuilt the Flyer in 1916 with the help of Jim Jacobs of the Dayton-Wright Company. Many of the parts had been broken in the tumble across the sand following the fourth flight in 1903. Others had been used and broken in the tests of the 1904 airplane. All were replaced in the reconstruction. Many of these replaced pieces still exist. The most significant losses were the engine, the fabric, and the propellers. The crankcase and legs were broken off in 1903 and the engine was never used again. The fabric was stored separately and given to the Wright family upon Orville's death in 1948. Other pieces, like the hub to the dolly and the propeller shaft sprockets also exist. Most of these survivors are in the collection of the National Park Service."
Source:
In Depth: The 1903 Flyer, Part I
In conclusion, the 1903 Flyer was sold by A. D. Etheridge to someone in Philadelphia and its engine, despite being carried back home by the Wright brothers has not survived. It is also known the brothers did not have drawings for their initial plane. The 1903 Flyer is an airplane that vanished completely and latter replicas are just claimed to be reproductions of the original.