John J. Montgomery was an American inventor of basic flight technology and exponent of aeronautical theory in the pioneering period of aviation in America (1885-1905). He used wind tunnels, whirling arms and ornithological investigations to determine flight control and stability in heavier-than-air aircraft design. He developed a series of gliders and made controlled gliding flights in the 1880's and later with tandem wing gliders in 1904-1906 and with a monoplane glider in 1911. This book explored his life story and career in aeronautics as well as situates his story in the context of Californian contributions to the solution of the flying problem. Researchers engaged in the subjects of; aviation, pioneering aeronautics, american inventors, technology and society, California and the american west, and the history of technology will be interested in this title.