Do you have any source information for this? As far as I understood, the Wright brothers started out by building hobbyist gliders in consultation with fellow aviation pioneer Octave Chanute.
I checked the Wikipedia entry, but the only reference it maintains for the Smithsonian having helped the Wright brothers is that they apparently gave Wilbur an award in 1910, after having tried unsuccessfully to steal credit from him for building the first heavier than air flyer. Somehow I doubt that's the kind of government contribution to innovation to which the previous poster intended to refer.
Wilbur Wright asked for the Smithsonian's aeronautical research. They still have the letter. The very Wikipedia article you're referencing, in the exact paragraph you're talking about, contains the words "Orville Wright, whose brother had received help from the Smithsonian when beginning his own quest for flight."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wright_brothers#Smithsonian_fe...
Sure, the Smithsonian people were assholes about it. That doesn't negate their contribution to the Wright brother's work. Incedentally, in modern timesif you visit the Air and Space Museum you can see the exhibit where they own up to the shabby attempt to promote their late leader over the Wrights. They cover the feud pretty thoroughly -- including having both aircraft.
I checked the Wikipedia entry, but the only reference it maintains for the Smithsonian having helped the Wright brothers is that they apparently gave Wilbur an award in 1910, after having tried unsuccessfully to steal credit from him for building the first heavier than air flyer. Somehow I doubt that's the kind of government contribution to innovation to which the previous poster intended to refer.