The
Arrival Of The Automobile
 It never occurred to Papa to exchange his well groomed
team of horses and the two-seated surrey for that mechanical contraption, the
automobile. That is, not until around the year 1912. He might still
be slapping the reins and cracking the whip on old Dobbin's back if
Mamma's modern ideas had not changed his mind. That team of horses,
purchased as colts, raised in a gentle manner, carefully broken to
bridle and harness, were his pride and joy, and he had "no mind" to
switch to other means of transportation.
Mamma argued that it was becoming more difficult every day
to drive horses on the narrow country roads and streets of our midwest
community. If Papa saw an automobile coming in the distance, when
riding over the long narrow causeway, he laid the whip to the team and
raced to one of the turnouts built for the purpose of meeting a rig
or auto. Many such meetings caused serious accidents or run-a-way
horses, to say nothing of broken harness and torn flynets. The frightened
horses shied from the autos, skitted sideways, and often spilled the
passengers out onto the marshy bog.
With so many people driving cars, it was difficult to find
a place to tie up your horses on the long row of hitching posts in
town. One almost never saw a horse and buggy on the roads, and the
only horse-drawn wagons were used by farmers hauling cattle to the
stockyards or feed to be ground at the mill; the milkman who picked
up your milk cans in the morning and returned them at night, or the
man who picked up old rags and rusty scrap iron. Then, too, on Sunday
Mornings the horse barns at church were filled with parked cars, and
Mamma was embarrassed to find we were one of the few families still
driving horses.
During the early years of the Twentieth Century, residents
of our town saw their first automobile. The topless, two cylinder
contraption, somewhat resembling the old top buggy, chugged down the dusty road, scattered flocks of chickens, and frightened
horses, timid females and children. This novelty provoked much
laughter and many guffaws as the "doubting Thomas" predicted its failure
far in advance. Little did the citizenry dream that in a short time
the automobile would replace the horse.
Great excitement was aroused when the owner of the local
hardware store chugged down the street with a two cylinder Northern.
The tiller steered carriage, with high wheels and hard rubber rims,
resembled a top buggy. He raised a cloud of dust as he turned the
corner on two wheels and pulled up in front of the store, ready for inspection by his
curious neighbors.
What a glamorous novelty to behold! Its chain driven mechanism
was exposed to the elements. An elongated tank of carbon gas, mounted
on the running board, was connected by cop per tubing to a pair of
brass rimmed headlights placed on either side of the front seat. The
horn, with a large rubber bulb, was located on
the dashboard.
In 1906 the Northern was replaced by a Winton with one door
in the rear of the car anseats along both sides of an aisle up to
the driver's seat. With this magnificent machine he was engaged to
carry wedding parties and funeral corteges to local churches, followed
by a slow procession of horse-drawn buggies and surreys.
An outgrowth of this early experience with automobiles,
turned his hardware store into a repair shop which later graduated
to the first garage between the State Capital and the city famous
for the manufacture of beer.
His expert knowledge of leaky radiators, smudgy carburators,
dirty spark plugs and fla tires, aided many stranded motorists. To
make tire repairs, he jacked up the car, manually removed the rim
from the wheel with an iron pinch bar, jerked out the innertube and
float ed it in a tub of water to find the leak. After thoroughly scraping
the puncture he slapped on a rubber patch coated with glue. When completely
dry, he used a hand pump to fill the limp innertube with air.
Automobiles were furnished with gasoline and oil at hand-cranked
pumps. Grocery, hard ware and drug stores also dispensed gasoline which
was stocked in barrels in their storerooms.
The operator of the local livery stable soon hung up the
harness and flynets and put his trusty team of bays out to pasture.
To improve and modernize his service of transporting salesmen from
the railway station to neighboring towns, and summer vacationers to
nearby summer cottages on the lakes, he purchased one of the first
Fords. The famous Model T was manufactured by Henry Ford and sold for
$500. It was universally known by the moniker "Fliver" or "Tin
Lizzie".
A great improvement over the topless one-seater with two
cylinders and chain drive, was the elegant two-seater Buick. Its four
cylinder mechanism was covered by a square box like brass trimmed hood.
The tufted leather cushions, flat fenders, narrow running boards,
and two piece windshield, were the newest innovations. Doors were not
added to these models until several years later.
The addition of folding tops and side curtains with isinglass
panes was considered another great improvement on automobiles. At
the first sign of a storm cloud in the sky, the rear seat was lifted
up and the rolled-up side curtains removed and quickly buttoned or tied
into place. The emergency repair kit, the jack the iron pinch bar were
also stashed under ther back seat, ready to be used to repair blowouts
and punctures on the road.
The automobile, at first considered a luxury, soon became
a necessity. Cars were shipped from the manufacturer by rail to larger
cities, and then driven to small town dealers who found a fruitful
market among farmers, doctors, bankers, salesmen and others.
Clothing styles changed drastically with the event of the
automobile. The men wore belted dusters resembling a chemists laboratory
coat, gauntlet gloves, and goggles to protect their eyes. The ladies
wore car coats made of coarse, drab colored materials and auto caps
with visors. Laced through the front of the caps were colorful, sheer,
flowing veils. Fringed lap robes covered their knees and protected their
clothing from dust.
As more automobiles appeared on the highways, legislation
was enacted establishing a five mile per hour speed limit in villages
and a ten mile speed limit on open country roads. Travel was curtailed
by the lack of gasoline stations, garages and road maps. During World
War I, no Sunday driving was allowed and some week days were declared
gasless in order to conserve the gasoline supply for the war effort.
Everybody was getting cars. When Uncle Henry called on the
telephone to say he was driving out to the farm in his new car, we
could hardly wait to get a close look at it. News traveled fast,
especially since we were on a party line, and on Sunday afternoon our
yard was filled with neighbors eager to see the new invention. Mamma
almost cried aloud when Uncle Henry drove the car right up on our well
kept front lawn and parked it under the big elm tree next to the lawn
swing. He got out, removed his coat and vest and carefully placed
them over the two tires on the sunny side, to prevent the heat from
shriveling them. The children came running from every direction; the
ladies stepped out of the lawn swing; the men dropped their croquet
mallets and every one gathered around to admire the marvelous
machine.
Mamma's arguments for our owning an automobile must have
been convincing, for car salesmen, to Papa's disgust, drove out to
the farm every week to give demonstrations and offer rides in the
various models. What a variety! Besides the Overland, Oldsmobile,
Studebaker, Dodge, Buick,Dart, Hupmobile and others, there were
touring cars, roadsters, and seven passenger cars with two tip-up
seats that folded into the floor between the front and back seat. Some of the more popular models
sported a rumble seat or a "mother-in-law" seat in the rear.
How thrilled we were when Papa finally succumbed and we
were the proud owners of our first car, a four cylinder, four-door
black Buick. It was the last word in elegance and Papa admitted it
was a great convenience as well as a symbol of success.
The next afternoon he pushed the Buick out of the garage
and invited us to go for a trial spin down the road to visit neighbors.
As a precaution, he set the emergency brake, positioned the gas lever
to low and advanced the spark to a certain point. These two
gadgets were located under the steering wheel on a notched hald
circle of metal. He got out of the car, took off his gloves and clutching his cigar firmly between his teeth,
gave the crank a swift whirl. The motor chugged and died. He cussed
a bit, ran around to the front seat, readjusted the spark, jumped out
and tried again. We stood several feet away from the car during this
maneuver, praying Papa would not end up with a broken am or leg from
the kick-back. After the third attempt the engine started, Papa jumped
in, raced the motor triumphantly and in a staccato voice asked us what
we were waiting for. We cautiously climbed in. Mamma tried not to show
her nervousness while we clung tightly to the bars that secured the
canvas top to the body of the car. Papa grasped the steering wheel firmly in
both hands, shifted gears, looked directly ahead and pretended he had
been driving cars for years. And away we went.
Right after the first frost, the water was drained
from the radiator and the car put up on blocks for the winter. Around
the fifteenth of April, when the danger of severe frost was past and
the road conditions improved, the car was filled with water and gas,
dusted off, polished and put into use again.
It was a rare sight to see a woman driving an automobile
in those days. Mamma resented the term "women drivers." She never learned
to drive, for Papa was certain she would "run someone down" if she
ever got behind the wheel. In spite of her desire to have an automobile
she never lost her great love for our matched team of horses and the
old surrey.
Nostalgia for those bygone days in the country and small town binds our imagination.
We can still see the rising clouds of dust in the distance and hear the roar of that first auto
chugging down the country road. Close by, down in the pasture, we
hear the whiny of old Dobbin. He defiantly rears his head, switches his tail,
and with nostrils flared, races up and down the lane, his silky mane
waving in the wind.
So Long Old Dobbin!
Featured Music: 
"In My Merry Oldsmobile"
Verse 1: Young Johnnie Steele has an Oldsmobile.
He loves a dear little girl.
She is the queen of his gas machine. She has his heart in a whirl.
Now when they go for a spin, you know, she tries to learn his auto, so
He lets her steer while he gets her ear, and whispers soft and low;
Chorus: Come away with me Lucile in my merry Oldsmobile
Down the road of life we'll fly automo-bubbling you and I.
To the church we'll swiftly steal, then our wedding bells will peal,
You can go as far you like with me, In my merry Oldsmobile.
Verse 2: They love to spark in the dark old park, as they go flying along,
She says she knows why his motor goes; his sparker's awfully strong.
Each day they spoon to the engine's tune, their honeymoon will happen soon,
He'll win Lucile with his Oldsmobile and then he'll fondly croon;
Chorus: Come away with me Lucile in my merry Oldsmobile
Down the road of life we'll fly automo-bubbling you and I.
To the church we'll swiftly steal, then our wedding bells will peal,
You can go as far you like with me, In my merry Oldsmobile.
Patter Chorus: Come away Lucile 'cause if I may Lucile I want to take you for my bride,
And we'll chug along and always sing a song as down the road of life we fly
Even though my car is old and squeaky now it's better than a horse or train.
When I pull the throttle out and put her into third you think you're in a plane.
To the church we're heading for a quiet wedding then I'll crank her up and take the wheel
And away we'll go my honey, they will know my honey that our love is real.
You can go as far you like with me, In my merry Oldsmobile,
My merry Oldsmobile.
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