“In 1903, Henry Ford started making cars. His Model T , the ‘Tin Lizzie’, appeared in 1908. It did more than any other car of that day to to put America on wheels… Only the hardiest [drivers] ventured beyond city limits – the pioneer at the wheel faced speed traps and the hostility of the farmer whose horses he scared.”
“Cities barred the smelly, clanking, new-fangled contraption from their quiet parks, limited their speed , and proposed that they be proceeded by a man with a warning flag by day and a red lantern by night.”
“Teamsters, their horses frightened by the noise of the automobile, swore at it. Livery stable proprietors refused it a roof. When an automobile broke down, which was more often than not, crowds jeered the hapless operator. ‘Get a horse!’ became the common cry.”
Facts about American car ownership in the 1920s can be read here…
