The first decade of the auto industry in America featured politicians and bureaucrats at all political levels trying to come to terms with a new form of locomotion. Rules and regulations had to be drafted, implemented, and then enforced. Working against them was a small but wealthy and powerful group that fought against regulations, tried to weaken those they could not block, or sought to write the rules themselves. This book details how the auto industry was imposed on society from the top down, unlike many new innovations that go through society from the bottom up.

Cultural historian Kerry Segrave is the author of dozens of books on such diverse topics as drive-in theaters, ticket-scalping, lie detectors, jukeboxes, smoking and shoplifting. He lives in British Columbia.

Kerry Segrave
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 221
Bibliographic Info: 39 photos, appendices, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2024
pISBN: 978-1-4766-9491-7
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5219-1
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents


Preface 1

Introduction 3

 1. A Class Arrival 5

 2. Removing the Horse 14

 3. Entering the Parks 31

 4. Organizations and Lobbying 47

 5. Speed, 1895–1901 68

 6. Speed, 1902–1903 82

 7. Accidents, Deaths, Insurance 97

 8. Licenses 107

 9. Laws, Rules, and Regulations, 1896–1899 120

10. Laws, Rules, and Regulations, 1900–1901 129

11. Laws, Rules, and Regulations, 1902–1903 140

Appendix A: Selected Laws, 1902–1903 165

Appendix B: Some Leading Automobile Suits 185

Appendix C: Motor Vehicle Deaths in U.S. by Year 189

Chapter Notes 193

Bibliography 203

Index 211