New-York tribune., 1912-01-07
"Reminiscences OF First
Cars Shown in
Garden.
nv co,oo., George Pope. show Committee.

nv Colonel beO'Ee 'Vp'' '''"''
p,ok IN 1897. when I was in the bicycle
manufacturing business, about the tIile
whom the bicycle boom was about over
can recall how at bicycle show In Mahl-
son souare Garden there was "horseiesS
c.rriag ge" exhibited. That was what sell
nronelIed vehicles were called I'm those
d.vs II was a. curiosity. Probably not ,
nor cent Of the persons who looked at 1t
would have been willing to ride in It, let
alone learn 10 drive IT, for II was general
" considered a dangerous contraption The
fact that II developed about horsepower
did not alter the case any. Assuming tha'
q seIf-propelIed vehicle was dangerous IN
,,so,t the wiseacres declared there was
nothing I'm II as an industrial proposition
The following year several cars were
shown at bicycle exhibits in Chicago ana
New York. and still more were displayed
IN 1900 However. the first really serious
attempt TO hold an exposition OF automo-
b,les purely on their merits, and not as a
side issue or another sort Of exhibition
vas held in 1900, and Madison Square Gar
den. New York was its setting.
At that first show there were fifty-one
exhibitors all told, thirty-one showing
complete cars and score displaying ac-
cessorles Needless to add, there was
plenty OF spare room in the huge Garden
so much room that the promoters did not
know what to do with 1t all. II has been
quite different the last few years. when,
using the galleries, basement and the nails
and practically every nook and Granny 10
he found inside the structure for exhibi-
ton purposes, there has never Deen
enough room to accommodate all who arc
eligible to exhibit.
At that first show there was one feature
that was a good one and very much need
cd at that time although to-day It would
he unnecessary II was designed largely
n fill I'D space in the arena. This was
fiat. oval track for the purpose of demon
strating cars During the week of that
show many persons received their first
ride In an automobile riding around that
ring
How we would laugh at some OF tho cars
shown that year! Most Of them were steam
cars and eloctrcs. with a few gasolene We
hicles thrown in. How little We really knew
about building automobiles in those days
was evidenced by the fact that 1t was
thought steam automobiles would be the
matchmaking sort Of car in years TO come
and gasolene explosive motors were scarce
" thought Of; whereas the progress OF the
industry has shown the very reverse. the
steam car being now practically extinct.
Some Of the cars shown I'm 1900 were
amusing contraptons. The Wnton Com
many. for instance, exhibited phaeton
which would seat two passengers. This
car had made fine run from Cleveland
70 New York-a wonderful achievement
eleven years ago-and there also was
shown the famous Winton racing car Of
that day and delivery wagon. All these
were driven by single cylinder gasolene
engines. A one-cylinder Packard car and
a three-wheeled contrivance made by the
Knox Company also were included I'm the
gasolene division. Ore real racy looking
car was a two-passenger motOrette con-
structed by the Peerless Company. 1t en-
ployed an imported De Dion motor. There
also was a surrey displayed by the French
Brothers. and attracted considerable at
tention because it had come down over
the roads from Boston. Messrs Haynes
and Apperson were then in partnership and
their vehicles We're examined with much
interest and curiosity. The only three
cylinder engine was mounted in car
shown by the now defunct American BIZ