New Britain herald., 1927-09-10
and Remain With Original Holders
 19O3-Facs About Early Day.


 T knoNmohil". owned then by Rod ericII r Curtis Of Southporf, viii motive power listed, not as gasoline steam or electricity. but naptha.
 An interesting siIolight Of th, registration records of fl years aer IS disclosed in reading tha names e some of the automobile manufac. 'urers Of that period. The Whit steamer, 2 popular model of that day. vas manufactured by the White Sewing Machine Company ] Th" American Chocolate Machine r, Company produced another popular | car known as the Wat"rcar. Ano'h- cr popular make of that day was th" Stovens-Duryca manufactured by the J. Stevens Arms and Tool Company. Such registrations and such manufacturers appear in the 1908 Connecticut registration rec orls.
 Home Made Cars
 \ glimpse over tho first thousand '-- 9Al 'i ll'liS ilHi'''i III bllItt1 ltlI1 exhibits the fact that number of car owners built their own ma chimes. When the make Of car" was listed, tho words home made" made their appearance quite few times. F.. F. Wilcox of Mnriden re ceived registrations number 43, GOV Cring a four scatter steam runahout built by himself H. F. Philbrick of Hartford listed a "homc made" cleo 'ric runa bout. A "home mado' four passenger surrey, propelled by steam. was registered by Wendell P Norton of Torrington. 4. II. Fillow of Danhury registered "homo made' four passenger gasoline run about, and q two passenger steamer was listed as "home made" by ". c. Dunham of Bridgeport.
 The New Haven Carriage Com pany registered 2 car which they called "s"abreht" during the first month of registration in 1903. II was an electric runabort. and was built at their plant in New Haven. Similarly, the Billings and Spencer ( company Of Hartford also built and re gistercd d "B and $" four passon- g"r steamer
 The first comm morcial motor Vo- hirle 70 be registered in Connccti- cut in 1903 was a home made" freight truck, electrically propelled. I lict rI h 
 In analysing tho early r"gistra- fion lt was apparent that the Ford car al that time was known. at mobile" r. was listed in Connecticut as such. Tn" nam" Fordmobilo ap- pear"d but once in the list of the first 1900 cars registered during the first var in Connecticut. II was apparent that Fords were not pop,l- larly in use al that time in the state
 Many of the "m7kos'' of cars re- yis'"rcd in 1903 are still popular but many more would sound strange 10 ''' ''' t'1 VI IN''i III 'fDll!l''tiI'ul oday. Tn" most popular makes seem Q haT" been the LOcOmohiln. OldS- mobile. knoNmObil" and tho folum- 'la Electric. In those days, incl th" T.ocomobile was pro- ,ell"d by steam power. Other pres . mt day cars appearing in tue 1903 ISt "cr" in" Franklin. Peerless, {. 'acEnrd, Pierce, and Ford. although . Of these makes were ! cry f"A. Most of the familiar ] am"s filled in where make of car" .as required were Autocar, Winton. ! Stanley steamer Gasmo- tl", Prescott. Rambler. hotorette, l 'anhard, Fillmore, Orient and Pope. On" clerk handled the registra- ons of 1903. Today il requires . yer 25h people 10 keep the motor ehicl" department functioning eff i"ntly. Instead Of having one cor CT Of an office, as in 1903. or three mall offices, as in 1917, the depart lcnt today usos most of the space in Ho floors of th" capitol building in hartford, and operates busy branch ffic"s at NoFr Haven, Bridgeport. 'at"rbury, Stamford and New Lon on,