Hansom Cab, 1900
date: label: date made
content: 1900
label: used date
content: 1890-1929
name: label: maker
content: D. P. Nichols & Co.
notes: label: Description
content: The D.P. Nichols Company (New York, Chicago and Boston) made this hansom cab around 1900. Mrs. Alice Maury Parmelee of Washington, D. C. purchased the cab around that time and used it well into the 1920s. In 1931, Mrs. Parmelee gave it to the Smithsonian Institution. The hansom cab was patented by Joseph Hansom of England in 1834. The hansom cab is a two wheeled, two passenger carriage with a body that is low to the ground, making it easy for passengers to board and disembark. Hansom cabs were commonly found in New York City primarily used as a vehicle for hire to get around the city, much like taxis are used today, but some were made for private use. As road surfaces improved and more people were able to buy automobiles, the hansom cab and other horse-drawn vehicles began disappearing from city streets in the early part of the 20th century.
place: label: Associated Place
content: United States: District of Columbia
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Transportation, Road
label: See more items in
content: Bicycling
label: See more items in
content: America on the Move
label: See more items in
content: Transportation
label: Exhibition
content: America On The Move
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Mrs. James Parmelee
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1932.117780.01
label: accession number
content: 117780
label: catalog number
content: 310391
objectType: label: Object Name
content: carriage
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (part material)
label: Physical Description
content: leather (part material)
label: Physical Description
content: fabric (part material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 8 ft x 5 ft x 5 ft; 2.4384 m x 1.524 m x 1.524 m