America on Wheels [Coming of the Auto] 1950s

[Music] time was when the carriage house not the garage was a familiar part of the American scene today at Stony Brook Long Island the carriage house is a museum recalling the period when traffic moved to a clippity clock those were the days of the hand fire engine volunteers lovingly tended the pumper 24 men hauled her to fires on the run and without pausing manned the pumps for the honor of the honeybee and the safety of the Town those were butcher prices start up those were Mass prod was America's first cheap private vehicle it named an era and introduced the woman driver Stony Brook's Carriage House contains probably the largest collection of America's horsedrawn Vehicles American Carriage manufacturing began about 1740 but there weren't many places to go and roads were so bad you did better by horse Philadelphia was the early Detroit of the carriage business and as highways and geography improved it appeared that ours was to be a nation on wheels it started with a conastoga wagon weighing 3 tons carrying nearly 2 tons more this six horse Prairie scooner pioneered the first migration West After the revolution in the 1800s carriages were a million dooll industry and no vehicle was more famous than the conquered Stage Coach used in the frontier West it featured something new lavishly upholstered seats for all nine passengers leather spring supported the conquered coaches 3,000 of which helped link a growing Nation the' 90s saw Carriage making a $67 million industry but its days were numbered and now a horse and carriage is a curiosity preserved in New York to drive the nostalgic through the park this is the day of the automobile tomorrow perhaps the day of atomic vehicles but Gone Forever our America's horse and buggy [Music] D dauntless drivers in white linen dusters lovely ladies with hat hugging veils antique Autos living relics of the birth of the Horseless buggy in America today the wooden floorboards and quaintly costumed drivers of those ancient chariots carefully preserved by old car lovers make a strange sight on our highways there was another day when these same cars then brand new were strange sights [Music] too it was that wonderful day not so long ago when the automobile first came to an American town the grown-ups clustered around to gape and Glock at this elaborate extravagant outlandish method of locomotion for the youngsters in propelled Carriage swarmed excitedly after man's latest mechanical [Music] Marvel adventurous Riders held tight as the contraption Ken crazily along sending into frightened flight horses which had served their master so well and so [Music] [Applause] long but the horse was to have some revenge for the early Autos often needed live horsepower and in match races the car always lagged behind with its critics derisively jering get a horse dobin won handily but his big day was already passing while the outdistance auto was just coming into its own soon a young man would be inviting his best girl out for a ride in the country early engines were temperamental and alas many a ride became instead an oldfashioned walk all but a few of the early model cars are forgotten today 2500 names once flew proudly was a popular pH of Motoring over around and often under the grease Smoky mechanical monster towns people over whelmed by their first the hory Autos [Music] often it seems funny now but it wasn't then each car was learning from its predecessor a new era was speeding ahead with the swiftness of the automobile yet there were many rough spots tires were frail and often flat each of the cars had its period of Acclaim this model with its rumble seat in front was a favorite at the turn of the [Music] century the automobile which at first had been only for the wealthy was being priced within the reach of most American families there still were mechanical headaches but the auto was here to stay which once echoed to the clattering of who moves and the creaking of carriages now resounded to the honking of horns and Clashing of Gears the afternoon Carriage procession had become a parade of Motorcars a half century later these early vintage Autos recall an age of bustles bowler hats and high button shoes they were the Trailblazers in a transportation Revolution that changed the course of our nation and brought a new way of life to our people they helped put America on wheels [Applause]