The Electric Car in America, 1890-1922

Author: Kerry Segrave
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476676712
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 264

Book Description
The electric vehicle seemed poised in 1900 to be a leader in automotive production. Clean, odorless, noiseless and mechanically simple, electrics rarely broke down and were easy to operate. An electric car could be started instantly from the driver's seat; no other machine could claim that advantage. But then it all went wrong. As this history details, the hope and confidence of 1900 collapsed and just two decades later electric cars were effectively dead. They had remained expensive even as gasoline cars saw dramatic price reductions, and the storage battery was an endless source of problems. An increasingly frantic public relations campaign of lies and deceptive advertising could not turn the tide.

The Electric Car in America, 1890-1922

Author: Kerry Segrave
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476634963
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 264

History of Electric Cars

Author: Nigel Burton
Publisher: Crowood
ISBN: 1847975712
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 512

Book Description
One hundred years ago electric cars were the most popular automobiles in the world. In the late nineteenth century and at the start of the twentieth century, they outsold every other type of car. And yet, within a couple of decades of the start of the twentieth century, the electric car had vanished. Thousands of battery-powered cars disappeared from the streets, replaced by the internal combustion engine, and their place in the history of the automobile was quietly erased. A century later, electric cars are making a comeback. Fears over pollution and global warming have forced manufacturers to reconsider the electric concept. A History of Electric Cars presents for the first time the full story of electric cars and their hybrid cousins. It examines how and why electric cars failed the first time - and why today's car manufacterers must learn the lessons of the past if they are to avoid repeating previous mistakes all over again. The book examines in detail: Early vehicles such as the Lohner-Porsche petrol-electric hybrid of 1901; Key figures in the history of the electric car development such as Henry Ford; Sir Clive Sinclair's plans to build a number of electric vehicles, designed to sit alongside the Sinclair C5; The return of the electric technology to vehicles as diverse as the NASA Lunar Rover, commuting vehicles and supercars; Future developments in electric cars. For the first time the full story of electric cars and their hybrids are examined.The hidden past of the electric automobile is uncovered and its future developments are discussed. Superbly illustrated with 300 colour photographs, many of which are rare and original sketch designs. Nigel Burton has written and lectured on cars and automotive history for more than twenty years.

The National Security League, 1914-1922

Author: Kerry Segrave
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476682860
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 270

Book Description
The early 20th century saw the founding of the National Security League, a nationalistic nonprofit organization committed to an expanded military, conscripted service and meritocracy. This book details its history, from its formation in December 1914 through 1922, at which point it was a spent force in decline. Founded by wealthy corporate lawyers based in New York City, it had secret backers in the capitalist class, who had two goals in mind. One was to profit immensely from the newly begun World War I. The other was to control the working classes in times of both war and peace. This agenda was presented to the public under the guise of preparedness, patriotism, and Americanization. Although the league was eventually found by Congress to have violated election spending limits, no sanctions of any kind were ever applied. This history details the secret machinations of an organization dedicated to solidifying the grip of the capitalist class over workers, all under the cover of American pride.

Electric and Hybrid Cars

Author: Curtis D. Anderson
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 0786457422
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 269

Book Description
This illustrated history chronicles electric and hybrid cars from the late 19th century to today's fuel cell and plug-in automobiles. It describes the politics, technology, marketing strategies, and environmental issues that have impacted electric and hybrid cars' research and development. The important marketing shift from a "woman's car" to "going green" is discussed. Milestone projects and technologies such as early batteries, hydrogen and bio-mass fuel cells, the upsurge of hybrid vehicles, and the various regulations and market forces that have shaped the industry are also covered.

Women and Bicycles in America, 1868-1900

Author: Kerry Segrave
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 147663808X
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 231

Book Description
In the last third of the 1800s, America was struck by a bicycle craze. This trend massively impacted the lives of women, allowing them greater mobility and changing perceptions of women as weak or in need of chaperons. This book traces the history and development of the American bicycle, observing its critical role in the fight for gender equality. The bicycle radically changed the face of fashion, health and even morality and propriety in America. This thorough history traces the sweeping social advances made by women in relation to the development of the bicycle.

The Great Race

Author: Levi Tillemann
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1476773505
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 352

Book Description
The Great Race recounts the exciting story of a century-long battle among automakers for market share, profit, and technological dominance—and the thrilling race to build the car of the future. The world’s great manufacturing juggernaut—the $3 trillion automotive industry—is in the throes of a revolution. Its future will include cars Henry Ford and Karl Benz could scarcely imagine. They will drive themselves, won’t consume oil, and will come in radical shapes and sizes. But the path to that future is fraught. The top contenders are two traditional manufacturing giants, the US and Japan, and a newcomer, China. Team America has a powerful and little-known weapon in its arsenal: a small group of technology buffs and regulators from California. The story of why and how these men and women could shape the future—how you move, how you work, how you live on Earth—is an unexpected tale filled with unforgettable characters: a scorned chemistry professor, a South African visionary who went for broke, an ambitious Chinese ex-pat, a quixotic Japanese nuclear engineer, and a string of billion-dollar wagers by governments and corporations. “To explain the scramble for the next-generation auto—and the roles played in that race by governments, auto makers, venture capitalists, environmentalists, and private inventors—comes Levi Tillemann’s The Great Race…Mr. Tillemann seems ideally cast to guide us through the big ideas percolating in the world’s far-flung workshops and labs” (The Wall Street Journal). His account is incisive and riveting, explaining how America bounced back in this global contest and what it will take to command the industrial future.

Masking America, 1918-1919

Author: Kerry Segrave
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476694494
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 289

Book Description
This book recalls masking efforts in response to the Spanish flu epidemic. Masking the population as an ineffective response to disease by public health officials and political bureaucrats at various levels of jurisdiction reached its zenith in 2020. However, it began a century earlier during the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918-1919. In both cases, masking was not the first response made by the officials. In both cases, it was introduced as part of the second round of responses after the first round had failed. During 1918 the imposition of masking was done by legal mandate in some areas, by hectoring and whining on the part of officials in other areas, and by gentle and not so gentle public persuasion involving the use of "good" examples. Military members were mainly forced to don masks. Since there were bases, camps, and cantonments all over America as the war was ongoing, it was hoped an example would be set for the general public. Post office clerks who dealt with the public were often forced to wear masks; it was one of the few areas where the federal government had the power to impose masking. Some areas used masking almost not at all, such as the New England states. Other areas, such as the Pacific, forced masking on much of the population. Some public health officials did not subscribe to any of the imposed measures, such as Dr. Royal Copeland, the New York City Health Commissioner, and Dr. Rupert Blue, the United States Surgeon General.

Taming the Automobile

Author: Kerry Segrave
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476694915
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 222

Book Description
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.

Dying for Chocolate

Author: Kerry Segrave
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 147668362X
Category : True Crime
Languages : en
Pages : 193

Book Description
On a summer day in 1898, a family in Dover, Delaware, shared a box of chocolates they received in the mail from an anonymous sender. Within days, two of the seven family members were dead; the other five became ill but recovered. The search for the perpetrator soon moved from Delaware to California, where a suspect was quickly identified: Cordelia Botkin, lover of the husband of one of the poisoned women. This book chronicles the shoddy investigation that led to Botkin's indictment and the two sensational trials, adjudicated in the press, that found her guilty. National attention was drawn by the cross-country nature of the crime and the fact that the supposed perpetrator had never been in Delaware in her life. It was also a trial over what was viewed as the moral and sexual depravity of the two main participants, Botkin and Dunning (the husband), with most of that criticism directed at Botkin.