Posted on 11/28/2009 2:30:35 AM PST by bogusname
This is a film taken from the dash of a San Francisco Trolley in 1909. The image flips just a few times but 99% of the video is good quality footage. It's interesting to see how the people on the street acted in those days. If there were any traffic or jaywalking laws at the time they clearly weren't enforced. If you can't stand modern drivers then take a look at what your grandparents and great grandparents had to deal with.
(Excerpt) Read more at liveleak.com ...
Try driving near a college campus, people just walk out into the street without looking.
I have 3 still in college. I’ll keep that in mind. :)
3:14 into it is a car which appears to have right hand drive.
Anyone know what make it might be?
I'll just bet the feminists ired at the sight of no women out "in the world" ( I counted 4 .. maybe 5) ... they were all home bakin' cookies and havin' babies.
Caught another one at 3:34. Car on the right coming toward the camera definately has right hand drive. Was this common in 1909? Are these imports or were some made in the USA?
I googled your question and found some possible answers to at least one of your questions.
Why Were Early Cars Right-Hand Drive?
Historians have yet to agree on why control of an automobiles steering switched from right to left but I have my theories.
To begin with, a horse-drawn wagon was always driven on the right side because the teamster could always hold the reins with his left hand while pulling on the brake with his strongest arm. Some wagons used a foot brake directly on the wheel but that too, required a person’s strongest side. Many, but not all cars, continued this tradition by placing the tiller in the middle of the car where it could be steered by either the right or left side of the car.
Another reason for the right hand steering was that lots of roads turned to mud in poor weather. It was far better stepping down out of the car directly on the sidewalk than in walking around the car.
I have also heard that while driving on dangerous mountain roads, drivers wanted to see how close they were getting to the edge.
In any case, premium manufacturers thought it crude to place the gear shift and emergency brake in the middle of the car where they would be in the way of the passengers.
It is likely that the switch to left-hand steering was accelerated by the rapid increase in the number of automobiles. Poor drivers worried about passing on-coming traffic on the narrow roads of the day.
Why Henry moved to left-hand steering when he started producing the Model T Ford in late 1908 is generally thought to be because it was cheaper but that seems unlikely since all controls were still just as far from the center of the car.
On the other hand, the move from right to left-hand drive saved most other companies a bundle since it eliminated a whole lot of linkage to the transmission and provided a strong foundation for the emergency brake. The move also provided access to the emergency brake to all riding in the front seat
The last American cars to switch were Pierce-Arrow in 1920 and Stutz the following year although Stutz did offer right-hand steering on some 1921 & ‘22 models.
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With no apparent traffic lights or stop signs; pedestrians, vehicles of all types, public transportation and even horse and buggies crossing any which way, willy nilly, certainly reminds of Saigon in the 60's.
Anyone who had the "pleasure" (good and bad) of knowing that Pearl of the Orient back then would appreciate of what I relate.
EXTREMELY overcrowded, narrow streets for the most part, NO traffic lights or stop signs, with every imaginable mode of transport fighting for the right of way, it made driving in Chicago, Tijuana, NYC, or even LA, seem like a walk in the park.
I spent 18 months there (66-67) and drove every day; mostly a jeep, but at times a big ford station wagon, a small Honda Motorcycle and my own private transport, a moped.
That I managed to avoid any major accidents (one minor one with a horse drawn cart) is either due to my driving skills which weren't bad (although I doubt they alone were sufficient, especially after visiting a few local watering holes) or due more to having "several" guardian angels watching over me. lol
The "right of way" was secured in order of the size of vehicles, beginning of course, with Deuce & Half's and Semi's and working down to the bicyclists.
If there were two equal size vehicles, it was the one who looked (or blinked) which "lost."
If you didn't have "one" you soon grew a pretty fair size "pair" or you soon found yourself continually crowded out or sitting and waiting for someone to let you thru, which NEVER happened.
Traffic Jams? No one who did not experience the joy of driving there can even begin to imagine what they were like in their frequency and duration.
Ive seen times (and no exaggeration) where I'd park my jeep, lock it (with chain and padlock to steering wheel) and walk to closest outdoor cafe and sit for an hour or 2 until the madness somehow sorted itself out.
I witnessed at least 2 or 3 accidents every day; most with injuries and many fatalities; more than I saw in my occasional forays out in the field.
I could go on and on, but will close with my favorite Vietnamese practice which they adopted from (who else) the Frogs (French)
At night, most drove with either only parking lights on or none at all. When they met another vehicle, they would turn their lights on which often times, were on High Beam and usually just before the vehicles met each other.
Just think about driving in the dark and all of a sudden out of nowhere, someone turns on the lights. Sort of "disconcerting" to say the least. lol. But you got used to it and learned to drive as crazily and maniacal as did the natives.
It was an experience not soon to be forgotten and there should have been some citation awarded for anyone who drove in Saigon for a year or more and was not injured or ran over anyone.
What will it be like 100 years from now? Will we seem as primitive? I had the fortune of knowing my Great Grandmother. She would have been a young woman at this time. She knew what it was like to live with horses, no electricity, no radio, no TV, no internet, no processed food, no running water, no autos. She died in 1966. How I wished I could talk to her again.
I would like to have a right hand vehicle, just for the uniqueness if nothing else. It can have some advantages especially in a city.
Pretty cool music for 1909!
Trying to visualize why switching to left hand drive " eliminated a whole lot of linkage to the transmission and provided a strong foundation for the emergency brake" and it doesn't make any sense. What difference would it make?
That was very interesting post! My guess is that in addition to your driving skills and sizable pair you probably have at least a couple of skilled and sizable guardian angels! LOL
Thanks Dallas59. My work computer here has the site you linked to blocked but I’ll check it out when I get home in a little bit.
I downloaded it. Gonna send it it to my Mom.
You might laugh, but I'll bet your being here has more to do with guardian angels than your great driving skills at that young age...
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