First Automobile parade in Manhattan
The film below is probably the first annual automobile parade, held on November 4, 1899 in downtown Manhattan. It was made by Thomas A. Edison Company.
At least ten different makes and models are seen, including electric and steam powered machines. Only three years earlier, in 1896, Henry Ford, Charles Brady King, Alexander Winton and Ransom Eli Olds had each introduced their gasoline cars.
First National Auto Show in 1900
In 1900, the first National Auto Show was held at Madison Square Garden and the favorites were the electrics and the steamers. In 1901, new oil fields in Texas made gasoline affordable.
That same year, mass production techniques were introduced into car manufacturing. These two factors would prove to be key developments in the rapid growth of the American automobile industry.
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