Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
March 3, 1910 Transportation pioneer Dorothy Levitt was one of the featured speakers at a mid-afternoon meeting of the English Women’s Aerial League at the renowned Criterion Restaurant in London, England. The league had been established the previous year and was focused on promoting both advances in aircraft technology and the involvement of women in... Continue Reading →
In 1900, Anne Rainsford French became the first licensed woman driver in Washington, D.C. The epitaph on her tombstone goes even further by stating that she was the “first woman licensed to drive an automobile in America.” This claim has been widely disputed, however; many have claimed, for example that Mrs. John Howell Phillips achieved that... Continue Reading →
James Forten (1766-1842) was a free black man and lifelong Philadelphia resident who earned considerable wealth by making sails for vessels. Forten was also a steadfast foe of slavery in the United States. He was born free in Philadelphia to Thomas and Margaret Forten. Thomas Forten, who died when James was only seven, had a... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 