Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
May 21, 1961 The first National Highway Week in the United States was officially launched. The idea for this commemorative week had taken place about three months earlier in Washington, D.C., during a Public Understanding Workshop co-sponsored by the Better Highways Information Foundation (BHIF) – a group founded by several highway industry organizations – and... Continue Reading →
May 18, 2007 The Puch Bridge in northeastern Slovenia was officially opened for traffic. This structure crosses the Drava River in the town of Ptuj. The bridge was named after Johann Puch (1862-1914), a Slovene inventor and mechanic who established himself as a prolific and even pacesetting manufacturer of bicycles, motorcycles, automobiles, buses, and trucks.... Continue Reading →
April 20, 1954 The first of what has become a longtime series of international automobile shows was opened in the plaza at Hibiya Park in Tokyo. Originally called the All-Japan Motor Show, the event was subsequently renamed the Tokyo Motor Show. The inaugural edition of these shows took place a little less than nine years... Continue Reading →
December 29, 1959 The MV Coho, a ferry operated by the Black Ball Line between Victoria in the Canadian province of British Columbia and Port Angeles in Washington State, first went into regular service. This 341.5-foot (104.1-meter)-long ferry was designed by the Seattle-based firm Philip F. Spaulding & Associates and built by Puget Sound Bridge... Continue Reading →
January 28, 1988 A cantilever bridge spanning the Ohio River was officially opened. This bridge connects Washington Township (near the city of Portsmouth) in Ohio with the community of South Portsmouth in Kentucky. It was named after Carl D. Perkins (1912-1984), who served as a U.S. congressman from Kentucky from 1949 until his death. Measuring... Continue Reading →
June 26, 1919 A caravan of motor trucks carrying a total of 50 specially selected boy scouts headed out of Akron, Ohio, for a journey of about 2,000 miles (3,218.7 kilometers) through nine states altogether. This Wednesday departure from northeastern Ohio’s Summit County marked the start of what Vehicle Monthly magazine characterized as “one of the... Continue Reading →
June 3, 1921 One of the most famous symbols of an American transportation company made its debut. This symbol was the bulldog representing what is now Mack Trucks, Inc. and it first appeared when the business was known as the International Motor Truck Corporation. More than two decades earlier, the brothers Jack and Gus -- seeking... Continue Reading →
June 23, 1916 Modine Manufacturing Company, which would become an international force in heating-and-cooling technology for motor vehicles, was incorporated. This company started out as a business run by engineer Arthur B. Modine in a one-room office adjacent to a small workshop in Racine, Wisconsin. Modine Manufacturing Company made its debut at a time when... Continue Reading →
May 16, 1961 Automotive manufacturer Richard J. Corbitt died in Henderson, North Carolina, at the age of 88. Corbitt had first established residence in that community in 1894, and he entered the transportation business five years later with the launch of the Corbitt Buggy Company. For several years, this company built horse-drawn buggies for hauling agricultural... Continue Reading →
April 3, 1920 A heavily attended truck show in Los Angeles came to a close. This eight-day event took place at Praeger Park in the central part of the city. The Los Angeles Motor Truck Show reflected the nationwide popularity of trucks that had steadily grown throughout most of the previous decade and fully blossomed in the... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 