1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:05,680 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:09,600 Speaker 2: Hello and welcome to This Day in History Class, a 3 00:00:09,680 --> 00:00:13,040 Speaker 2: show that cruises the highways of history every day of 4 00:00:13,039 --> 00:00:18,200 Speaker 2: the week. I'm Gabe Lusier, and in this episode, we're 5 00:00:18,239 --> 00:00:22,360 Speaker 2: talking about the fast life of Alice Ramsey, a pioneering 6 00:00:22,400 --> 00:00:25,840 Speaker 2: female motorist and the first woman to be inducted into 7 00:00:25,880 --> 00:00:35,080 Speaker 2: the Automotive Hall of Fame. The day was August seventh, 8 00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:40,080 Speaker 2: nineteen oh nine. New Jersey homemaker Alice Ramsey completed her 9 00:00:40,240 --> 00:00:44,720 Speaker 2: historic cross country road trip. She and her three girlfriends 10 00:00:44,800 --> 00:00:47,440 Speaker 2: had set out from New York City to San Francisco 11 00:00:47,640 --> 00:00:50,760 Speaker 2: as part of a publicity stunt sponsored by the Maxwell 12 00:00:50,840 --> 00:00:55,279 Speaker 2: Brisco Motor Company. They had covered thirty eight hundred miles 13 00:00:55,320 --> 00:00:58,520 Speaker 2: in fifty nine days, with Ramsey behind the wheel the 14 00:00:58,720 --> 00:01:02,040 Speaker 2: entire way. It was the first time that a woman 15 00:01:02,080 --> 00:01:05,560 Speaker 2: had ever driven a car coast to coast, helping dispel 16 00:01:05,680 --> 00:01:09,080 Speaker 2: the sexist belief that women were too emotional and too 17 00:01:09,200 --> 00:01:14,920 Speaker 2: delicate to handle an automobile. Alice Ramsey's driving career had 18 00:01:14,959 --> 00:01:17,399 Speaker 2: begun the previous year, when she went out for a 19 00:01:17,440 --> 00:01:21,160 Speaker 2: horseback ride near her home in Hackensack, New Jersey, only 20 00:01:21,240 --> 00:01:23,640 Speaker 2: to have her horse get spooked by the noise of 21 00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:28,000 Speaker 2: a car speeding past them. This close call convinced her 22 00:01:28,040 --> 00:01:32,000 Speaker 2: attorney husband, John Rathbone Ramsey, that the roads were no 23 00:01:32,080 --> 00:01:34,800 Speaker 2: longer safe for horses and that his wife would be 24 00:01:34,800 --> 00:01:38,840 Speaker 2: better off driving a car and so unconcerned with the 25 00:01:38,880 --> 00:01:41,839 Speaker 2: social norms of the day, he bought a Maxwell touring 26 00:01:41,920 --> 00:01:45,399 Speaker 2: car and gave it to Alice as a present. The 27 00:01:45,480 --> 00:01:48,560 Speaker 2: twenty one year old Vassar grad quickly fell in love 28 00:01:48,640 --> 00:01:52,120 Speaker 2: with the freedom of driving. That summer, she logged six 29 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:55,160 Speaker 2: thousand miles on the mostly dirt roads near her home, 30 00:01:55,560 --> 00:01:57,840 Speaker 2: and later that year she was one of just two 31 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:01,720 Speaker 2: women to compete in an endurance reach, traveling two hundred 32 00:02:01,720 --> 00:02:06,240 Speaker 2: miles to and from Montauk, New York. It was there 33 00:02:06,320 --> 00:02:09,519 Speaker 2: that she caught the eye of Carl Kelsey, a publicist 34 00:02:09,560 --> 00:02:13,600 Speaker 2: for the Maxwell Brisco motor company. Kelsey had long thought 35 00:02:13,639 --> 00:02:15,960 Speaker 2: that the brand was leaving money on the table by 36 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:19,640 Speaker 2: only marketing its cars to men, and Alice Ramsey seemed 37 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:22,399 Speaker 2: like the perfect partner to help the company break into 38 00:02:22,440 --> 00:02:26,440 Speaker 2: the women's market. Kelsey proposed that she drive coast to 39 00:02:26,520 --> 00:02:29,800 Speaker 2: coast with all expenses paid by the company, as a 40 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:33,200 Speaker 2: way to prove the dependability of both its cars and 41 00:02:33,360 --> 00:02:37,600 Speaker 2: women drivers. At that point, it had been five years 42 00:02:37,639 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 2: since Horatio Jackson and Sewell Crocker had become the first 43 00:02:41,639 --> 00:02:45,480 Speaker 2: men to drive across America. In the time since twenty 44 00:02:45,560 --> 00:02:48,800 Speaker 2: or so other mail drivers had also completed the same 45 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:52,639 Speaker 2: arduous trek. A handful of women had tried to make 46 00:02:52,680 --> 00:02:57,400 Speaker 2: the drive two, but thus far none had succeeded. Alice 47 00:02:57,480 --> 00:03:01,560 Speaker 2: Ramsey was determined to be the first. She accepted Kelsey's 48 00:03:01,600 --> 00:03:04,720 Speaker 2: offer that same day and began making plans to hit 49 00:03:04,760 --> 00:03:08,520 Speaker 2: the road the following summer. To make her journey as 50 00:03:08,520 --> 00:03:11,560 Speaker 2: smooth as possible, the Maxwell Company set her up with 51 00:03:11,600 --> 00:03:14,880 Speaker 2: a dark green nineteen o nine D, a touring car 52 00:03:15,639 --> 00:03:17,640 Speaker 2: top of the line for the era. It was a 53 00:03:17,680 --> 00:03:21,640 Speaker 2: four cylinder, thirty horse power vehicle with two bench seats 54 00:03:21,680 --> 00:03:25,960 Speaker 2: and a removable roof made of imitation leather. The company 55 00:03:26,040 --> 00:03:29,520 Speaker 2: also promised to pay for all of Ramsey's meals and lodging, 56 00:03:29,760 --> 00:03:32,280 Speaker 2: as well as any replacement parts that she might need 57 00:03:32,280 --> 00:03:32,960 Speaker 2: along the way. 58 00:03:34,240 --> 00:03:36,480 Speaker 1: Although the twenty two year old would do all the 59 00:03:36,560 --> 00:03:40,520 Speaker 1: driving herself, she didn't make the trip alone. Joining her 60 00:03:40,600 --> 00:03:44,440 Speaker 1: were her two sisters in law, Neddie Powell and Margaret Atwood, 61 00:03:44,600 --> 00:03:46,920 Speaker 1: both of whom were in their forties, as well as 62 00:03:46,920 --> 00:03:51,520 Speaker 1: her sixteen year old friend Hermina Yance. None of these 63 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:54,400 Speaker 1: companions knew how to drive, but they all received a 64 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:57,000 Speaker 1: crash course in car safety, and by the end of 65 00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:59,800 Speaker 1: the trip they had changed a combined total of eleven 66 00:04:00,600 --> 00:04:04,800 Speaker 1: and completed a slew of mechanical repairs. They all dressed 67 00:04:04,840 --> 00:04:08,840 Speaker 1: for the job too, donning duster coats, hats, veils, and 68 00:04:08,920 --> 00:04:12,360 Speaker 1: driving goggles to help protect themselves from dirt and dust. 69 00:04:13,680 --> 00:04:16,680 Speaker 1: On the morning of June ninth, nineteen o nine, Alice 70 00:04:16,760 --> 00:04:19,720 Speaker 1: Ramsey posed for pictures in the pouring rain outside of 71 00:04:19,800 --> 00:04:23,520 Speaker 1: Maxwell's showroom in Manhattan, Then, with a wave to the 72 00:04:23,600 --> 00:04:26,680 Speaker 1: drenched crowd, she and her three friends set off on 73 00:04:26,760 --> 00:04:31,400 Speaker 1: the long, muddy road to San Francisco. Although it was 74 00:04:31,440 --> 00:04:35,640 Speaker 1: a marketing stunt, Ramsey's drive was still a serious challenge. 75 00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:39,000 Speaker 1: Only one hundred and fifty two miles of her nearly 76 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:43,120 Speaker 1: four thousand mile route was on paved roads. For the 77 00:04:43,160 --> 00:04:45,760 Speaker 1: rest of the time she was driving on dirt roads 78 00:04:45,880 --> 00:04:50,080 Speaker 1: riddled with potholes and wagon ruts. Faced with that kind 79 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:53,599 Speaker 1: of terrain, it became clear very quickly that the Maxwell 80 00:04:53,720 --> 00:04:57,599 Speaker 1: touring car was not well suited for long distance touring. 81 00:04:58,480 --> 00:05:01,760 Speaker 1: For starters. It lacked a whis which meant that while 82 00:05:01,760 --> 00:05:04,320 Speaker 1: the fabric roof did keep most of the water out, 83 00:05:04,640 --> 00:05:09,159 Speaker 1: the riders still got soaked in bad weather. Making matters worse, 84 00:05:09,279 --> 00:05:12,360 Speaker 1: the car's tires had no tread to stop them from 85 00:05:12,400 --> 00:05:15,040 Speaker 1: sliding on the wet roads, or to give them any 86 00:05:15,120 --> 00:05:19,760 Speaker 1: traction when they inevitably got stuck in the mud. Navigating 87 00:05:19,839 --> 00:05:24,880 Speaker 1: the country's makeshift roads proved equally tricky. At first, Ramsey 88 00:05:24,920 --> 00:05:27,320 Speaker 1: and her friends had used the Blue Book series of 89 00:05:27,360 --> 00:05:31,800 Speaker 1: automotive guides, which gave directions using landmarks, since most of 90 00:05:31,839 --> 00:05:36,800 Speaker 1: the roads didn't have signs yet. Unfortunately, the book editions 91 00:05:36,880 --> 00:05:40,600 Speaker 1: couldn't quite keep up with the changing landscape, rendering many 92 00:05:40,640 --> 00:05:45,240 Speaker 1: of the directions useless. For example, at one point early on, 93 00:05:45,520 --> 00:05:48,520 Speaker 1: the women struggled to find the yellow house and barn 94 00:05:48,600 --> 00:05:51,440 Speaker 1: where they were supposed to turn left, only to learn, 95 00:05:51,560 --> 00:05:55,040 Speaker 1: after stopping to ask directions, that the horse loving owner 96 00:05:55,160 --> 00:05:59,760 Speaker 1: had repainted his house green just to mess with passing motorists. 97 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:05,000 Speaker 1: The guidebook's limited usefulness ran out completely when the women 98 00:06:05,040 --> 00:06:08,479 Speaker 1: traveled west of the Mississippi River, the roads out there 99 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:11,599 Speaker 1: were too new and unwieldy to be mapped yet, so 100 00:06:11,760 --> 00:06:14,920 Speaker 1: Ramsey and her crew had to resort to following telephone 101 00:06:14,960 --> 00:06:17,760 Speaker 1: poles to get from one town to the next, and 102 00:06:17,880 --> 00:06:21,919 Speaker 1: sometimes when the path forward was really unclear, the Maxwell 103 00:06:21,960 --> 00:06:25,320 Speaker 1: company would hire local drivers familiar with the area to 104 00:06:25,440 --> 00:06:29,560 Speaker 1: lead the women further westward. Yet even then the party 105 00:06:29,600 --> 00:06:32,680 Speaker 1: occasionally hit a dead end and had to backtrack for 106 00:06:32,880 --> 00:06:38,360 Speaker 1: miles to try again. In stark contrast, the easiest part 107 00:06:38,360 --> 00:06:42,160 Speaker 1: of the drive was apparently on the Cleveland Highway in Ohio. 108 00:06:42,640 --> 00:06:46,440 Speaker 1: That's where Ramsey achieved her personal best what she described 109 00:06:46,480 --> 00:06:50,800 Speaker 1: as quote the terrific speed of forty two miles per hour. 110 00:06:52,240 --> 00:06:56,040 Speaker 1: Ohio Aside, most of the trip was slow going thanks 111 00:06:56,120 --> 00:06:59,920 Speaker 1: to the sorry state of American roadways. But on August seventh, 112 00:07:00,080 --> 00:07:03,520 Speaker 1: fifty nine days after leaving New York, Alice Ramsey and 113 00:07:03,560 --> 00:07:07,160 Speaker 1: her friends made it to California. They drove onto a 114 00:07:07,200 --> 00:07:10,080 Speaker 1: ferry to cross San Francisco Bay and then made their 115 00:07:10,080 --> 00:07:14,240 Speaker 1: way to Saint James Hotel, where representatives from Maxwell Briscoe 116 00:07:14,360 --> 00:07:17,080 Speaker 1: were waiting to greet them, along with a huge crowd 117 00:07:17,160 --> 00:07:22,400 Speaker 1: of adoring fans and reporters. The San Francisco Chronicles celebrated 118 00:07:22,440 --> 00:07:26,720 Speaker 1: their arrival with the headline pretty women motorists arrive after 119 00:07:26,800 --> 00:07:31,240 Speaker 1: trip across the continent. It wasn't the most progressive phrasing, 120 00:07:31,560 --> 00:07:35,080 Speaker 1: but the headline still got the point across Alice Ramsey 121 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:37,720 Speaker 1: and her companions had proven that women could go the 122 00:07:37,800 --> 00:07:41,239 Speaker 1: distance just as well as men, or, as she told 123 00:07:41,280 --> 00:07:45,720 Speaker 1: one reporter quote, good driving has nothing to do with sex. 124 00:07:46,240 --> 00:07:50,920 Speaker 1: It's all above the collar. After her time in the spotlight, 125 00:07:51,240 --> 00:07:54,720 Speaker 1: Ramsey returned to New Jersey by train and lived a 126 00:07:54,800 --> 00:07:58,200 Speaker 1: quiet life with her family. She and her husband raised 127 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:00,880 Speaker 1: two children together, and she can see you'd making coast 128 00:08:00,960 --> 00:08:04,800 Speaker 1: to coast road trips whenever she could. She lost count 129 00:08:04,880 --> 00:08:08,560 Speaker 1: after her thirtieth trip, but considering that Ramsey kept her 130 00:08:08,640 --> 00:08:13,160 Speaker 1: driver's license until age ninety five, I imagine the true number 131 00:08:13,480 --> 00:08:21,160 Speaker 1: was quite a bit higher. I'm Gabe blues Gay and 132 00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:24,560 Speaker 1: hopefully you now know a little more about history today 133 00:08:25,000 --> 00:08:27,960 Speaker 1: than you did yesterday. If you'd like to keep up 134 00:08:27,960 --> 00:08:30,720 Speaker 1: with the show, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, 135 00:08:30,760 --> 00:08:34,960 Speaker 1: and Instagram at TDI HC Show. And if you have 136 00:08:35,040 --> 00:08:37,920 Speaker 1: any comments or suggestions, feel free to send them my 137 00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:42,680 Speaker 1: way by writing to this day at iHeartMedia dot Com. 138 00:08:42,800 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 1: Thanks to Kasby Bias for producing the show, and thanks 139 00:08:45,880 --> 00:08:48,280 Speaker 1: to you for listening. I'll see you back here again 140 00:08:48,320 --> 00:08:56,720 Speaker 1: tomorrow for another day in history class.