Dublin Core
Title
One of the First Automobiles in Maynard - ca 1904
Charles H. Persons
Charles H. Persons
Description
A red Ford owned by Mr. Charles H. Persons about 1904. Front seat: Fred Persons, chauffeur; Mr. Bodfish. Back seat: Governor Bates (left); Mr. Charles H. Persons. Note the G.O.P. elephant on the roof in the rear. Taken in front of Mr. Person's store on Main Street in the Riverside Block (now 117 Main Street, opposite intersection of Walnut Street).
This event was featured in a newspaper article some years later recalling the early cars in Maynard:
The above is a picture of the daddy of all Maynard Fords. It was purchased by Charles H Pearson’s, July 29, 1904 for about $1000 and was the first gas driven automobile to roll over the streets of Maynard. Its motor number, ????, shows that it was one of the first automobiles made by Henry Ford as well as the daddy of the large family of Ford cars that are now owned in this town.
Roads were not so good 20 years ago when this Ford (unknown) Main Street as Fred Persons drove it about town. Long trips were seldom taken. A trip to Boston being (reckoned as reverting tough?) ground. Garages were not at hand every few miles and tire repair shops had not sprung up like mushrooms.
Mr. Persons smilingly recalls a blowout on a road in Sudbury. When the tire blew, it made a great hole in the road, the soft earth roads of those days, scattering under the pressure of the exploding tire. “We put in a new tube and wound the shoe(?) with string and rode home safely, but I always carried an extra shoe after that“ said Mr. Persons.
John L Bates, then Governor of the state, who is in the above picture, was a care upon Mr. Person‘s mind for a day, though the Governor did not know it. The Governor was the guest of Mr. Persons. Both of them being odd political friends. They were engaged in promoting the interests of the Republican party at a rally or campaign. Mr. Persons isn’t sure just what. Anyway, it was Mr. Persons' job to transport Governor Bates to Framingham, the next stop. And he planned to do it in his Ford, but he had some misgivings about it. He was not quite sure that the Ford would make it and would never do to get stalled in the woods and have the governor hike it into Framingham.
The late Dr. F. U. Rich owned an operated the first automobile in Maynard, a Stanley steamer. Roland Harriman, of Stow purchased a Stanley shortly after Dr. Rich. The assure the success of the journey to Framingham Mr. Persons organized a three car fleet(?) to transport the Governor. The Ford, at the head, operated by Fred Persons, had as its passengers the Governor, Mr. Persons and the late C. J. Bodfish. The Ford was closely followed by the Rich and Harriman automobiles, on hand to give relief if necessary. They arrived at Framingham without a bit of trouble excepting a punctured tire on the Ford.
Fords of those days had no tops and the entrance was made from the rear. Baskets on the sides were the only adornment. Bert Haynes a few years later bought his first(?) automobile, a Ford, and then accepted the Ford agency which he held for years. Along with the tremendous development of the motor car. These drivers of the Early cars note the great improvements made on roads to meet the demands of the automobile.
This event was featured in a newspaper article some years later recalling the early cars in Maynard:
The above is a picture of the daddy of all Maynard Fords. It was purchased by Charles H Pearson’s, July 29, 1904 for about $1000 and was the first gas driven automobile to roll over the streets of Maynard. Its motor number, ????, shows that it was one of the first automobiles made by Henry Ford as well as the daddy of the large family of Ford cars that are now owned in this town.
Roads were not so good 20 years ago when this Ford (unknown) Main Street as Fred Persons drove it about town. Long trips were seldom taken. A trip to Boston being (reckoned as reverting tough?) ground. Garages were not at hand every few miles and tire repair shops had not sprung up like mushrooms.
Mr. Persons smilingly recalls a blowout on a road in Sudbury. When the tire blew, it made a great hole in the road, the soft earth roads of those days, scattering under the pressure of the exploding tire. “We put in a new tube and wound the shoe(?) with string and rode home safely, but I always carried an extra shoe after that“ said Mr. Persons.
John L Bates, then Governor of the state, who is in the above picture, was a care upon Mr. Person‘s mind for a day, though the Governor did not know it. The Governor was the guest of Mr. Persons. Both of them being odd political friends. They were engaged in promoting the interests of the Republican party at a rally or campaign. Mr. Persons isn’t sure just what. Anyway, it was Mr. Persons' job to transport Governor Bates to Framingham, the next stop. And he planned to do it in his Ford, but he had some misgivings about it. He was not quite sure that the Ford would make it and would never do to get stalled in the woods and have the governor hike it into Framingham.
The late Dr. F. U. Rich owned an operated the first automobile in Maynard, a Stanley steamer. Roland Harriman, of Stow purchased a Stanley shortly after Dr. Rich. The assure the success of the journey to Framingham Mr. Persons organized a three car fleet(?) to transport the Governor. The Ford, at the head, operated by Fred Persons, had as its passengers the Governor, Mr. Persons and the late C. J. Bodfish. The Ford was closely followed by the Rich and Harriman automobiles, on hand to give relief if necessary. They arrived at Framingham without a bit of trouble excepting a punctured tire on the Ford.
Fords of those days had no tops and the entrance was made from the rear. Baskets on the sides were the only adornment. Bert Haynes a few years later bought his first(?) automobile, a Ford, and then accepted the Ford agency which he held for years. Along with the tremendous development of the motor car. These drivers of the Early cars note the great improvements made on roads to meet the demands of the automobile.
Date
ca 1904
Contributor
Donated by Elizabeth M. Schnair
Copy by Charles Berriel
Identifier
1999.588
1999.734
Source
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
Photo print
Physical Dimensions
5 x 7 in.print; 8 x 10 in. copy
Storage
PB38
SU18-4