The first auto in Lowell was built and driven by Carl E. English in the year 1900.

The print herewith shows Mr. English driving, Clarence Collar and a relative. It was a two-cylinder air-cooled affair. The wheels were 30-inch solid rubber tire. The frame was made of 2-inch angle iron, 1/8 inch thick. The two-cylinder gas engine was 2 1/2 in. bore and six-inch stroke, usually fired with a hot tube for each cylinder, because electric ignition was not dependable at that time. The power was transmitted to the wheels from a friction clutch and jack shaft by sprocket wheel and chain, one speed ahead, ten or twelve miles per hour. To back up, the engine would reverse.

Well do the old-timers remember when this horseless carriage was driven on our streets. More than one of the many friends of Mr. English would say, "I’ll never ride in that contraption," but on assurance by Mr. English would jump right in.

This new carriage did not long survive the casualties it caused. Horses ran away, buggies were wrecked, R. Van Dyke’s delivery horse ran away and many others. After Mr. English had paid John Mills several repair bills he decided to abandon the use of the auto for the time being.

Thus Lowell’s first auto became history. Many of us, however, have not forgotten the thrill of riding in Lowell’s first horseless carriage.

HARLEY MAYNARD

Lowell Board of Trade, Lowell: 100 Years of History, 1831-1931, Lowell, Michigan: The Lowell Ledger, 1931