Exactly one-hundred years ago today, November 4, 1919, my grandfather John Whitworth convinced three of his hometown friends to attempt a cross-country drive under the cruelest of conditions. The men were inexperienced, the car was subject to regular breakdowns, and the highways were a series of unmapped dirt roads. This was still an era when passenger trains were the only acceptable means to cross the continent. Anyone who attempted such a journey by automobile was likely to be considered eccentric or foolish or both. To the drivers of today, however, the four young men would be considered pioneers.
During the month of November, I'll be posting excerpts from
the logbook my grandfather kept of their journey from
Sandusky, Ohio to Pasadena, California.
the logbook my grandfather kept of their journey from
Sandusky, Ohio to Pasadena, California.
The car they drove was a 1915 Fiat Riviera. My grandfather recorded the mileage, location, time, and comments on the road about
the people, places and things that he witnessed. He captured the
experience through a series of black and white photographs.
the people, places and things that he witnessed. He captured the
experience through a series of black and white photographs.
John Whitworth and Henry Harbrecht
Earl Curtis (John's cousin) and Henry Beilstein
Log entries for November 4: Sandusky, OH to Springfield, OH
All that's left of the Fiat: the Radiator emblem
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