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AMERICA'S FIRST ROAD TRIP
A century ago, America offered few paved roads and the automobile hadn't yet caught on with the
general public. In fact, many considered the new-fangled "horseless carriage" merely an "unreliable
novelty". One spring day in 1903, while listening to a group of men at the University Club in San
Francisco discuss this passing fad known as an automobile, a Dr. Horatio Nelson Jackson placed a
fifty-dollar bet that the automobile was capable of making a
transcontinental journey. Jackson declared
that he, himself, could drive an automobile from San Francisco, across the United States and arrive
in New York in less than three months. Some men took him up on it and Jackson spent the next four
days preparing for the trip.
Dr. Horatio Nelson Jackson
Horatio Nelson Jackson, a minister's son, was born in 1872. He became a physician earning his medical
degree at the University of Vermont in 1893. He practiced for a few years in the towns of Brattleboro
and Burlington until a mild case of tuberculosis in 1900, forced him to give up his medical practice.
In 1899, Jackson married Bertha Richardson Wells, the daughter of one of the richest men in Vermont.
With his wife's money, the newlyweds were able to make an extended tour of Europe and purchase a summer
residence on Providence Island in Lake Champlain. They made several investments including mining, race
horses and automobiles. In addition, Jackson was able to finance his trip across the continent with
his wife's money.
After his famous trip in 1903, Jackson became a successful Burlington businessman -- newspaper publisher,
the town's first radio station owner and bank president. When World I broke out, Jackson insisted on
enlisting in the Army despite his age -- mid-40's. When the war ended, he returned from overseas a
decorated hero, having received the Distinguished Service Cross as well as France's Croix de Guerre.
Back in the United States, he helped found the American Legion and later ran unsuccessfully for governor
of Vermont.
In 1944, Jackson donated the car, scrapbook of newspaper clippings and Bud's goggles to the
Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. He spent the rest of his life telling anyone who would listen,
the story of his great adventure crossing the continent in a 1903 Winton called the "Vermont".
Horatio Nelson Jackson died on January 14, 1955, at the age of 82.
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The 1903 Winton Touring Car
Following the advice of his mechanic and co-driver, Sewall Crocker, Dr. Horatio Jackson chose the
1903 Winton Touring Car for the arduous trip. The Winton was produced by the Winton Motor Carriage
Company in Cleveland, Ohio. A total of 850 cars were made that year. But no new models could be
found on the Pacific Coast, as most new cars were pre-ordered from the manufacturer rather than
purchased at the dealership.
Jackson would have to locate a used model and after a persistent search, found a Wells, Fargo
executive willing to sell his for $500 above the list price of $2,500. Despite the fact that the
car already had 1000 miles and needed two new rear tires, Jackson gladly paid the $3,000.
The Winton Jackson purchased had a two-cylinder, 20-horsepower engine located directly underneath the
driver's seat. Its chain driven axle was capable of speeds up to 30 miles per hour - two speeds
forward and one speed in reverse. The Winton came with no windshield, no top, steering wheel on the
right and leather, upholstered seats mounted high on a wooden body painted a reddish maroon with a
touch of polished brass. Two engineering innovations were also featured on the Winton, a ratcheted
lever that prevented the owner from injury while crank-starting the engine and a tilt steering wheel
that allow the driver to be seated easily.
With the car in hand Jackson and Crocker immediately begin preparing for the trip. Crocker began by
removing the back seat to make ready for the piles of equipment needed for the long journey ahead:
sleeping bags, cooking gear, raincoats, sweaters, set of tools, two jacks, block and tackle, 150 feet
of hemp rope, fishing gear, rifle, pistols and ammunition. Also included was a Kodak camera to record
the trip. Including Jackson and Crocker the fully loaded vehicle weighted more than a ton and a half.
Like many automobile owners to follow, Jackson considered the Winton Touring Car having its own
personality. So, in honor of the state he and his wife, Bertha called their home, Jackson christened
his vehicle the "Vermont".
From San Francisco to New York City
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(1) San Francisco, California - May 23rd, 1903:
Horatio Jackson and Sewall Crocker left San Francisco for what will become America's first
automobile trip across the continent.
(2) Oroville, California - May 25th, 1903:
Jackson and Crocker started for Oroville, California, the last train stop before Ontario, Oregon.
Jackson was determined to take the northern route through Oregon, to avoid the sandy wastes of
Nevada, which had defeated Alexander Wintons attempt two years earlier.
(3) Alturas, California - May 29th, 1903:
In Alturas, Jackson decided to wait for a day after being promised by Wells, Fargo that the
stagecoach with his request for a new set of badly needed tires, some new batteries, and a new
cyclometer to help him measure distances would soon catch up with him. However, after four days of
waiting, Jackson decided to leave Alturas without his badly needed supplies.
(4) Lakeview, Oregon - June 2nd, 1903:
Jackson and Crocker traveled only a few a miles before a broken front spring forces them to return
to Lakeview and wait for the stage to reach them with the parts they had ordered from San Francisco.
The tires, batteries and cyclometer finally arrived on the night of June 5th. By early the next
morning, Jackson and Crocker had everything ready for the nearly 300 miles of desert ahead of them.
Jackson hoped to cross it in two days and reach Ontario, Oregon where he had telegraphed ahead for
more tires and supplies to be waiting for him at the train station.
(5) Caldwell, Idaho - June 11th, 1903:
Taking roads that paralleled the rail line, Jackson now planned on making up for lost time. But
after receiving once again some bad advice, followed the wrong set of tracks, which took them 38
miles out of their way before they realized it. They motored on to the town of Hailey, just south
of Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains. From there, Jackson telegraphed the Winton company in Cleveland,
placing an order for them to ship him a new air intake pipe, since the original had dropped off
somewhere along the road. It was the first time he had contacted the company directly and the
first time Winton officials became aware that one of their cars was trying to cross the continent.
(6) Lost in Wyoming - June 20th, 1903:
After crossing into Wyoming, things got even worse for Jackson and Crocker. A tremendous cloudburst
struck the area after they passed through the town of Granger, flooding and washing out the road causing
them to change directions every time they encountered a gully too deep to cross and getting hopelessly
lost. In addition, Jackson found himself entirely out of cash and had to pawn his watch for ten dollars
from the station agent at the Bitter Creek train station.
(7) Rawlins, Wyoming - June 23rd, 1903:
Exactly one month after leaving San Francisco, Jackson, Crocker and Bud pulled into the town of Rawlins
and made arrangements to stay at the Ferris Hotel. But as Jackson and Crocker drove the short distance
to park their car in a livery stable down the street, the Vermont came to a noisy and sudden stop. The
stud bolts holding the connecting rod to the crankshaft sheared off, and it pierced through the crankcase
cover the worst mechanical breakdown to date. Jackson had no choice but to telegraph the Winton factory
in Ohio and wait for a train to deliver the needed parts.
(8) Archer, Wyoming - July 2nd, 1903:
Less than an hour out of Cheyenne, the stud bolts on the other connecting rod broke off, and the
Vermont ground to a dead stop. A railroad grading crew towed the car to their isolated camp near the
small station of Archer. Crocker stripped the front seat off the car to get at the engine while
Jackson wired the Winton factory once more for replacement parts and once more settled in to wait
for their delivery by train, day after agonizing day.
(9) Omaha, Nebraska- July 12th, 1903:
People began to flock to see Jackson and his machine as the telegraph lines announced their impending
arrival in such towns as Kearney, Grand Island, Columbus, and dozens of other smaller towns. In a final,
long day in Nebraska, that covered an astonishing 250 miles despite a broken front axle that had to be
welded by yet another blacksmith, Jackson arrived in Omaha on the morning of July 12th.
(10) Chicago, Illinois - July 17th, 1903:
A caravan of automobile enthusiasts had gathered to escort the travelers out of Chicago the next day.
The procession traveled to Hammond, Indiana, before the Vermont continued east on its own, passing through
LaPorte on its way to South Bend.
(11) Near Buffalo, New York - July 21st, 1903:
By now Jackson was sure he could make it to New York City in a matter of days and become the first person
to drive across the continent. Driving on roads that paralleled the old Erie Canal, the adventurers pushed
on across the state of New York sometimes driving well into the night. Along the way the unthinkable
happened, the first real accident of the trip. Miraculously, no one was hurt and the Vermont was still able
to run.
(12) New York City, New York - July 26th, 1903:
It was 4:30 in the morning on Sunday, July 26th, when Jackson, Crocker and Bud crossed the Harlem River
into Manhattan, drove down the city's deserted streets, and finally arrived at the Holland House hotel
on 30th Street and 5th Avenue. Within hours of their entrance into New York, he and Crocker and Bud were
the toast of the town.
The entire trip took 63 days, 12 hours and 30 minutes well within his wager of 90 days. Jackson lost
twenty pounds, spent $8,000 of his own money the price of the car, a salary for Crocker, food and
lodging, the seemingly endless need for new tires and replacement parts, 800 gallons of gasoline, and the
$15 to purchase Bud. But, he said, "it was worth every cent and every pound to win that $50 bet." And
yet, when it was all over, he never bothered to collect his winnings.
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