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Column: The motorcar age comes to Norwell
By Sam Olson
Thu Sep 06, 2007, 05:38 PM EDT
Norwell -Automobile ownership remained a rarity in our community, as well as in others, until well into the second decade of the new century.
The horse still reigned supreme. Although there was some raising of thoroughbreds by individuals like Arthur Power at May Elms and by Henry Norwell at his estate, most of our citizens owned work horses used mainly for farm labor and work on the roads.
On special occasions, “Old Dobbin” would be hitched to a wagon for local jaunts. According to the federal census of 1900, there were only 8,000 automobiles in the United States and 18,000,000 horses and mules.
An individual highly respected in the village was still the blacksmith, such as Civil War veteran Frank Alger, who operated a smithy at Assinippi Comer.
It was recorded in the Rockland Standard of January 18, 1901, that he had shod 22 horses in a day and 91 in a week. The prevalent cold weather meant that smooth horseshoes had to be replaced to allow the horse to get a grip on the icy surfaces.
Early automobiles such as the Stanley Steamer and the Baker Electric were totally impractical for all but the shortest trips.
The future American president Woodrow Wilson, then president of Princeton University, saw them as toys that displayed the “arrogance of the rich.” Even with Henry Ford’s gasoline-powered engine, the horseless carriage remained out of the reach of most.
But increasingly, the Standard would report on some of Norwell’s more economically favored acquiring machines with now familiar names as Oldsmobile, Packard and Studebaker, along with less familiar names as Reo, Peerless, Columbia, and the Cole. Rev. Charles Howard Gale of our Unitarian Church, like comedian Jack Benny, became the owner of a Maxwell touring car.
The Standard issue of January 8, 1909 announced that Frank Staples had visited the town in his new automobile during the previous week and called on several friends.
A Standard story of the same time carried a tone of sarcasm describing an auto being towed by a horse with the barb, “It looks as if the good horse is here to stay.” But Dr. Little was betting on the auto prevailing by building an “automobile house” at his home on Main Street.
The year was 1908 when Henry Ford introduced his Model T, the “Tin Lizzie,” at a price of $850. Eventually the price went down to $360, with black being the only color available. By1914, Ford was paying his assembly line workers the unheard of sum of forty dollars a week. Now Ford workers could also become Ford customers.
Most of the cars of this era were roofless touring cars. Before the self-starter was introduced, the crank was reaping a harvest of broken arms and scarred chins. Gradually driving became less hazardous with carbide headlights and improved braking and steering mechanisms.
Drivers were being warned in the Standard to beware of “auto traps” set up on the road to Rockland. Those traveling at speeds of 20 mph were subject to arrest and fines.
One of the first Tarvia roads in town came in 1915 when town meeting appropriated $2,500 to put down a macadam surface on Main Street from Norwell Center to Assinippi Comer.
The State Highway Commission was to put up a matching sum with the roadwork being done under the supervision of the Massachusetts Highway Commission.
Possibly the most tragic local accident of the time occurred on May 30, 1913.
One of Norwell's best-known couples, Mr. and Mrs. Ebenezer Fogg, were killed when a train struck their automobile while they were crossing near the Kenberma Station at Nantasket. Mrs. Fogg was decapitated and Mr. Fogg died shortly after being admitted to the hospital.
Their son, Harry T. Fogg, treasurer of the South Scituate Savings Bank, brought suit against the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad, asking for $25,000 in damages for the loss of each parent. A settlement was reached with $6,951 for Ebenezer and $6,503 for his mother.
The introduction of traffic lights, first in New York City in 1922, would reduce the number of such tragedies.
Throughout the teen years of the new century, there were frequent announcements appearing of jitney busses and closed taxis being put into use. These vehicles provided more flexibility for short trips that streetcars could give. With more cars and trucks on the road, the trolley lines were reducing their schedules.
The following are a few such notices, which appeared in the Rockland Standard:
Sept. 15, 1915 ‑ the jitney bus will leave Rockland at 1:15 p.m., fifteen minutes later to accommodate students from Norwell attending Rockland High School.
Feb. 12, 1917 ‑ John Sparrell of Sparrell’s Garage - located where the Quik Pik is now - recently put into use a closed car for his Greenbush taxi service.
Feb. 6, 1918 – On Friday, four large cars took passengers from Norwell to Rockland for shopping.
Perhaps the last time “Get a Horse” was heard in Norwell was during the bitterly cold winter of 1920. Sparrell’s taxi, carrying mail and passengers to Greenbush, was stalled in the snow and had to be hauled out by a horse.
The 1920s began with a triumph for the automobile when, on March 4, 1921, Warren G. Harding became the first president to ride to his inauguration in an automobile, a Packard Twin Six.
The twenties was a prosperous decade for many with automobile production and associated industries leading the way.
Road and bridge construction, gasoline stations, overnight cabins and roadside eateries created jobs for millions.
Henry Ford, responsible more than any other man for putting American on wheels, introduced his first new model in 18 years, the Model A, in 1927. In order to compete with rival automobile companies, he also gave his customers a choice of color.
The Norwell town report of 1929 was the first to list the number of autos in the town of 1,519 residents. There were 758 autos and only 96 horses.
This number translates to there being pretty close to one automobile for every two inhabitants. The automobile would eventually contribute to Norwell’s phenomenal growth in ways unimagined in 1929.
