Post by Ms. Lucy on Aug 12, 2010 2:45:54 GMT -5
This explains the advances and drawbacks of the motor-world of the 1920's. If there were any questions of types of engines available, what were popular modes of transportation, what types of cars/buses/aircraft were available, costs of parts and fuel, you can find all that and more, here.
Basic modes of transportation.
The Automobile
The most prevelant, affordable, and popular car of the era was the ford Model T. During the roaring decade, various models came along after the introduction of the assembly line.
Prices: When they had first come about, the standard 4-seat open tourer of 1909 cost $850 (equivalent to $20,709 today. By the 1920s, the price had fallen to $290 (equivalent to $3,289 today) because of increasing efficiencies of assembly line technique and volume.
Styles:
2-door touring (1909–11)
3-door touring (1912–1925)
4-door touring (1926–1927)
no door roadster (1909–11)
1-door roadster(1912–1925)
2-door roadster (1926–1927)
roadster pickup Model TT (1925–1927)
2-door coupé (1909–1912, 1917–1927)
2-door Coupelet (1915–17)
Town car (1909–1918)
C-cab wagon (1912)
2-(Center)door sedan (1915–1923)
2-door sedan (1924–1927)
4-door sedan (1923–1927)
Also colors were available to earlier models like green, blue, red, and grey, but after 1912 most came in midnight blue with black fenders. Then, from 1914 to 1926, they were set to an all black pallet for cost effectiveness.
Engine: The Model T had a 177-cubic-inch (2.9 L) front mounted inline four-cylinder en bloc engine (that is, all four cylinders in one block, as common now, rather than in individual castings, as common then) producing 20 hp (15 kW) for a top speed of 40–45 mph (64–72 km/h). The Model T four-cylinder sidevalve engine was first in the world with a detachable head, making service like valve jobs easier. According to Ford Motor Company, the Model T had fuel economy on the order of 13–21 mpg-US (6–9 km/l; 16–25 mpg-imp). The engine was capable of running on petrol, kerosene, or ethanol, although the decreasing cost of petrol and the later introduction of Prohibition made ethanol an impractical fuel. Models sold before 1919 had hand crank starters instead of the modern electrical starters. So, a few minutes of elbow grease, and the car could get rolling.
Public Buses
Popular companies: Meseba Transportation Company, which would form into The Greyhound Bus Company in 1930. And other thousands of competing companies. Some went as far as cross country, Canada, and Mexico, while others were more local, or regional, offering complete east or west coast tours.
Fares: Cross country ranged from 68-78 USD for a one way ticket, and around 140-150 USD for roundtrip. Of course, the amount of miles correlates to the cost, so the less the mileage, the less you pay.
Aircraft
Airplanes
Before the 1920's planes still best resembled the wood and canvas fighters that were used in The Great War. But as time went on, all metal version became to solid norm. At first the plane was a craft given much thought, but as the idea of Air Mail was introduced, their ingenuity and potential were realized by American and International business.
Their slow rise to popularity went on to encompass large freight contracts at first; taking commercial grade factory materials that had a great deal of weight, and making their transport efficient. As they began to carry more and more object cross country, the idea of people being transported was looking more reasonable. By 1923 airlines had begun to allow private flights, but prices were steep, and often only upper middle class could afford a trip. And of course, the greater length meant greater cost. Cross-ocean flights were available, but far from the average household budget, and were often overshadowed by the ease, popularity, and higher trust of safety that was offered by ocean liners.
By the end of the 1920s, travelers could still cross the country faster by train than by air. Airplanes had to fly around mountains, could not fly safely at night, and had to land frequently to refuel. Flying by air was uncomfortable and some passengers wore overalls, helmets, and goggles. The airplanes were uninsulated thin sheets of metal, rattling in the wind, and passengers stuck cotton in their ears to stop the noise. Cabins were unpressurized—passengers chewed gum to equalize the air pressure. Nevertheless, more and more people were flying. The number of airline passengers in the United States grew from less than 6,000 in 1926 to approximately 173,000 in 1929. Businessmen comprised most of the passengers, and more and more companies would pay for their employees to travel by air. But despite the advances in air travel and the aspirations of businessmen who hoped to get in on the ground floor of a new multimillion-dollar business, airlines in the 1920s that promoted passenger-only routes lost money. Profitable passenger airlines would not be realized until the 1930s.
After the Kelly Act passed (This was the first major step toward the creation of a private and profitable U.S. airline industry) in 1925, private companies bid on feeder routes that supplemented the transcontinental air route. This airway had expanded during the nine years that the Post Office had transported mail by air. Now the Post Office awarded contracts to private companies, and these companies would later become transportation giants.
New York - Boston—awarded to Juan Trippe, founder of Pan American Airways.
Chicago - St. Louis—won by the Robertson Aircraft Corporation with Charles Lindbergh as their chief pilot. Robertson would become part of American Airlines.
Chicago - Dallas—went to National Air Transport owned by Clement M. Keys, a financier. Keys would eventually develop National Airlines and own 46 other aviation properties.
Elko, Nevada - Pasco, Washington—won by Walter T. Varney, who would later merge with United Air Lines.
Salt Lake City - Los Angeles—awarded to Harris “Pop” Hansue of Western Air Express, which would merge into Transcontinental and Western Air (TWA).
Dirigibles
Airships were coming into view in the beginning months of 1923, with the debut of the USS Shenandoah and began paving the way for air travel for the common public. They were available before the decade, but were strictly for combat use in The Great War. As times eased on though, they took on a more innocent persona. Like the airplane, they were used as 'beasts of burden' and carried freight commercially along coasts and across the country. And just like their cousin, were looked at with the potential for transporting people. They had a better romanticism than regular airplanes, but still the cabins were no better, and their danger was far deadlier than portrayed by companies and advertisements. They kept similar prices to regular aircraft, if not more due to even more limited seating and baggage accommodations. Despite the dangers though, the elite were still delighted by their allure, and would take trips from new York to Chicago, and etc.
Trains
If railroading before World War I still had a hint of the nineteenth century about it, railroading by the mid-1920s was distinctly modern. Locomotive and car designs based on the United States Railway Administration standards of 1918 would define railroading through the 1960s. Despite the fact that total rail mileage dropped slightly throughout the decade (largely through the abandonment of marginal or duplicate lines), railroads invested heavily in property and equipment.
Even today, the period is widely considered to be the zenith of "classic" railroading. In 1920, the U.S. railroad network was still near its peak, with 253,000 miles of track operated by more than one-and-a-half million railroad men and women employed by at least 1,000 railroad companies.
Although somewhat erratic, the U.S. economy was vigorous, and railroads found it relatively easy to raise money on Wall Street for big projects. There were no great new lines to be built-the Milwaukee Road's 1916 Puget Sound extension, from the upper Midwest to Seattle, was the last major addition to the national system-but there was a great deal of "addition and betterment" work to be accomplished.
The steam locomotive had been around for more than a century, and its basic operating principles -- involving thermodynamics, the factor of adhesion, and fuel efficiency -- were well understood. But a new generation of designers, armed with new theoretical tools and increasingly sophisticated technology, sought to boost the power and efficiency of the steam locomotive. One result was what Lima Locomotive Works called "Super Power."
By increasing the size of the firebox well beyond what had previously been thought adequate for a given boiler size, Lima achieved a large locomotive capable of both high horsepower and high speed. Bigger wheel arrangements (4-6-4, 4-8-4, 2-10-4) and a variety of efficiency-boosting appliances (feed-water heaters, new firebox designs, and valve-gear improvements), helped define the basic principles of "Super Power." The famous Hudson 4-6-4 locomotives, built by the New York Central starting in 1927, exemplify the "big steam" of the 1920s.
The golden years for the locomotive industry were based in the strong economy of the 1920s, but had gained grand foundation in the turn of the century. Transcontinental railways had been set up for nearly 30 years, and along with it were offered smaller areas of traveling like state to state and town to town. It was the most commonly used form of transit, alongside the automobile as it gained popularity and cheapened. Train riding was a comfortable, roomy experience that had been perfected over the turn of the century. Fine wines could be offered in luxurious dining carts along with menus that gave a wide variety of freshly cooked foods. Fares had a great deal of variety depending on length of trip, type of suite (if required) desired menus, and so on.
Basic modes of transportation.
The Automobile
The most prevelant, affordable, and popular car of the era was the ford Model T. During the roaring decade, various models came along after the introduction of the assembly line.
Prices: When they had first come about, the standard 4-seat open tourer of 1909 cost $850 (equivalent to $20,709 today. By the 1920s, the price had fallen to $290 (equivalent to $3,289 today) because of increasing efficiencies of assembly line technique and volume.
Styles:
2-door touring (1909–11)
3-door touring (1912–1925)
4-door touring (1926–1927)
no door roadster (1909–11)
1-door roadster(1912–1925)
2-door roadster (1926–1927)
roadster pickup Model TT (1925–1927)
2-door coupé (1909–1912, 1917–1927)
2-door Coupelet (1915–17)
Town car (1909–1918)
C-cab wagon (1912)
2-(Center)door sedan (1915–1923)
2-door sedan (1924–1927)
4-door sedan (1923–1927)
Also colors were available to earlier models like green, blue, red, and grey, but after 1912 most came in midnight blue with black fenders. Then, from 1914 to 1926, they were set to an all black pallet for cost effectiveness.
Engine: The Model T had a 177-cubic-inch (2.9 L) front mounted inline four-cylinder en bloc engine (that is, all four cylinders in one block, as common now, rather than in individual castings, as common then) producing 20 hp (15 kW) for a top speed of 40–45 mph (64–72 km/h). The Model T four-cylinder sidevalve engine was first in the world with a detachable head, making service like valve jobs easier. According to Ford Motor Company, the Model T had fuel economy on the order of 13–21 mpg-US (6–9 km/l; 16–25 mpg-imp). The engine was capable of running on petrol, kerosene, or ethanol, although the decreasing cost of petrol and the later introduction of Prohibition made ethanol an impractical fuel. Models sold before 1919 had hand crank starters instead of the modern electrical starters. So, a few minutes of elbow grease, and the car could get rolling.
Public Buses
Popular companies: Meseba Transportation Company, which would form into The Greyhound Bus Company in 1930. And other thousands of competing companies. Some went as far as cross country, Canada, and Mexico, while others were more local, or regional, offering complete east or west coast tours.
Fares: Cross country ranged from 68-78 USD for a one way ticket, and around 140-150 USD for roundtrip. Of course, the amount of miles correlates to the cost, so the less the mileage, the less you pay.
Aircraft
Airplanes
Before the 1920's planes still best resembled the wood and canvas fighters that were used in The Great War. But as time went on, all metal version became to solid norm. At first the plane was a craft given much thought, but as the idea of Air Mail was introduced, their ingenuity and potential were realized by American and International business.
Their slow rise to popularity went on to encompass large freight contracts at first; taking commercial grade factory materials that had a great deal of weight, and making their transport efficient. As they began to carry more and more object cross country, the idea of people being transported was looking more reasonable. By 1923 airlines had begun to allow private flights, but prices were steep, and often only upper middle class could afford a trip. And of course, the greater length meant greater cost. Cross-ocean flights were available, but far from the average household budget, and were often overshadowed by the ease, popularity, and higher trust of safety that was offered by ocean liners.
By the end of the 1920s, travelers could still cross the country faster by train than by air. Airplanes had to fly around mountains, could not fly safely at night, and had to land frequently to refuel. Flying by air was uncomfortable and some passengers wore overalls, helmets, and goggles. The airplanes were uninsulated thin sheets of metal, rattling in the wind, and passengers stuck cotton in their ears to stop the noise. Cabins were unpressurized—passengers chewed gum to equalize the air pressure. Nevertheless, more and more people were flying. The number of airline passengers in the United States grew from less than 6,000 in 1926 to approximately 173,000 in 1929. Businessmen comprised most of the passengers, and more and more companies would pay for their employees to travel by air. But despite the advances in air travel and the aspirations of businessmen who hoped to get in on the ground floor of a new multimillion-dollar business, airlines in the 1920s that promoted passenger-only routes lost money. Profitable passenger airlines would not be realized until the 1930s.
After the Kelly Act passed (This was the first major step toward the creation of a private and profitable U.S. airline industry) in 1925, private companies bid on feeder routes that supplemented the transcontinental air route. This airway had expanded during the nine years that the Post Office had transported mail by air. Now the Post Office awarded contracts to private companies, and these companies would later become transportation giants.
New York - Boston—awarded to Juan Trippe, founder of Pan American Airways.
Chicago - St. Louis—won by the Robertson Aircraft Corporation with Charles Lindbergh as their chief pilot. Robertson would become part of American Airlines.
Chicago - Dallas—went to National Air Transport owned by Clement M. Keys, a financier. Keys would eventually develop National Airlines and own 46 other aviation properties.
Elko, Nevada - Pasco, Washington—won by Walter T. Varney, who would later merge with United Air Lines.
Salt Lake City - Los Angeles—awarded to Harris “Pop” Hansue of Western Air Express, which would merge into Transcontinental and Western Air (TWA).
Dirigibles
Airships were coming into view in the beginning months of 1923, with the debut of the USS Shenandoah and began paving the way for air travel for the common public. They were available before the decade, but were strictly for combat use in The Great War. As times eased on though, they took on a more innocent persona. Like the airplane, they were used as 'beasts of burden' and carried freight commercially along coasts and across the country. And just like their cousin, were looked at with the potential for transporting people. They had a better romanticism than regular airplanes, but still the cabins were no better, and their danger was far deadlier than portrayed by companies and advertisements. They kept similar prices to regular aircraft, if not more due to even more limited seating and baggage accommodations. Despite the dangers though, the elite were still delighted by their allure, and would take trips from new York to Chicago, and etc.
Trains
If railroading before World War I still had a hint of the nineteenth century about it, railroading by the mid-1920s was distinctly modern. Locomotive and car designs based on the United States Railway Administration standards of 1918 would define railroading through the 1960s. Despite the fact that total rail mileage dropped slightly throughout the decade (largely through the abandonment of marginal or duplicate lines), railroads invested heavily in property and equipment.
Even today, the period is widely considered to be the zenith of "classic" railroading. In 1920, the U.S. railroad network was still near its peak, with 253,000 miles of track operated by more than one-and-a-half million railroad men and women employed by at least 1,000 railroad companies.
Although somewhat erratic, the U.S. economy was vigorous, and railroads found it relatively easy to raise money on Wall Street for big projects. There were no great new lines to be built-the Milwaukee Road's 1916 Puget Sound extension, from the upper Midwest to Seattle, was the last major addition to the national system-but there was a great deal of "addition and betterment" work to be accomplished.
The steam locomotive had been around for more than a century, and its basic operating principles -- involving thermodynamics, the factor of adhesion, and fuel efficiency -- were well understood. But a new generation of designers, armed with new theoretical tools and increasingly sophisticated technology, sought to boost the power and efficiency of the steam locomotive. One result was what Lima Locomotive Works called "Super Power."
By increasing the size of the firebox well beyond what had previously been thought adequate for a given boiler size, Lima achieved a large locomotive capable of both high horsepower and high speed. Bigger wheel arrangements (4-6-4, 4-8-4, 2-10-4) and a variety of efficiency-boosting appliances (feed-water heaters, new firebox designs, and valve-gear improvements), helped define the basic principles of "Super Power." The famous Hudson 4-6-4 locomotives, built by the New York Central starting in 1927, exemplify the "big steam" of the 1920s.
The golden years for the locomotive industry were based in the strong economy of the 1920s, but had gained grand foundation in the turn of the century. Transcontinental railways had been set up for nearly 30 years, and along with it were offered smaller areas of traveling like state to state and town to town. It was the most commonly used form of transit, alongside the automobile as it gained popularity and cheapened. Train riding was a comfortable, roomy experience that had been perfected over the turn of the century. Fine wines could be offered in luxurious dining carts along with menus that gave a wide variety of freshly cooked foods. Fares had a great deal of variety depending on length of trip, type of suite (if required) desired menus, and so on.