The Impact of the Automobile on the United States Essay -- Automobiles

The Impact of the Automobile on the United States The automobile has had a profound impact on the United States. It has brought us superhighways, paved bridges, motels, vacations, suburbia, and the economic growth which accompanied them. Today, the automotive industry and nearly one million related industries employ about twenty percent of all American workers. The US produces more automobiles than every other nation combined. This product has become a symbol of the American way of life. The US is sometimes referred to as â€Å"a nation on wheels.† Considering these facts, one must wonder what the United States was like before the revolutionary innovation of the automobile. The first automobile was invented by a French artillery officer, Nicholas Joseph Cugnot. His self-propelled vehicle was powered by steam. Other models of steam-powered automobiles were created by different innovators, but these models were eventually made obsolete by the internal-combustion powered car invented by Jean Joseph Etienne Lenior. This technology reached the United States when Charles and Frank Duryea made the first successful American gasoline automobile. Ransom Eli Olds had the earliest assembly line for automobiles and began mass production. Later, Henry Ford’s Model T dominated the car industry and remained the most popular automobile for nearly twenty years. In the early days of the automobile, there was not a real automotive industry. Only a few hundred cars were made in the early years of automobile manufacturing. They were very seldom seen and only could be afforded by the wealthy. The car was such an unfamiliar spectacle, it was sometimes featured in circuses. Eventually, the car began to increase in popularity. During the 1920s, the US economy was on the rise and one of the main reasons was the automobile. Assembly lines were becoming more efficient, thus, admitting cars to be made more cheaply and allowing prices of cars to drop. From 1909 to 1925, the price of a Ford Model T dropped from $950 to $290. This allowed more people to be able to afford them. Millions were sold. The automobile, once a rare luxury, was becoming a part of American life. It had a ripple effect on US industries. With the increase in automobiles, came an increase in related products. Large quantities of glass, rubber and steel were needed t... ...nvolved with the safety of Americans. Many actions by the government such as the seatbelt requirement and the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have made the automobile safer for the general public. The automobile has had many different effects on the United States, both good and bad. In the future it will continue to shape our culture, commerce and surroundings. Works Cited 1Thomas DiBacco, Lorna Mason, Christian Appy, History of the United States, vol. 2 (Evanston: McDougal Littell Inc.), p. 324. 2John Rae, The American Automobile Industry, (Boston: G.K. Hall & Company), p. 89-92. 3John Rae, The American Automobile Industry, (Boston: G.K. Hall & Company), p. 96. 4John Rae, The American Automobile Industry, (Boston: G.K. Hall & Company), p. 188. 5John Rae, The American Automobile Industry, (Boston: G.K. Hall & Company), p. 89-90. 6American Lung Association of California, , 13 April 2001. 7National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, , 14 April 2001.