On the Road

Updated August 5, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

Most people think Henry Ford invented the automobile. But in fact, the modern automobile was invented in Germany by Karl Benz in 1885. The first American cars were made by the Duryea Brothers in 1892. In 1908, Ford produced an inexpensive assembly line car, the Model T.

bicycle
Library of Congress

6500 B.C.
The wheel is invented by the Sumerians.
3500
Animals pull wheeled vehicles in Mesopotamia.
44
The wheelbarrow is invented by the Chinese.
A.D. 1769
The first steam-powered vehicle, with three wheels, is invented in France.
1791
The bicycle is invented in Scotland.
1792
The ambulance is created for Napoleon's army.
1839
The electric car is invented in Scotland.
1869
The modern motorcycle is invented in Germany.
1871
The cable streetcar is invented in the United States.
1885
The first car with internal-cumbustion engine is invented in Germany.
1892
The first car is run by gasoline in the United States.
1892
The tractor is invented in the United States.
1893
The license plate is invented in France.
1895
The diesel engine is invented in Germany.
1905
The hybrid car is invented in the United States.
1908
The Model T car is the first car mass produced on an assembly line in the United States.
1923
The traffic signal is invented in the United States.
1959
The seat belt is invented in Sweden.
1980
Rollerblades are invented in the United States.
2001
The Segway human transporter is invented in the United States.

For more inventions, see Inventions & Discoveries.


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