The Invention Of The Automobile

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The automobile is one of the few inventions that has had a great impact on the world. The first automobile was invented by Karl Benz, from Germany, in 1885. However, the first Canadian automobile was built in 1867 by Henry Seth Taylor, and was regarded as a novelty. The automotive industry began in 1904 with Henry Ford’s establishment of the Ford Motor Company in Canada, Ltd. Canada later became the world’s second largest vehicle producer and a major exporter of automobiles and auto parts, between 1918 and 1923. Henry Ford’s manufacturing method of mass production and invention of the assembly line resulted in the prosperity and growth of the automobile in the 1920s. Although the technology for the automobile existed in the 19th century,…show more content…
As a result, in North America and Europe the automobile became cheaper and more accessible to the middle class. This was facilitated by Henry Ford who did two important things. First he priced his car to be as affordable as possible and second, he paid his workers enough to be able to purchase the cars they were manufacturing. This helped push wages and auto sales upward. The convenience of the automobile freed people from the need to live near rail lines or stations; they could choose locations almost anywhere in an urban area, as long as roads were available to connect them to other…show more content…
The automobile did a lot to change our way of living. Canada and the United States became a car culture. In addition to jobs created within the automobile factories, new jobs were created to service automobiles. Jobs in service stations, parking lots, road construction, and repair shops sprang up. Governments spent increasing amounts of money on highways. Main roads were paved and some country roads were given a surface of gravel. People in the 1920s also began to experience traffic jams and accidents for the first time, resulting in demands for licensure and safety regulations. Nevertheless, the car made it possible for people to live farther from their place of work. People sought open green spaces for their houses, so suburbs started to expand on the outskirts of many cities. The automobile was much more private than a riding a train or a taxi, and became a symbol of status and

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