Odd, Old News: “Buzz Buggies”

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Humber 11 Torpedo style 1944cc registered April 1914 [Photo from Wikicommons]

Nuggets of old news served up once a week by David Heller, one of our local historians.

Beware the Buzz Buggy!

Scarier than meeting a logging truck on the old 101 highway “slab” in Mendocino County, more frightening than a tailgating “grow-dozer” on a country road, the advent of automobiles in the first decades of the 20th century brought fear to many a country driver of horse drawn carriages and wagons. Known as “buzz buggies” these new “high-speed” metal contraptions redefined sharing the road. The adjustment period must have led to a number of incidents like the one below, and road rage, before the term was in use.

ROAD HOGS” IN HUMBOLDT COUNTY

Daily Standard, August 2, 1911

Humboldt just at present is suffering from the preposterous claims of the “road hog”. The following from the Fortuna Advance tells a story of common occurrence in various parts of the county:

Complaints come in every few days of the reckless driving of automobiles in different parts of the county, particularly in the mountain sections, and it seems that something should be done to stop such practices. Last Sunday a party consisting of E.W. Haight, Fred Newell, Mrs. C.O. Wellock and Miss Irene Hansell reported that a very narrow escape was had from accident when a big touring car passed their rig on the road near Pepperwood. The members of the party say that the machine was going at a fast clip when first heard and the driver was inclined to make the buggy get out of the way whether there was room or not. He used his siren and horn to such an extent that had the team been other than thoroughly familiar with autos it might have meant a runaway without slowing up until almost on the rig the driver of the machine kept right on and when a slight turnout was found he shot by, missing the wheels of the buggy by buy a few inches.”

Travel safely on the highways, and beware those “buzz buggies”!

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Photo of cars and people in the redwoods [Photo from HSU’s Humboldt Room, from the Swanlund-Baker collection]

Earlier Odd and Old News:

There are many more, but here are the most recent:

 

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Really?
Guest
Really?
4 years ago

I remember taking road trips whenever my father got the travel bug 65 years ago. The mountains roads were mostly gravel, the turns hairpin and the shoulders non existent, the drops hundreds of feet, the destinations questionable. Sometimes the grades were so steep that the car had to be given a rest and drink at the top while the engine cooled down. Luckily they were not much travelled as meeting someone meant the down slope party had to back up until there was room to scrape by. Then there was the hour or so spent at a stop while a seemingly endless herd of sheep moseyed by.

Glow In The Dark Humdum
Guest
Glow In The Dark Humdum
4 years ago

Imagine driving those cars to work while sawmills ran 24/7 and the hills were dope free?
Only girls had long hair and men ate rare steaks for breakfast…

Look at how far civilization has regressed into liberal trash piles by weed plants called medicine.

This holiday season everyone needs to look around and blame everything on dirty hippies and get ready to vote for Trump in 2020.

Trump has 2020 because liberals have no vision.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Sparkelmahn
Guest
Sparkelmahn
4 years ago

Conservatives have a vision of stupidity and death and tRump is the perfect useful pawn IDIOT to carry out their sinister plans.

Yeah,sure
Guest
Yeah,sure
4 years ago

Why would I vote for a corrupt, lying demogogue and wanna be dictator installed by Russia to destroy American Democracy from within?
And by the way, you’re probably not rich enough for Trump’s presidency to actually benifit you.

Yeah, sure you're that important
Guest
Yeah, sure you're that important
4 years ago
Reply to  Yeah,sure

Because, without Trump, Democrats will no longer spend all their time hysterically flapping their arms like a bunch of inflatable Tube-men and go back to doing real damage.

Re-elect Trump like a mom offers a snack to a 2 year old having a tantrum. https://www.babycenter.com/0_what-to-do-when-your-toddler-screams_1200985.bc
Remember “the most difficult part of coping with a toddler who loves to scream is ignoring other people’s dirty looks” as the article states.

Yeah,sure
Guest
Yeah,sure
4 years ago

Seems you’re flapping quite a bit yourself. Flap away, anyone with half a brain sees the New Republicans for what they are. Trying to talk people into voting for Trump in Kyms threads is a fools errand, Mr. Flappy.
By the way, gaslighting is no way to convince anyone of anything.

Government Cheese
Guest
Government Cheese
4 years ago

government handouts are not freedom.

Government Cheese
Guest
Government Cheese
4 years ago

Disarmament of citizens is not democracy

Guest
Guest
Guest
4 years ago

me thinks she doth protest too much.

Legal grower
Guest
4 years ago

We need to go after the illegal grows so I can get better price for my legal weed I backdoor

curlybill
Guest
curlybill
4 years ago
Reply to  Legal grower

Backdoor isn’t legal.
Track & Trace

Cooling down
Guest
Cooling down
4 years ago
Reply to  curlybill

There is no reality to the t & t system, and the new tax is making the black market ever more attractive😎

Just Sayin
Guest
Just Sayin
4 years ago
Reply to  Cooling down

And those abatement notices are the cherry on top!

Craig
Guest
Craig
4 years ago

“Scarier than meeting a logging truck on the old 101 highway “slab” in Mendocino County”

What’s even scarier is taking a walk on it today, and seeing how narrow the “Slab” really was.