Female American Driver Alice Ramsey

So continuing on with my Women's History Month series I wanted to talk about Alice Huyler Ramsey who was an American driver. She was the first woman to drive from coast to coast or across the United States in a car. Alice was born in 1886 in New Jersey, not much is known about her childhood but once she got older she attended Vassar College from 1903-1905. In 1906 she married congressman John Ramsey and had two children with him: John Ramsey Jr. and Alice Ramsey Jr.

In 1908 Alice came home to tell her husband a 'monster' scared her horse as it sped by at 30 miles per hour. That 'monster' was a car which was still something new and different at this time. So her husband decided to buy her a car, a Maxwell runabout to be sure and Ramsey took to driving as an enjoyable hobby. She drove 6,000 miles around their home of Hackensack, New Jersey on mostly dirt highways.

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The same year (1908) there were 3 Maxwell-Briscoe cars entered in the American Automobile Association's Montauk Point endurance race. Ramsey was one of two women to participate. During this race one of the other drivers, Carl Kelsey suggested that she attempt a transcontinental journey with the backing of Maxwell-Briscoe.

The Maxwell-Briscoe company lasted from 1904 to 1925 and the 1909 version of the car was a hand crank. The hand crank which most if not all older cars had at the time was where you would wind it up a few times and hope the engine would start up. Just think of how hard it would be to drive on a road trip with no electric headlights and no electric start like we are used to these days.

Alice decided that she would love to do this; Maxwell-Briscoe supplied that 1909 touring car and also provided assistance and parts as needed. At the time Maxwell wanted to specifically market to women because they weren't encouraged to drive. Having Alice Ramsey drive their car across the United States was originally just a publicity stunt to help with their marketing but it turned into something much more for women.

So on June 9th, 1909 Alice set off on her 3,600 mile journey from Manhattan, New York to San Francisco, California. She gathered up her two sisters-in-law (Nettie Powell & Margaret Atwood) in their 40's and her 16-year-old friend Hermine Jahns. They packed their goggles and protected their dresses with dusters and set off on what I like to call the first 'Girls Trip' across America.

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Ramsey was the only one in the bunch who knew how to drive but also some of the inner workings of a car. When they set off they drove on mostly dirt roads, only 152 miles of the 3,600 mile trip were paved. With cars comes car trouble so Ramsey actually changed tire blowouts, changed 11 tires in general, repaired a broken brake pedal, and cleaned spark plugs but had to call on a mechanic to repair a coil in Syracuse. In the Midwest they ran out of gas, the women forgot to check the tank which required a lot of extra work. It required the driver and the seatmate to leave the car, remove the front seat cushion, and stick a ruler into the 20-gallon tank to see where you are on gas. They followed maps and had books of landmarks that helped them get to where they were going but also had to rely on telephone wires to also lead the way.

**Fun Fact: When Ramsey and the ladies hit Ohio they attained a personal best of 42 miles per hour when on the Cleveland Highway.

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Ramsey and her team of women marveled at the sugar pines and redwoods as they arrived in California. In total, the trip had taken 59 days and they traveled 3,600 miles. She continued her cross-country driving throughout her long life, losing count after her 30th trip. She drove five of the six passes of the Swiss Alps, giving up the last under doctor's orders to slow down because of her pacemaker. Ramsey Died in 1983 at 97 years old.

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She was named the "First Lady of Automotive Travel" in 1960 by the Automobile Manufacturers Association. Ramsey made history driving across America, shining a light on just how much women can do. She didn't stray away from traveling and she changed the way we see road trips now by making them normal and showing that anybody can do it and enjoy it.

**Side Story: While doing some research and talking with Garrett I came across Bertha Benz. Her husband was in the process of giving up on a car he was building, so she decided to prove a point and drove his car 62 miles in 12 hours to show that he was so close to a breakthrough. She believed in him when he didn't believe in himself. And if Benz sounds familiar it's because you might know it by the name of Mercedes Benz now.

Read More: Female Mountaineer Annie Smith Peck