Jun 10, 2007 - 04:07:55 CDT
VALLEY CITY (AP) - Motorists have been rallying in this valley for more than a century.The first documented automobile put together in North Dakota (many people did it themselves) was the property of George Brown, who owned a bicycle shop in Fargo. Completed on Dec. 12, 1899, Brown's auto was quickly rivaled by that of a Valley City businessman.
O.A. Beeman, a Valley City entrepreneur who owned and operated the town's first telephone exchange, went to Michigan on Jan. 4, 1900, to order an engine for a car he had built.
Or, it could have been a year earlier. An article in the Oct. 4, 1946, edition of Valley City Trade News and Dakota Press claims Beeman and William McKay, a pioneer auto mechanic, built the chassis in the winter of 1898-1899.
Dickinson State University professor Carl Larson claims the January 1900 date. Whichever one is correct, the records state the 4½ horsepower gasoline engine arrived in April, and the automobile was ready to roll a few days later.
About that word, automobile: No one knew how to pronounce it. An 1899 article in The Forum provided the correct pronunciation for the vehicle that would do so much to end isolation in the far-apart towns, farms and ranches of North Dakota.
Beeman's homemade automobile cost him $750. It ran at a top speed of 30 mph and had no spark plugs.
It was also cranky. On May 13, 1900, Beeman and three of his friends (it was a four-seater vehicle) drove to Jamestown, by way of Leal, Wimbledon and Spiritwood Lake. They made it - remember, there were no paved roads in North Dakota yet - but came to a halt a mile out of Jamestown on the way home, stopped by the poor quality of the gasoline.
Beeman must have solved that problem, because he and W.N. "Punk" Allen were guests of honor at the Fargo Fire Festival Parade in early June, 1900.
Beeman seems to have returned to Valley City after the parade, but Allen stayed in Fargo with the automobile, giving rides for a quarter. In fact, Allen may have the dubious distinction of being one of the first people to suffer an auto-related injury. The constant, repetitive motion of cranking the vehicle to start it caused bruising on Allen's arm, which led to blood poisoning. He did recover, though.
Despite its sometimes moody behavior, the automobile was here to stay. By 1904, Valley City residents claimed 20 motor cars in town, which compared to 21 in Grand Forks. Valley City also boasted an Oldsmobile dealer, Hugh McDonald.
This week, Valley City is hosting the 51st annual Midwest Tour of the Horseless Carriage Club of America. At least 30 pre-1916 cars from around the county will spend four days touring the countryside.
In 1904, automotive pioneers staged a "Goodwill Tour of Barnes County," starting out from Valley City and doing precisely what the HCCA will do this week. Leaving from Valley City, the 1904 tour traveled through Rogers, Hannaford, Cooperstown and Hope, before returning.
The 1946 Valley City Trade News and Dakota Press lists one "casualty" of the Goodwill Tour. According to the article, Dr. Arthur Peake's Stanley Steamer "was misbehaving to such an extent that the party abandoned it and took the branch train back to Valley City."
Sometimes it was the driver who misbehaved. A motorist was fined $8.50 - $3 plus costs - for speeding, according to the July 5, 1904, Valley City Times-Record. This could be one of the earliest speeding tickets in North Dakota.
By 1905, the state legislature enacted its first legislation aimed at the car. Highway speeds were regulated at 25 mph, and automobiles were required to have two lights.
Surprisingly, the state, at that time, chose not to establish a licensing-registration system. This was left to the towns. Valley City first issued license plates in 1909, a year before Bismarck followed suit. Not until 1911 did the state pass its first licensing laws.
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