Autoped E-Scooters were so popular in the early 1900s that “Autopeding” became a verb. They were easy to maneuver and offered the perfect platform to showcase new outfits. They also won praise from professionals including police forces, sales people, post office employees, and New York gang members seeking quick getaways.
That’s correct. It was the early 1900s. The Lime e-scooters that you see on sidewalks in more than 200 cities in roughly 30 countries around the world were beat by a century.
Powered by a 155cc gasoline engine the Autoped was not initially an electric scooter. But once the Eveready Battery Company acquired the design rights in 1918, Autoped E-Scooters were born.
The Beloved Invention Premiered More Than A Century Ago
Autoped E-Scooters are the great ancestors of today’s. Color and weight aside, the powered front wheel, collapsible stem and standard 10″ wheels of today’s e-scooters are roughly the same as those people rode in the early 1900s.
“The Autoped and its predecessor the Motoped, were the true ancestors of the modern motor scooter.” (Online Bicycle Museum)
Even the early Autoped E-Scooters borrowed heavily from predecessors. The idea of the scooter for transportation stretched back to 1817 when German inventor Baron Karl von Drais de Sauerbrun launched his two-wheeled, human-powered scooter. He called it the velocipede.
In the 1840s, the velocipede was improved with a rear-treadle drive. Then in 1895, Ogden Bolton Jr. premiered his electric battery-powered bicycle and the world of transportation rolled forward.
Arthur Gibson Brought It All Together In A Zippy Package
Arthur Gibson was a London-area engineer who specialized in gas engine design and aeronautical development for the British Ministry of War came to New York around 1906. He earned a reputation in his industry and held a number of important patents.
In 1913, Gibson flashed his latest patent around his New Jersey neighborhood. With the help of co-designer Joseph Merkel (inventor of the Flying Merkel Motorcycle), Gibson built the prototype for what would ultimately be marketed as Autoped E-Scooters.
Their shiny new self-propelled scooter combined a zippy little motor with cool features that were sure to flutter the hearts of the American public.
David Traver Adolphus writes for Hemmings:
“The innovative two-wheeler had an air-cooled 2-1/4 hp engine over the front wheel, and featured a tilting steering column, a la the Segway: Pushing forward engaged the clutch, the left grip controlled speed, right had compression release, while pulling the whole column back engaged the brake.” (Hemmings)
Owners started the Autoped by scooting up to speed, then popping the clutch. It was fast and convenient. But Gibson didn’t stop there. He designed his vehicle to meet the needs of busy people on the go – whether in the 1900s or the 2000s.
“The hollow column was also the gas tank (!), and it folded flat and locked in place, sealing the tank and making a convenient carrying handle for the 90-pound (Gibson had originally aimed for 40 pounds, a very different proposition) machine – perfect for riding to the subway station, and tucking next to your desk at the office.” (Hemmings)
Gibson’s Autoped safely traveled at 20 MPH and supposedly got up to 100 MPG. All that technology sold for $100. That’s worth more than $3,000 today.
The Sweet Ride Was Called The Vehicle Of The Millions
Advertisements called the Autoped E-Scooter “one of the most unique and widely useful vehicles that has ever been produced.”
The said the scooter “…is light, easily operated and easy riding and runs 125 miles on a gallon of gasoline.” Although the price was out of reach for the average person, ads read: And the price is so low that almost anyone can afford one.”
Marketing was aggressively enthusiastic. Like “googling” of today, marketers even turned it into a verb. “All will enjoy the comfort and pleasure of AUTOPEDING.”
Print ads promoted the Autoped E-Scooter as a solution to every transportation problem.
“The Autoped is an ideal short distance conveyance for business or professional men or women to and from their places of business; for women to go shopping or calling; for physicians to make their regular daily calls or to answer hurry calls; for the older children to go about quickly for outing or school; for servants when they are sent on errands; for grocers, druggists and other merchants for quick delivery purposes; for commercial salesman to call on the trade; for employees to ride to and from work; for collectors; repairmen; messengers, and for anybody else who wants to save money, time and energy in going about.”
According to RiderGuide, the Autoped company sold both electric and gasoline models.
“It created somewhat of a motorized scooter boom…,Marketing messages targeted women who enjoyed shopping and having the finest driving experience possible. However, there were plenty of men interested in the innovative scooter, too.” (RiderGuide)
The motorized scooter was wildly popular with everyone including famed suffragette Florence Norman and American actress Lillian Lorraine.
This 1916 article about the Autoped craze appeared in newspapers across America including the Sunday edition of the New York Herald.
“You stand on the cute platform and get your feet neatly fitted on the rubber mats which seem to have “Welcome, little stranger,” written all over them, grab the handle and away you go. First you careen like a lugger in a typhoon and then you lurch over until the lee scuppers are awash. You skim along the asphalt and say “Whoa!” just like that.” (The New York Herald, Sunday, Oct. 8, 1916)
The Scooter Craze Took Off In Europe
Gibson’s Autoped Company of Long Island City, New York manufactured the first mass-produced motorized scooters from 1915 to 1921. While the Autoped raised a huge ruckus in the press and among elite buyers, sales did not meet Gibson’s hopes. Bicycles touted new comfort and safety features, plus they were more affordable for the masses.
But Autoped E-Scooters found new fans in Europe.
According to the Online Bicycle Museum, the Autoped made its British debut in early January 1917. It warranted a spread in the Bicycle Times with actress Shirley Kellogg in Hyde Park.
“Last week Miss Shirley Kellogg, the famous revue actress, created quite a sensation in Hyde Park by appearing on an Autoped—the mechanical scooter, driven by a small motorcycle engine, which has been illustrated and described in many past issues of “Motor Cycling.” A police sergeant, unable to believe his eyes, demanded Miss Kellogg’s license, which was luckily forthcoming. The tiny little machine ran quite successfully, and will in all probability appear on the stage with its charming drive.”
Between 1919 and 1922, Krupp made a version in Germany. Versions of the Autoped E-Scooters were built were sold in England and across Europe.
As with so many great ideas, Gibson’s Autoped E-Scooters evolved over the decades for new generations to “discover.”
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