Exceed 10 mph in Downtown Jacksonville and Face Jail Time (First Three Offenders Arrested)

“Automobile owners and drivers take notice. The police have received instructions to watch automobile drivers carefully and see that they do not exceed the speed limit [of 10 mph].” The Judge has made it clear that all offenders will be arrested. Before the trial of the offenders began, Jacksonville’s Mayor exclaimed “We have to stop this ridiculous behavior now!”

Although three men were arrested and taken to jail for speeding, offender Dr. J. V. Freeman was the first to appear before Judge A.O. Wright. The judge stated that since he had never had a case involving a speeding automobile, he was inclined to be lenient. To clarify, Judge Wright added that he had spoken to the Mayor and that they both wanted to “break up the reckless driving of automobiles” in Jacksonville. “You must understand that in the future, fines for this offense will not be light.” Under the new law, Judge Wright could have thrown the book at Dr. Freeman and forced him to pay the maximum penalty of $100, but instead merely fined him $10.

This article, printed in the Florida Times-Union in 1907, points out the issues the city faced to address the modernization of transportation. Motor cars, which were only owned by the wealthy, did not fit in well in a rural city. Since most of the vehicles on the road were horse-drawn wagons or carriages. In addition, there were pedestrians at risk. While bicycles and motorcycles had flourished, they were discouraged on downtown streets.

Catching violators of the 10 mph law proved difficult, especially if they were able to make their way outside of the downtown area. The local police lacked powerful “chase vehicles.” Their small motorcycles (powered bicycles) were nearly useless in chasing and catching the enhanced horse-powered motor cars. The police task became more difficult since vehicles were not required to have identifying marks or license plates. Poor roads were the officers only hope to apprehend offenders. If the police were lucky, the motor car could hit a pothole or get bogged in the mud. Another lucky break might have been that the offender’s automobile would experience an equipment failure. For example, tires were poorly constructed and had to be replaced after a few miles. John Dunlop did not develop pneumatic tires until 1888, and those were for his bicycle.

During Dr. Freeman’s trial for charges of exceeding the speed limit, Officer Watkins (the arresting officer) testified he was traveling “at least 15 miles per hour” coming down the viaduct into town. Officer McKewn, who arrested Mr. L. C. Oliver, the second offender, testified, “Mr. Oliver was traveling between 13 and 15 miles per hour and going the wrong way.” When questioned about how they determined the actual speed, one of the officers said that they placed wooden buckets every 50 feet. When the vehicles were traveling towards them, they observed their pocket watches closely to determine the driver’s exact location every few seconds. A mathematical equation provided by a local headmaster calculated the speed traveled.

HORSE KILLED DOWNTOWN BY SPEEDING CAR JACKSONVILLE POLICE OFFICER INJURED

The police also arrested Colonel Edward Anderson. He was not speeding, but operating his automobile in a “careless and reckless” manner. Officer Martin E. Cole, on horseback, surprised the Colonel by appearing out from behind a building in order to arrest him. The motor car and the horse collided, immediately killing the horse and injuring Officer Cole. Hoping Officer Cole could recover and testify later, Judge Wright reduced Colonel Anderson’s bond from $250 to $100 and continued the trial until Friday.

THE 1897 PREDICTION

Just how could an automobile be used? An 1897 article published in Europe predicted that it might have military potential. One writer suggested, “Imagine a motor car outfitted as a moving hospital.” A military officer recommended, “If it were armor-plated and outfitted with rapid-firing guns, it could actually charge the enemy. The idea of a moving fort would not be absurd.”

CHARLES A. CLARK – JACKSONVILLE’S FIRST MOTOR CAR OWNER

The previous June 1, 2009, story in the series of A Simpler Life in Jacksonville, Florida, entitled “Two Prominent Women Injured Downtown” involved the wife of wealthy land owner, George W. Clark. He and his brother (Charles A. Clark) had a continuing rivalry. They had both learned the trade of Undertaker, but by the late 1880’s George deviated into the marble business (mostly headstones and monuments) and controlled the business in the Southeast. If the sibling rivalry scorecard had been tallied at the end of 1899, George was winning by a wide margin. Then in 1900, Charles trumped George in a single instant that will keep him in the record and history books forever. He purchased the first manufactured car in the state of Florida.

This grainy photo shows proud Charles atop his new-fangled factory-built motor car. The townspeople were envious. He was riding the Locomobile, Stanley number 2 that was propelled by steam. The manufacturer used a regular horse and buggy chassis (minus the attachments for a horse) and added a steam engine, threw on normal bicycle tires and added a special rear brake. The steering mechanism was similar to a boat tiller and pushing or pulling on it turned the vehicle. The reporter wrote that it will stop “in much shorter space than to stop a horse.” The total weight was 450 pounds, and it was priced at a whopping $650. Charles could drive 45 miles with one fill-up of water and gas, and by adding another gallon of water he could drive 30 more miles before the gas tank would run dry. He provided “free” rides throughout the day. Several wealthy men were overheard stating that they would place their orders immediately.

When Florida state license plates were issued several years later, Charles was fortunate enough to receive plate number one. As larger more complex license numbering took place (adding one letter of the alphabet), the state attempted to take Charles’ license plate from him.

Charles fought the request and placed the plate on subsequent new car purchases late into the 1930’s.

Following is an advertisement for Mr. Clark’s funeral services…

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Joseph Miller is a life-long resident of Jacksonville, Florida, and an active member of the Rotary Club of South Jacksonville. As a historian, he recently completed his first book on the Founder of Rotary, Paul P. Harris, titled “That Paul Harris.”

Joseph can be reached at JaxHistory@gmail.com.