Carl Benz
1844–1929 (age 85)·German designer and engineer·Birthday: November 25
Biography
Carl Benz obtained German patent number 37435 on January 29, 1886, for his 'Motorwagen,' a three-wheeled vehicle powered by an internal combustion engine. This single document marks the birth of the practical automobile. His 1885 model was the first designed from the ground up as a motor vehicle, not a horse-drawn carriage adaptation, and its first public demonstration in Mannheim covered approximately one kilometer. A persistent myth suggests Benz's wife, Bertha, undertook her famous 106-kilometer journey in 1888 without his knowledge; in truth, it was a coordinated publicity stunt that demonstrated the car's reliability and led directly to key innovations like an improved gear system. Benz's founding of Benz & Cie. in 1883 grew into the world's first automotive manufacturing company. His legacy is the very concept of personal mobility, setting in motion an industry that would redefine the 20th century's landscape and economy.
#1 When Carl Was Born
The biggest hits of 1844
Carl's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1844Born
1849Started school
1857Became a teenager
1860Could drive
1862Could vote
President: Abraham Lincoln
1865Turned 21
President: Andrew Johnson
1874Turned 30
President: Ulysses S. Grant
1884Turned 40
President: Chester A. Arthur
1894Turned 50
President: Grover Cleveland
1904Turned 60
New York City opens its first subway line
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1914Turned 70
World War I begins
President: Woodrow Wilson
1924Turned 80
First Winter Olympics held in Chamonix, France
President: Calvin Coolidge"It Had to Be You" — Isham Jones
1929Died at 85
Wall Street crashes, triggering the Great Depression
Gas: $0.21/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Singin' in the Rain" — Cliff EdwardsBest Picture: The Broadway Melody
“The love of inventing never dies.”
