== Overview == This website presents the Columbia cars, both electric and gasoline (or, as it was sometimes printed, gasolene!), manufactured in Hartford, CT, from 1897-1913 by Pope Manufacturing Company (1897-1899), Columbia Automobile Company (1899), Columbia & Electric Vehicle Company (1900), Electric Vehicle Company (1901-1909), and Columbia Motor Car Company (1909-1913), which became a division of United States Motor Company (1910-1913). This site was put together by Bruce Duffie, grandson of Lawrence Duffie. Included is some family memorabilia, plus other items acquired from various sources - photos, ads, articles, catalogues, and interesting historical odds and ends which relate to this significant and important part of the birth of the automotive industry. The first group of pages deals with the cars and drivers which made the runs from Chicago to New York, establishing the Record in 1903 and re-taking it in 1904. The next few pages continue the narration, though not in strict chronological order. After those opening pages, there begins a comprehensive history of the Columbia cars, from the inventors and businessmen who organized the company, right though to the end of production in 1913. Each main page has a link to the next one at the bottom.  There are also links to "spur" pages [*] within several main pages.  These amplify or illustrate details, or show supporting documentation of what is being presented.
	Entry page with the famous photo of Lawrence Duffie and Bert Holcomb in 1904, standing beside the Columbia car they drove to re-take the Chicago to New York Record
	Articles, ads and photos from the 1904 Record Run from Chicago to New York in a Columbia car
	[*]  Brief biographies and photos of Ray W. Harroun, another participant in both the Columbia Record Runs of 1903 and 1904; he was National Driving Champion of 1910, and went on to win the first Indianapolis 500 race in 1911
	[*]  Dunlop Tire Brochure which includes a photo of Columbia 1904 Record Run
	[*]  Articles about the 1905 New York Auto Show and Boston Auto Show
	[*]  Photos of the first Vanderbilt Cup Race course.  Though the record-breaking Columbia was shown there, it did not run in the race.  The photos, however, give a feel for the roads and conditions met by those fearless drivers.
	News items about the Chicago to New York record (finally) being broken in 1906, plus articles from the year between the two Columbia records
	Articles, ads and photos from the original 1903 Record Run from Chicago to New York in a Columbia car
	Photos of the Gold Medal and news items from the 1903 New York to Pittsburg (sic) Endurance Test, and the reunion of the drivers, who dubbed themselves the Mudlarks, at the 1904 New York Auto Show; plus photos from a 1907 test in the hills of CT
	[*]  Article (with photos) about the 1903 Endurance Test in Country Life Magazine, plus other relevant news items from before, during, and after this harrowing experience
	[**]  More articles and photos about the 1903 Endurance Test from the Cycle and Automobile Trade Journal and other magazines
	[**]  More articles and photos about the 1903 Endurance Test from The Horseless Age
	[*]  Photos from the February 1907 issue of The Automotor Journal showing a road test of the Columbia Car in the hills of Connecticut
	[*]  Photos of the Lawrence Duffie family, with further links to material about his son, Burton Duffie and his family
	[*]  Cartoon which is appropriate to this topic
	Ads, photos, and articles about other awards, records and trips made by various Columbia cars throughout the years
	[*]  Article (with photos) about the Stopping Test in Philadelphia in1902, in which three Columbia cars participated
	[*]  Lecture by H.W. Alden, Electricity As a Motive Power for Automobiles, given in Boston on March 1, 1904
	[*]  Article about the 1904 Eagle Rock Hill Climb, in which three Columbias participated... one electric, and two gasoline, one of which (driven by H.W. Alden) won its class
	[*]  More items about races involving Columbia cars, plus photos and articles about Eddie Bald, the famed cyclist and National Driving Champion of 1907, who also participated in the 1904 Record Run
	[*]  Photos and articles about Columbia Cars that participated in various Glidden Tours, including Charles Barrett in 1906, and Miss Roberta Marks in 1911.
	[*]  Selection of ads for other automotive products which utilize the "Columbia" name to enhance their image
	[*]  Article (with photos) about an unfortunate incident in China where a Consul's Columbia car was set ablaze by a mob of rioters
	[*]  Account (with photos) of the 1906 San Francisco to Los Angeles Record Run in Sunset Magazine
	[*]  Columbia Cars in the Catskill-Berkshire Tour of 1909 driven by J.R. Kirkpatrick. and various Hill Climbs of 1909-10 driven by John J. Coffey
	[*]  Articles (with photos) from May-June, 1910, of the All Connecticut Reliability Contest, and the New York Herald - Atlanta Journal Good Roads Tour, in which several Columbia Cars were Pathfinder, Pilot, Pacemaker, and Winner
	[*]  Photos and articles about the Munsey Tours of 1910, in which a Columbia Car participated, and 1911, where the Columbia was again the Pacemaker, and also the Referee.
Here begins a chronological history of the Columbia Cars; mostly electric models are seen in the first group of pages
	PROLOGUE: The Electrobat; preparing the way for the Columbia, and the formation of the Electric Vehicle Company
	[*]  Illustrated article about the Central Charging Station of the Electric Vehicle Company
	Formation of the Columbia Motor Carriage Department of the Pope Manufacturing Company, and first articles about the vehicles
	[*]  Very brief notes about E.D. Whitney, addressee of an envelope from the Pope Manufacturing Company
	[*]  Photos and articles by and about Hiram Percy Maxim
	[**]  The Automobile Situation, a lengthy article from 1899 by Hiram Percy Maxim, with many photographs, including one of Maxim driving a Columbia vehicle
	[**]  More material by and about Hiram Percy Maxim
	[*]  Articles and photos of the CT "Antique Automobile" license plate (issued beginning in 1952) with the image of an 1897 Columbia
	[*]  The Electric Wagon, an Address by Hayden Eames to the Association of Electric Vehicle Manufacturers in 1907
	[*]  The Motor Vehicle in Commercial Operation, a paper by G.H. Condict prepared for the New York Electrical Society in 1898
	[*]  Brief biographies of various people who worked for one or another of the companies which produced and distributed Columbia cars
	[*]  Materials by and about Milton J. Budlong
	[*]  Possibly the earliest Columbia Vehicle booklet - probably published in 1898
	[*]  A.L. Riker - his early electric vehicles and history as it relates to the Columbia cars
	[**]  More material by and about A.L. Riker
	Photos showing the inside of the Hartford factory; listings from 1900 catalogues, ads, articles and other material including the 1898 model which appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp
	[*]  The Influence of the Pioneer Spirit on Electric Vehicle Progress, an address by Robert McAllister Lloyd delivered in 1914, detailing the earliest history of the Electric Vehicle Company
	[*]  Article (from 1909) about painting automobiles, which contains more photos showing the inside of the Hartford factory
	[*]  1901 Gasoline Runabout Catalogue, plus articles and photos of a restored vehicle
	[*]  Comprehensive article about the Columbia Gasoline Tricycle, including photos and schematic drawings, plus earlier article about its development from 1895
	[*]  1901 article (with photos) about the Electric Vehicle Company in World's Work Advertiser Magazine, plus cover-ads from 1901 issues of The Automobile Review
	[*]  Article (January 13, 1900) The Manufacture of Electric Automobiles based on the methods employed by the Columbia & Electric Vehicle Company
	[*]  1902 illustrated booklet detailing the care and charging of the Exide Battery
	[*]  Oversize photos of a restored 1903 Columbia Runabout (including the voltmeter!) exhibited at the 2008 Chicago Auto Show
	1903 catalogue and other material about the Columbia electric cars for personal use by individuals
	[*]  Color photos of a restored 1903 Columbia Electric Runabout
	[*]  Color photos of the only known surviving 1903 Columbia Electric Surrey, which was sold at auction in October, 2011
	[*]  Items about the Columbia cars produced in Paris by Société l'Electromotion (under license from Columbia)
	[*]  Photos of a wooden wheel (with hubcap) from an 1899 Columbia
	[*]  Articles about the vehicle owned (and driven!) by Queen Alexandra of England, and the City and Suburban Electric Carriage Company (which produced cars under license from Columbia)
	[**]  Photos of the car owned by Empress Maria of Russia, plus recent photographs of Queen Alexandra's car
	[*]  Paper entitled Automobiles by Dr. T.J. Martin, read at the Engineers' Society of Western New York on May 7, 1900, citing his own Columbia vehicle
	[*]  Color photos of a restored 1908 Columbia Victoria Phaeton
	Catalogue of Columbia Electric Commercial Vehicles - Trucks and Wagons, etc.
	[*]  Catalogues and photos of Columbia taxicabs and cars-for-hire in Washington, D.C. and elsewhere; plus uses and awards from the 1901 Pan American Exhibition, including the U.S. Postage Stamp (regular and invert) featuring the Columbia taxicab
	[*]  Articles (with photos) about the Commercial Vehicle Test of 1904, and Commercial Vehicles at the 1906 Auto Shows
	[*]  Photos from the 1906 Catalogue of Columbia Electric Trucks
	[*]  Items about Postmaster Frank Hitchcock, whose progressive insight brought Columbia cars into the US Postal Service in 1906
From here on, the material is mostly about Columbia gasoline models, including body styles and engines, plus special photos and other items
	1904 Columbia Catalogue
	[*]  The Selden Patent (Part 1) - a comprehensive study including articles, photos of the Motor Wagon, and other materials
	[**]  The Selden Patent (Part 2) - items on which the Motor Wagon is depicted; also a reporduction of the Patent, including photos of the model sent to the U.S. Patent Office
	[**]  Selection of articles from The Horseless Age deriding the "Lead Cab Trust"
	[**]  Court ruling of September, 1909, which upheld the patent - and which would be overturned in January, 1911
	[**]  Article about the A.L.A.M. Auto Show in January 1910 at Madison Square Garden
	[*]  Photos of restored XLIII sold at auction in 2015
	1905 Columbia Catalogue
	[*]  Article from 1913 by F.E. Dayton entitled Automobile Publicity
	1906 Columbia Catalogue, plus illustrated announcements of the models produced in 1907 and 1908
	Selection of ads for various Columbia vehicles from 1903-1907
	1909 Columbia Catalogue
	1910 Columbia Catalogue and ads for various Columbia vehicles from 1910 and 1911
	[*]  Items about Benjamin Briscoe taking the United States Motor Company lines to England
	1911 Columbia Catalogue
	[*]  Columbia Mark 85 Restoration photos and article, plus the original announcement article
	Selection of Columbia ads from 1912
	1912 Columbia catalogue (Columbia - Knight)
	[*]  Articles about the Silent Knight Motor and related topics
	[**]  Lecture by Charles Y. Knight about his engine, and discussion which followed
	[*]  Article Assisting the Dealer to Make Sales, an improved system by the United States Motor Company, including a Comprehensive Course on Salesmanship
	The End of the Line - The last Columbia cars in the 1913 Maxwell catalogue; also items which present Columbia with other makes or multiple dealerships
	Selection of ads and photos of Columbia cars which include people (electrics and gasoline models) from the entire production run
	[*]  Article about C.S. Rolls appearing in Police-Court on a charge of speeding in a Columbia car, and other items about Rolls and Alfred Harmsworth
	[*]  The five Columbia models included in the 1953 Topps World on Wheels card set, plus the Columbia examples from the Edito-Service/Atlas Editions card series
	[*]  Articles about the Columbia Hybrid Car (Gasoline [Petrol]-Electric)
	EPILOGUE: Selected chronology of the Columbia car within a list of early automobile events, showing it as a root leading to the Chrysler Corporation
	Index of Columbia pages (This webpage)
[*] Denotes a "spur" page - one which is linked from within a main page. [**] Denotes a "spur" from the previous "spur" page.   The link at the bottom of each "spur" returns to the previous page. The link at the bottom of each main page goes to the next main page.
If you find any errors or mistakes - misspellings, typos, broken links, missing pictures, anything at all - please let me know so that they can be fixed.  I am eager to make and keep this site as correct as possible. Further ideas and suggestions are also welcome at any time. Thanks! Bruce Duffie duffie@voyager.net