Electric Autos: Difference between revisions

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The '''Electric Automobile''' ride, also known as the '''Racing Autos''' and '''Mechanical Autos''', was a Custer Car<ref>Advertisement. 1930. ''The Columbus Dispatch,'' June 8, 1930. Page 57.</ref><ref>Kuster, Gordon. 1933. "Band Opens At Olentangy Park." ''The Columbus Dispatch,'' August 7, 1933. Page 10.</ref> track installed at Olentangy Park in [[1911 Season|1911]].<ref>"Opening of Olentangy Park." ''The Bucyrus Evening Telegraph (Bucyrus, Ohio),'' April 8, 1911. Page 3. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-bucyrus-evening-telegraph-opening-of/156893612/</ref> The track was installed near the [[Electric Express|Miniature Railway]]<ref name="aug1913">"Olentangy Park." ''Columbus Evening Dispatch,'' August 4, 1913. Page 12.</ref>. Later, it was just south of the [[Loop-the-Loop]] and by 1930, near [[Tom Thumb Miniature Golf|Tom Thumb Miniature Golf Course]].
The '''Electric Automobile''' ride, also known as the '''Racing Autos''' and '''Mechanical Autos''', was a Custer Car<ref>Advertisement. 1930. ''The Columbus Dispatch,'' June 8, 1930. Page 57.</ref><ref>Kuster, Gordon. 1933. "Band Opens At Olentangy Park." ''The Columbus Dispatch,'' August 7, 1933. Page 10.</ref> track installed at Olentangy Park in [[1911 Season|1911]].<ref>"Opening of Olentangy Park." ''The Bucyrus Evening Telegraph (Bucyrus, Ohio),'' April 8, 1911. Page 3. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-bucyrus-evening-telegraph-opening-of/156893612/</ref> The track was installed near the [[Electric Express|Miniature Railway]].<ref name="aug1913">"Olentangy Park." ''Columbus Evening Dispatch,'' August 4, 1913. Page 12.</ref> Later, it was just south of the [[Loop-the-Loop]] and by 1930, near [[Tom Thumb Miniature Golf|Tom Thumb Miniature Golf Course]].


== Description ==
== Description ==

Revision as of 01:33, 30 May 2025

Electric Autos
Other Name(s) Racing Autos
Mechanical Autos
Electric Automobile Ride
Custer Cars
Type Track Ride
Park Section Center, unknown
Built 1911
Opened 1911
Closed Unknown
Vehicle Type Cars
Number of Vehicles Unknown
Riders per Vehicle 1

The Electric Automobile ride, also known as the Racing Autos and Mechanical Autos, was a Custer Car[1][2] track installed at Olentangy Park in 1911.[3] The track was installed near the Miniature Railway.[4] Later, it was just south of the Loop-the-Loop and by 1930, near Tom Thumb Miniature Golf Course.

Description

A 1913 Columbus Dispatch article described the ride as "tiny cars" where riders "take an auto ride all by themselves, so they can handle the steering wheel and horn and be their own chauffeur."[4]

Later descriptions called them "Custer Cars." Custer Cars were battery-operated miniature cars invented by Levitt Custer for amusement parks in 1925. A unique feature of these cars was that their transmission required the driver to move the steering handle forward and backward to move the car in the desired direction.[5]

References

  1. Advertisement. 1930. The Columbus Dispatch, June 8, 1930. Page 57.
  2. Kuster, Gordon. 1933. "Band Opens At Olentangy Park." The Columbus Dispatch, August 7, 1933. Page 10.
  3. "Opening of Olentangy Park." The Bucyrus Evening Telegraph (Bucyrus, Ohio), April 8, 1911. Page 3. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-bucyrus-evening-telegraph-opening-of/156893612/
  4. 4.0 4.1 "Olentangy Park." Columbus Evening Dispatch, August 4, 1913. Page 12.
  5. Photograph. "Custer Car - 1920s & 30s." MrScharroo's Weird Car Museum. Published May 6, 2013. Retrieved June 13, 2024. Accessed through Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/mrscharroo/8712511197