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Paris Nouveau no. 2334 – Les Femmes Chauffeur

Source:
www.delcampe.net (Item no. 0011017385). Click here to view source.

Les Femmes Cocher / 114

Les Femmes Chauffeur / 3

Picture (left): Mme. Decourcelle, the horse-cab driver / chauffeur, driving a taxi in the Bois de Boulogne.

The first woman to drive a car was probably Berta Benz, wife of the German inventor Karl Benz. She achieved the world record for long-distance motoring in 1888 when she drove her husband's three-wheeler on an arduous 125-mile round trip through the Black Forest from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back.

Accompanied by her two teenage sons Berta left home while Karl was still asleep and pushed the car out of earshot before starting it up. Karl did not trust the roadworthiness of his own vehicles and was reluctant to drive them beyond five or six miles. He learned about Berta's trip when he received her telegram from Pforzheim.