Women are knocking on the door of auto hall of fame

Several automotive industry journalists suggest “expanding the number of women in the Automotive Hall of Fame,” based in Dearborn, Mich. 

Four females who made exceptional contributions to the transportation industry are worthy of consideration – Mary Anderson, Charlotte Bridgwood, Florence Lawrence and Wilma Russey. All are deceased but their credentials continue to glow brightly. 

Mary Anderson visited New York City during the winter season in 1902. While riding on a trolley, she made a mental note about the number of times the motorman had to stop, get out and clear “wintry mix” off the front window in order to see out. Brrrr.

 

Back at home in balmy Birmingham, Ala., Anderson developed a “window cleaning device for electric cars and other vehicles to remove snow, ice or sleet from the window.” She received a patent in 1903. 

Anderson’s set of wiper arms, made of wood and rubber, were controlled by a lever located near the steering wheel. Pulling the lever, the driver activated a spring-loaded arm to sweep across the window and back again. (A counterweight was used to ensure constant contact between the wiper and the window.) 

This device effectively cleared away raindrops, snowflakes or other debris, but nobody bought in. 

Timing is everything. Manufacturers dismissed her invention “as having no commercial value.” 

Anderson’s 1903 invention came to be regarded as a “bright idea before its time.” (Henry Ford didn’t begin to produce his Model T Fords until 1908.) 

Anderson never profited a dime from her window cleaning device, but she moved on. She was a real estate developer in Birmingham and owned and managed a large apartment building there. She also spent some time in California operating a cattle ranch and vineyard. 

Charlotte Bridgwood was an industrialist in New York City when she introduced the “next generation” of the windshield wiper in 1917, building on Anderson’s original design.

Bridgwood’s electrically operated “automatic wipers” used rollers instead of blades, but her invention didn’t catch on, and the patent expired in 1920.

 But she had other entrepreneurial talents. Earlier in her career, Bridgwood was a vaudeville entertainer whose stage name was Lotta Lawrence. She was “manager and main actress” of a dramatic company. Her daughter, Florence Bridgwood began performing on stage at age 3, and was nicknamed “Baby Flo, the Child Wonder.” 

Baby Flo grew up and changed her name to Florence Lawrence. She was labeled as America’s “first movie star,” appearing as the leading lady in nearly 300 silent films, beginning in 1906.

Florence Lawrence

 Lawrence was an avid motorist who did all of her vehicle’s mechanical and maintenance work herself. In 1913, she invented an “auto signaling arm.” By pressing a button, the driver could elevate or lower an arm with an attached sign that indicated the direction of the turn. A braking signal used almost the same idea. A small “stop” sign popped up when the brake pedal was depressed. 

Lawrence declined to patent her safety inventions, leaving others to profit from them. 

In 1915, Wilma Russey became the first female taxi driver in New York City. The former circus performer had a penchant for theatrics and a flair for fashion. Russey was well-known for wearing a leopard-print hat and matching stole, long leather gloves and high tan boots.

 

Few knew that she was an experienced mechanic who learned the trade while working at an auto garage in Manhattan. This gave her a huge advantage when it came to making needed on-the-spot repairs to her motor coach.