A Symbol of Modernity: Attitudes Toward the Automobile in Southern Cities in the 1920s
Author(s): Blaine A. Brownell
Reviewed work(s):
Source: American Quarterly, Vol. 24, No. 1 (Mar., 1972), pp. 20-44
Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2711913 .
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BLAINE A. BROWNELL
InstituteofSouthernHistory
TheJohnsHopkinsUniversity
A SymbolofModernity:
AttitudesTowardthe
Automobilein SouthernCities
in the 1920s
AN OLD
RESIDENT
OF MEMPHIS,
TENNESSEE,
RECALLED
THE CITY AS IT HAD
appeared around 1910: "downtownMemphisofferedplentyof sights,free:
therushingcrowds,theflowofstreetcars, wagons,buggies,hacks and,now
and then, an automobile... .'. Ten years later a few new skyscrapers
dottedthe city'sskyline,but the streetswere stillcrowdedand busy and
Memphis remainedvery much the same, withone major exception:the
automobileoccasionallyencounteredin 1910 had become by 1920 one of
themostpervasivefeaturesofurbanlife.
Memphis was by no means the onlycityto experiencethe suddenand
rapidlygrowingpresenceof the motorcar. In 1920 Atlanta,New Orleans
and Memphis each containedapproximately20,000 motorvehicles,while
Birminghamand Nashville recorded 16,000 and 12,000 vehicles respechad risento
tively.By the end of the decade motorvehicle registrations
more than64,200 in Atlanta,58,500in Memphis,40,300 in Nashville,and
Though major urban
to about 70,000 in New Orleans and Birmingham.2
'Boyce House, "Memphis Memories of 50 Years Ago," West Tennessee HistoricalSocietyPapers, 14(1960), 112.
2Thesefiguresare compiledfroma varietyof sources,includingthe statisticscontainedin
Facts and Figuresof the AutomobileIndustrypublishedannuallyin New York by the NationalAutomobileChamberof Commerce(NACC), and the following:
Annual Reportof the
Chiefof Police of the Cityof Atlanta(Atlanta:Cityof Atlanta,1930),p. 39; Ross W. Harris,
"TrafficSurveyon the Vehicularand StreetTrafficSituationof Birmingham"(1927), bound
in the CityClerk's Office,Birmingham,
typescript
Ala., pp. 61, 57; State of Tennessee,Dept.
of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Division,"RegistrationBy Counties For 1930," typescriptin
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
21
centersin the South generallycontainedfewermotorvehiclesrelativeto
populationthancities elsewherein the nationin thisperiod,the impactof
the automobilein southerncities was neverthelesshighlypalpable and its
presence and suspectedconsequenceselicitedconsiderablecommentand
discussion.
Historianshave often recognizedthe symbolicimportanceof the automobileduringthe 1920s and have on occasion evenemployedit as a symbol themselves: "this automobile psychology,"wrote John D. Hicks,
"seemed to characterizethe nationas a whole;the Americanpeople,like
on theirway,but not
thedriversof manyAmericancars, were relentlessly
quite sure wheretheyweregoing,or why."3RoderickNash recentlynoted
the extentto whichthe motorcar has come to characterizeour image of
thedecade. "Indeed," he observed,"it is possibleto thinkof theseyearsas
along withthe
the automobileage and HenryFord as its czar. The flivver,
flaskand the flapper,seemed to representthe 1920s in the mindsof its
to revisepreviousinterpretapeople as well as its historians." In his effort
tionsof the twentiesas a decade apart,a periodof moral revolutionand a
"lost generation,"Nash tendedto dismissthe symbolof the automobileas
largely superficial.The fact is, however,that the self-propelledmotor
vehicle was among the most consequentialtechnologicalinnovationsfor
the20thcentury,and probablythemostvisibleto thepublicmind.As such,
it was theobjectofgreatdiscussionand popularawareness,and its cultural
impact during the 1920s was especially profound.By 1930 there was
roughly
one motorvehicleforeveryfivepeoplein theUnitedStates.
The "Middletown"studiesof RobertS. and Helen M. Lyndsuggestthe
importanceof the automobilenotonlyin Muncie, Indiana,but throughout
the country.Even aftersix years of economicdepression,motorvehicle
to the town'spopulation
had actuallyincreasedproportionate
registrations
since the 1920s and most residentsseemed to prize automobileownership
even more than home ownership.Muncie's workingclass, the Lynds reported,"want whatMiddletownwants,so longas it givesthemtheirgreat
Motor Vehicle Division,Dept. of Revenue, Nashville,Tenn., pp. 1-2; NashvilleCity Planningand ZoningCommission,A TrafficSafetySurveyof the Cityof Nashville,Tennessee
1934), p. 3; Miller McClintock,"The
(Nashville: Tenn. EmergencyRelief Administration,
StreetTrafficControlProblemof the Cityof New Orleans" (1928), typescriptreportin the
City Archives,New Orleans Public Library,p. 75. Figuresgivenare forthe countiesconwiththe exceptionof New Orleans where
tainingthe fiveprincipalcitiesunderconsideration,
the municipallimitscoincided with the boundariesof Orleans Parish. Though occasional
referencewillbe made to othercities-like Charleston,S.C., and Norfolk,Va.-the principal
Memphis,Nashvilleand New Orleans.
emphasisofthisstudyis on Atlanta,Birmingham,
3RepublicanAscendancy,1921-1933(New York: Harper& Row, 1963),p. 169.
4The Nervous Generation: American Thought, 1917-1930 (Chicago: Rand McNally,
1970),p. 153.
22
AmericanQuarterly
symbolof advancement-an automobile.Car ownershipstandsto themfor
a large shareof the 'Americandream'; theyclingto it as theyclingto selfrespect... ."5 Similarly,WilburJ. Cash commentedon the southernmill
worker'saspirationsfor "that toy and symbolof modernitywhichmore
thananythingelse, probably,had fixedhis envyforthose above him."6Indeed,theautomobilewas as mucha symbolas a mechanicalfact,representingamongotherthingsthetoneand spiritofa newwayoflife.
For the physicianwithwidelydispersedpatients,forthe travelingsalesman witha large territory,
the motorcar had an immediateutilitarianappeal. But the widespreadpublicfascinationforthe automobileseems primarily attributableto "non-utilitarian"considerations.According to
JamesJ. Flink,"Motoringhad a hedonisticappeal rootedin basic human
the motorvehiclecontributedsubstantiallyto geodrives." Furthermore,
one of "the core values of Americanculture,"and reingraphicalmobility,
and the opportunities
forthe individual
forcedthe realityof individualism
to "significantly enrich his social relationships and experiences.... " The
automobileparadoxicallybecame at one and thesame time"an itemofunprecedentedmass consumptionas well as the most importantsymbolof
status in Americansociety." Magazine writersand othersocial commenof reformthatwouldstave
tatorssaw the motorcar as a majorinstrument
offa continuedinfluxof ruraldwellersintothe city,ease the pressuresof
urban overcrowding,bringurban and rural society closer togetherand
transformAmerica into a "suburban utopia." On the whole,Flink concludes,"The motorcarseemedto be a panacea forthe social illsof theday,
one that necessitatedminimalcollectiveaction or governmentalexpenditure."7
In a similarvein, Lewis Mumfordhas speculated that the automobile
"appeared as a compensatorydevice forenlargingan ego whichhad been
shrunkenby our verysuccess in mechanization."A symbolof freedom,a
means of escaping the growinglimitationsof an industrialsociety,the
motorcar in Mumford'sview became virtuallya religion,"and the sacrificesthatpeople are preparedto make forthisreligion,"he wrote,"stand
outsidetherealmofrationalcriticism."8
Americanattitudestowardthe motorcar are importantfora varietyof
reasons. They shouldtell us somethingabout the overallresponseto technologyin this period and to the social, economic and cultural changes
5Middletownin Transition:A Study in CulturalConflicts(New York: Harcourt,Brace &
World,1937),pp. 26, 265-67.
6TheMindof theSouth(New York: Knopf,1941),p. 260.
7America Adopts the Automobile,1895-1910 (Cambridge:MIT Press, 1970), pp. 100-3,
107-12.
8TheHighwayand theCity(New York: New AmericanLibrary,1964),pp. 244-45.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
23
whichtechnologyfostered.How themotorcar was conceivedobviouslyhad
a great deal to do withhow the societyattemptedto cope withit and with
its consequences.An examinationof this kind should also help to clarify
some of the earlierinterpretations
concerningthe culturaland social role
of the automobilein the 1920s. Some historians,like WilliamD. Millerin
his studyof Memphis,have concludedthat"As automobilesbecame more
numerouspeople began to regard them as a challenge,a threatto the
normalorderof things."Otherscholars,however,have been impressedby
the readyacceptance of the motorcar, especiallyin viewof the factthat
this particular technologicalinnovationobviouslyportendednumerous
in Americansociety.Flinkconcluded,in fact,thatas early
transformations
as 1910"the motorvehiclehad definitely
been accepted as an integralpart
of Americanlife." Perhaps the most commonlyencounteredview closely
resemblesMel Scott's interpretation:
whilethemotorvehicle'spotentiality
foralteringthe fabricof Americanlifewas awesome, "Americansin the
mass were not awed at all; theysimplyyearnedto get behindthe steering
wheeland gojoyriding."9
Attitudesof "Americans in the mass" towardthe motorcar are most
readily,and perhaps most accurately,observed in the risingautomotive
sales and registration
figuresof the period.The increasein motorvehicle
registrations
by morethantwo and a halftimes-fromninemillionin 1920
to morethan23 millionin 1929-is, afterall, a ratherprofoundindexofthe
acceptance of the motorcar in the United States.10This is not,however,
the whole story.Then, as now, ownershipof automobilesdid not necessarily reflecta complete and unquestioningacceptance of their consequences. The views expressedabout the motorvehiclein the "circulating
media" in southerncities during the decade-newspapers, pamphlets,
chamberof commercejournals, religiousperiodicals,literarymagazines
and officialcitydocuments-suggesta muchmore complexpatternof response. Such views ran the gamutfromcompleteacceptance of the automobileto ratherdeep suspicionsconcerningits impacton Americanlife.
Not surprisingly,
mostconceptionsof thissignificant
technologicalinnovation were highlyambiguous.The vehicle that promisedto infinitely
expand the radiusof individualmobilityalso seemed to threatenthe tightly
knitfamilyunitand prevailingmoral standards;the same automobilethat
was supposed to decentralizethe city and improveurban access to the
9William D. Miller, Memphis During the Progressive Era, 1900-1917 (Memphis:
MemphisState Univ. Press, 1957),p. 39; Flink,America Adopts theAutomobile,p. 51; Mel
Scott, American Citi Planning,Since 1890 (Berkeley: Univ. of CaliforniaPress, 1969), p.
186.
"National AutomobileChamber of Commerce, Facts and Figures of the Automobile
Industry(New York: NACC, 1930),p. 15.
24
AmericanQuarterly
acted paradoxicallyto renderthecityevenmorecongested;and
countryside
the motorvehiclethat epitomizedfreedomfromrestraintwas to impose
on the possibilitiesand styleof urbanliving.The evidence
new restrictions
suggestsnotonlythattheoverallsouthernurbanresponseto themotorcar
was mixed,but that this ambiguityand uncertaintytended to cut across
of opinionwithregard
class and racial lines. While therewere differences
to the automobilebetween various social, economic and racial groups,
theirresponseto theimpactof themotorvehiclewas in mostimportantrespectsessentiallythesame.
voiced in
Highlyfavorablereactionsto the automobilewere frequently
the major dailynewspapersin southerncities,especiallyin thefirsthalfof
the decade. General communitysentiment,to the extent that it was
to
mirroredin these editorialcolumns,was thatthe motorcar contributed
An era markedby
"progress"and to theprospectsformaterialprosperity.
widespread automobile travel was welcomed as one both modern and
affluent.In 1920 the editorsof the Nashville Tennesseanconcludedthat
"The operationof automobiles,even purelyforpleasureor relaxation,entails no vices. ... It is one of the great blessingsthathas come to us who
live in thisage, and its influenceon our nationallifeis good and so poweras to challengeour imaginationas to whatits finalrefuland far-reaching
sults will be." Four years later the same newspapersuggestedthat the
motor vehicle "has, on the whole, exerted a most beneficialeffecton
humanity."1Likewise,an Atlantapaper expressedthe beliefthat"the automobilehas exerteda profoundinfluenceupon bothfarmand citylife. . .
and it has been a wholesome,beneficialinfluence."912
The motorvehiclewas especiallylauded by the southernurbanbusiness
largelybecause it promisedto open up new channelsof comcommunity,
merce,expandthe pool of customersfordowntownmerchants,and make
available large expanses of outlyingterritoryforurban growthand economicdevelopment.As thebusinessorientedCharlestonNews and Courier
proceeds we
predictedin 1920: "it is likelythat as highwayimprovement
shall have fewersmall villagesin South Carolina. People willgo in future
to the largertownswheretheycan buyto betteradvantage."13 Communicationsbetweencitieswouldbe improvedmarkedlybymotorvehicletransportation,and thisdevelopmentwas thoughtto be, at least in theory,to the
commercialadvantageof all concerned.In addition,some spokesmensaw
in the growingautomotivetouristindustrya directand highlypromising
Businessleaders in Nashvillecomplainedthatwhile
economicopportunity.
theircity was "ideally located for an automobilecamping site" the in"Nashville Tennessean,Aug. 9, 1920;June20, 1924.
Apr.4, 1922.
'2Atlanta Constitution,
13Charleston News and Courier,Apr. 28, 1920;Mar. 5, 1921.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
25
in thehighwaylinkingNashvillewithChattanoogaand Atlanta
terruptions
meantthat "this cityand the cities to the southand east of us are losing
14 Local promotersin
thousandsof dollars because of the road embargo."
Charlestonenvisionedthat as soon as the related problemsof adequate
hotelsand roads had been solved,the citywould become "beforea great
while,one oftheprincipaltouristcentersofAmerica."15
The major issue concerningbusinessmenin major southerncitiesin the
1920s was not whetherthe automobilewas desirableor not, but whether
roads,highwaysand relatedfacilitiescould be providedrapidlyenoughto
insure the maximumdegree of economic advantage. The Good Roads
the country,had always received
Movementin the South, and throughout
businessgroups,and in the 1920smostchambers
the supportof prominent
of commercein the larger cities establishedcommitteesspecificallyasand the repairof existsignedthe task of promotinghighwayconstruction
ing roads. Later in the decade, whentrafficcongestiongrewincreasingly
severe, some businessmen expressed mixed feelings about bringing
thousandsof additionalautomobilesinto the heartof the city;but forthe
hinterlandand
mostpartincreasedaccess to the cityfromthe surrounding
was a consistentpolicyof orfromother cities via motortransportation
ganizedurbanbusinessgroupsin the South. It was also, of course,a major
concernof most cityofficials.David E. McLendon, presidentof the BirminghamCityCommission,declaredin 1922that"the greatestprojectand
theone that,whencompleted,willmean themostto thepeopleofour city"
was the connectionof cityroads withcountyhighways,thusrenderingthe
city more accessible to outside trade, commerce and communication.16
The cry forgood roads became so shrillby 1926 that the editorsof one
labor publicationcomplainedthat it threatenedto drownout moreimportantissues,suchas education.17
Anotherprevalentnotion,as otherscholarshave suggested,was thatthe
automobilewas destinedto bringthe cityand the countrytogetherin a relationshipthatwouldbe mutuallybeneficialto ruraldwellersand urbanites
alike. This themeunquestionablyreflectedovertonesof "urban imperialism" whenannunciatedby manybusinessmen.Other spokesmenalso enlargelyin termsof the need for
visionedthe advantagesof the countryside
recreationalareas and lebensraumforcongestedurbanpopulations.Most
writerstendedto agree withthe NashvilleTennesseanthatwith"the com'4Nashville Tennessean,June20, 1921.
'5CharlestonNews and Courier,June24, 1924;June26, 1923.
magazine article(c. Dec. 25, 1922),
'6Quote fromDavid E. McLendon in an unidentified
in "The Administration
of CommissionPresidentD. E. McLendon, Nov. 7, 1921-Nov. 2,
1925; A Scrapbook of Newspaper and Other ClippingsCompiledin the Officeof the ComPublicLibrary).
mission,"I, 285 (Birmingham
'7Birmingham Labor Advocate,June5, 1926.
26
AmericanQuarterly
ingof the motorvehiclepopulationis goingto be less and less congestedin
18 In practicalterms,thisoftenmeantthedevelopmentof suburban
cities."
residentialcommunities,whichbegan to springup aroundmost southern
urban areas in increasingprofusionthroughoutthe decade. Some writers
saw in this demographicdecentralizationa threatto the centralcity,but
majoritywere favorablyimpressedwiththe tendency
the overwhelming
"to develophomes in the outlyingdistricts...."19 Most of these attitudes
were foundedon the long-heldand largelyunexaminedassumptionthat
was desirable for
greatercontact betweenurban and rural environments
the countrysideand foreasingurbantensionsand overcrowdmodernizing
ing-and the automobilewas usuallypraisedas the mostpromisingmeans
thisgoal.20
ofaccomplishing
Favorable attitudestowardthe motorcar were also reinforcedby the
considerablepublicityautomobilesreceivedin the major newspapers,usually in sections specificallyset aside for automotivenews and advertisements.In addition,travelsectionsof most newspapersdevotedincreasing
space throughoutthe decade to accounts of automobiletouring.The annual "automobile show," a combinationsales exhibitionand civic event,
also aroused the public's interestin automotivetechnologyand in the
varietyof motor car models on the market.Automobileadvertisements
also presentedtheirproductin glowingterms,suggestingbothits glamor
and practicality.21
popularthroughThe motorvehiclewas, withoutquestion,exceptionally
and
the availabilityof credit
out the 1920s. Mass productiontechnology,
forbothautomobiledealers and consumersduringthedecade, broughtthe
motor car withinthe financialrange of millionsof average Americans.
But the notionadvancedby some historiansthatthe motorvehiclewas accepted uncriticallyand withlittleawarenessof its potentialconsequences
is a false one. Whetherthe automobilewas regardedas a device of progdamned as a threatto the standingorder,there
ress or, less frequently,
thatit presagedgreatsocial
and widespreadrecognition
was an underlying
18NashvilleTennessean, May 30, 1926. See also Nashville This Week, 1 (Aug. 3-10,
1925),19.
May 27, 1920.
19Birmingham
Age-Herald,Mar. 1, 1926.See also AtlantaConstitution,
200n the other hand, the New Orleans Times-Picayune(Mar. 7, 1921) lamentedthe increasinguse of motorcars by the Americanfarmer,"because his penchantforflivversis
rapidlycuttinghim out of a market for a large slice of his corn and other horse-feed
crops."This was not,however,a widespreadconcernin southerncities.
2'There were other importantdimensionsto automobileadvertising.Park Dixon Goist,
that the automobilewas "a
forexample,has noted the suggestionsin manyadvertisements
means of bringingrural and urban areas togetherin a kind of harmoniousmiddle landscape...."
See his unpublishedpaper, "'Where Town and CountryMeet'; The Fusingof
Urban and Rural Images in Early AutomobileAdvertising,"presentedto the First NationalMeetingofthePopularCultureAssociation,East Lansing,Mich.,Apr.9, 1971,p. 5.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
27
and economicchangesforAmericansociety,especiallyas faras the shape
and characterof the citywas concerned-and it was in this sense a fullfledged symbol of modernity.The Memphis Commercial-Appealwas
onlyone of manynewspapersto note as earlyas 1920 thatthe automobile
transporshape the patternsof futureintercity
promisedto fundamentally
tation.22A numberof writerswere clearlyawed by the substantialalteration of prevailinghabits of mobilityand social relationshipswhichthe
motorcar made possible,and manyforesaw"vast changesfargreaterthan
those we have already seen, which the automobileis destinedto bring
about."23As the decade wore on, and the impactof the motorvehiclebecame more obvious,some commentatorsbegan to regardthe automobile
as the singlebest exampleof the implicationsof technologyfor20thceneffectsof moderninventionsare
turyAmericanculture."The far-reaching
nowherebetterdemonstrated,"the editorsof the Tennesseanobserved,
"than in the automobileand the way in whichit has directedour developmentintonew channelsand moldedour lives in a way unimaginedtwenty
"124
yearsago.
The transformations
wroughtby the motorcar in the citywere farfrom
subtle:olderhomesweretorndownto make way fornew roads; fillingstations, garages, automobile dealerships and parking lots cropped up
throughoutthe city,oftenin older residentialareas; new suburbancommunities,made possible by the motor car, appeared on the urban perin
iphery;and the mobilityof the wholepopulationseemed verydifferent
characteras well as in its pace. These changes were noticeableto young
urbandwellers,but theywereperhapsmostapparentto older citizenswho
had witnessedvirtuallythe completeimpactof the automobileduringtheir
adultlives. An older Atlantaresidentobservedwithsome trepidationthat
"Sixtythousandautomobilesnow race, fasterand faster,throughthe city
and its environs,scaring timid people out of their skins,just like the
frightened
horses and mules reallydid jump out of theirharnessesa generationago."25Likewise,a Memphisreportertouringthe cityin 1922 laid
the blame for the deteriorationof some of the city's more elegant residentialsectionsto age, theautomobileand thegarage.26
Even those commentatorsfullyconvincedof the ultimatebeneficence
of the motorvehiclewere impressedby the extentof the social, economic,
demographicand cultural changes of whichthis single technologicalinnovationwas capable, and those who were not so convincedfoundtheir
22Memphis
Commercial-Appeal,
Feb. 25, 1920.
23Charleston
News and Courier,Dec. 14, 1922.
24Nashville
Tennessean,June20, 1924.
25SarahHuff,My 80 Years in Atlanta (Atlanta: Atlanta Public Schools, 1937), pp. 61,
98-99.
26Memphis
Commercial-Appeal,
Apr. 16, 1922.
28
AmericanQuarterly
suspicionsat least partlyconfirmed
by problemswhicharose as thedecade
progressed.The increasingseverityof trafficcongestion,the risingmotor
vehicle accident rate and the obvious threatwhichautomobilesposed to
citystreetcarsystemswere all difficulties
thatdrew the attentionof auto
buffsand criticsalike and occasionedconsiderablediscussionin the southern urban media throughout
the 1920s. But even as these problemsarose,
thedebate overthe desirability
of the motorvehiclehad become largelyirrelevant:the problemformost people was simplyone of copingwiththe
consequencesofa faitaccompli.
Trafficcongestionwas hardlynew to Americanurbanareas, buttheglut
ofmotorvehicleson citystreetswas one ofthemostapparentdevelopments
ofthedecade, and was clearlythemajorconcernofmanyurbanspokesmen
and municipalgovernments.At the beginningof the decade the ConstitutionclaimedthatAtlantawas "confrontedwithperhapsas seriousa traffic
situationas has existedin anycityin the UnitedStates," and thechairman
of the City PlanningCommissiondescribedthe city'straffic
congestionas
"well-nighunbearable" and predictedthat "The breakingpointis near at
hand."27Drivingin Atlanta was characterizedas a none-too-enjoyable
adventurein which"brave and daring"citizensrisked"life,limb,and property"in orderto survivethevicissitudesof traffic.
"From themomentyour
car hits the edge of Peachtree," one writerobservedin 1929,"it is touch
and go, jostle and jump, 'hornin' fast and thenthrowyourwifeabruptly
throughthe windshieldby suddenlybrakingdown. Finallyyou findyourselfin a huddleof harassed driverstootinghorns,lookingblacklyat each
otherand swearingsoftly."28
Trafficin New Orleans, as WilliamFaulkner
capturedit in his novelMosquitoes,was a slow and arduousprocess:"The
line inched forward, stopped, inched forward again.
.*"..
Most of those
who commentedon traffic
congestionrecognizedthatit was not a problem
confinedto any singlecityor groupof citiesand thatit was a phenomenon
irrevocablylinked to the generallydesirable process of urban growth.30
But this awareness was hardlycomfortingas local difficulties
of motor
traffic
mounted.Toward the end of the decade manysharedtheopinionof
the BirminghamAge-Herald "that the automobilewhich was formerly
such a source of convenienceand means of swifttransportation
is rapidly
becominga serioushandicapin downtown
businesscenters.'
27AtlantaConstitution,Feb. 5, 1920; W. J. Sayward, "City PlanningCommitteeUrges
Survey,"AtlantaCityBuilder,Jan. 1920,p. 13.
28P. H. Norcross,Atlanta's Pavementsand Bridges. An Address Before the Presidents'
Club,Atlanta,Ga. (Atlanta:Presidents'Club, 1917),p. 3; AtlantaLife,Aug. 3, 1929.
29Mosquitoes (New York: Boniand Liveright,1927),p. 301.
30Forexamples,see CharlestonNews and Courier,Dec. 12, 1922; Atlanta Constitution,
Apr.9, 1923.
3'Birmingham
Age-Herald,Jan. 13, 1927.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
29
Both a cause and a consequenceof trafficcongestionin the downtown
businessdistrictswas the lack of adequate parkingspace providedeither
privatelyor by the city. The numberof garages or vacant lots was apparentlynever sufficient
to meet the risingdemandduringthe 1920s and
most public parking space was located on city streets, which further
hinderedtheflowoftraffic.
The problemdid notgo unnoticed."About onefifthof the automobiledriversare lucky enough to findparkingspace
downtown,"a Memphiswritercomplained,"and theotherfour-fifths
burn
up gasolineand lose timelookingforit. Findingan unoccupiedspace large
enoughto park a car in the businessdistrictis like sightingan oasis in the
desert." A Nashvillepublicationhalf-jokingly
recommendedthat"Afterit
getsthegood five-cent
cigarthatMr. Marshall suggested,whatthecountry
needsis moreand betterparkingspace."32
This matter was of particularconcern to downtownmerchantswho,
whiletheygenerallywelcomed the automobileas a means of expanding
theirbusiness,began to have secondthoughtsas theywitnessedtheimpact
of the motorcar in the businessdistrictsof the largersoutherncities.As
the vast increasein the numberof motorvehiclesmade travelincreasingly
difficult
in the downtownsections,the visionof an expandingmarketoften
gave way to fearsof economicisolation.Some downtownmerchantsbegan
to complainloudlyabout thelack of cityparkingspace and aboutthetraffic
congestionthat threatenedto renderthe centralcityeven less accessible
thanbeforeto potentialcustomers."Lack of parkingspace," a Nashville
businesspublicationaccuratelynoted in 1926, "causes purchasersto patronizesuburbanratherthandowntownstores."33The problempresenteda
grimdilemmaforthe downtownmerchant:the wideningof streetsto ease
trafficcongestionoftenmeant the eliminationof on-streetparkingspace,
and manyconcludedthattheresultingisolationofthecore cityto shoppers
was evenless desirablethantraffic
congestion.Others,however,werefully
aware thatcongestionitselfprobablyconstitutedthemajorthreatto downtownbusinessinterests.In 1926 Thomas H. Pitts reluctantlyclosed his
well-known
cigar store and softdrinkbar located at Five Points,a major
intersectionin downtownAtlanta. "I thinkthe real thingthat did it was
automobiles,and more automobiles,"he lamented."Trafficgot so congestedthattheonlyhope was to keep it going.Hundredsused to stop;now
thousandspass. Five Pointshas become a thoroughfare,
insteadof a cen32Tattler,1 (May 25, 1929), 5; Nashville This Week, 1 (Sept. 28-Oct. 5, 1925), 3. Traffic
surveysrevealed,for example, the presenceof 4,652 automobilesparked in downtownAtlanta "on an average busy day" in 1923 and more than4,000 in Birmingham'scentralbusiness districtin 1926. The great majorityof these vehicleswere parked on citystreets.See
JohnA. Beeler,Report to the Cityof Atlantaon a PlanforLocal Transportation,
December,
1924(Atlanta:CityofAtlanta,1924),p. 6; Harris,"TrafficSurvey,"p. 56.
33Nashville
This Week, 1 (May 10-17, 1926),3.
30
AmericanQuarterly
ter."34Of all the urban challengesof the decade, the automobileseemed
to manythe most profoundand the most troubling."It was formerly
said
thatthegrowthof skyscrapersand the attendantcongestionin small areas
was the greatest problemfaced by growingcities," the Age-Herald remarkedin 1927,"but it is now foundthatthisis unimportant
as compared
withthevehicularcongestionwhichis makingmovementso difficult."35
The risingnumberofdeathsand injuriesattributableto motorvehicleswhichbegan in the 1920s to assume the proportions
of a wartimecasualty
list-was mentionedin virtuallyeverypublicationof generalcirculationin
southerncities duringthe decade. Urban safetycouncilswere naturally
threatto thepubamongthefirstagenciesto call attentionto thismounting
lic safety,and to demandactionin dealingwiththe problem.Significantly,
ofthe solutionsofferednoneincludedsuggestionsforsubstantiallimitations
on the numberof motorcars. Most spokesmendemandedinsteadthe impositionof new legal regulationson motorvehicleoperationand the strict
of such laws. The directorof the local safetycouncilin Birenforcement
minghamdramaticallydeclared in 1925 that automobileaccidents were
''probablythe greatestmenace in the countryand certainlythegreatestin
Birmingham... 1"36 The ExecutiveCommitteeof the New Orleans Safety
Council recommendedto the municipalgovernmentthat the death toll
frommotorvehicleaccidentsconstituted"so appallinga loss of lifeas to
justifyan immediatestudyand the applicationof sternlegal measuresto
In mostinstances,cityofficialswere only
improveso grave a condition."37
too willingto agree that the problemwas serious and the need foraction
obvious,.New Orleans Commissionerof Public Safety P. B. Habans reportedin 1926 that "The death rate in the United States, resultingfrom
is appallingand our cityhas its sharein the makingof thatrate."38
traffic,
34Quotedin FranklinGarett,Atlantaand Environs.A Chronicleof Its People and Events
(2 vols.,New York: Lewis HistoricalPublishingCo., 1954),II, 822.
35Birmingham
Age-Herald,Jan. 13, 1927.
36PerkinsJ. Prewitt,"Making BirminghamSafe for Life and Property,"Birmingham,
1 (May 1925),13.
37Executive
Committeeof the New Orleans SafetyCouncilto the Mayor and Commission
Councilof New Orleans,Oct. 29, 1929,in "Minutesof the Meetingofthe ExecutiveCommittee, New Orleans Safety Council," Oct. 29, 1929 (City Archives,New Orleans Public
Library).
38NewOrleans CommissionCouncil, OfficialProceedingsof the CommissionCouncil of
the Cityof New Orleans, Nov. 16, 1926,2 (CityArchives,New Orleans Public Library).Automobilemanufacturers
constantlycalled attentionto the factthat deaths and injurieswere
actuallydecliningrelativeto motorvehicle registrations,
but the information
available for
southerncities suggeststhat this problemwas indeed serious. In Atlanta,forexample,the
increasein motorvehicleaccidentswas more than fourtimes(from685 in 1920 to 2,774 in
1930),and the riseof injuriesincurredin theseaccidentswas almostequallysubstantial(from
335 in 1920 to 1,251 in 1930). Annual Report of the Chiefof Police of the Cityof Atlanta
(1930), p. 39. Fatalitiesattributableto motorcars rose from44 to 89 between1920and 1929
in Atlanta, and Memphis and Nashville recorded especiallyhigh proportionaldeath tolls
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
31
It was widelyrecognizedthattheproblemof motorvehicleaccidentswas
directlyrelatedto the rise in the numberof automobiles,since both accidentsand motorvehicleregistrations
seemedto be increasingat geometric
rates. A black weekly in Norfolk,Virginia,complainedthat "with the
rapid urbanizationof the populationand withthe phenomenalincreaseof
automobileownershipwithan attendantincreasein automobileaccidents,
it can be seen thatAmerica'shospitalfacilitieshave hardlykeptpace with
the demands.Never beforein historywere patientsthrustso precipitately
intohospitalsas theyare since the adventof the motorvehicle."39Many
commentators,
however,chose to concentratetheirfireon the inadequacy
of traffic
regulationsor thelack of enforcement
of existingregulations,and
mostblamed deaths and accidentson the irresponsibility
of motorvehicle
operators.Accordingto the NashvilleBanner,forexample,automobileaccidentsgrewmore frequentprimarilybecause of "the generaltendencyto
disregardthe law. . "40 The AtlantaIndependent,the city'smajor black
newspaper,filledits editorialcolumnsduringthedecade withprotestations
against "speed-mad drivers"and the fact that "trafficlaws haven't the
moralsupportof the people. . . ." The paper recommendedthe enactment
of "more drasticlaws withmore severe punishmentswhichwill give the
people the safetyon public highwaysthat theyare entitledto," and one
regularcolumnisteven suggestedthat Atlanta ministers"spend at least
fiveminuteseach Sunday in tellingthe people how to save themselvesin
crossingthe streetswhentraffic
is so heavy."'41
A theologianwritingin the
Atlantabased ChristianIndex,a Baptistpublication,foundtheviolationof
trafficlaws to be the single best example of the deterioratingattitude
towardlaw and brotherhood
in Americanurbanareas. "Trafficregulations
are floutedin our Americancitiesmorethanany otherlaws.... We have
'road hogs' whodash alongover everything
and everybody.Everyman for
The Birmingham
himselfand the devil take the hindmost."42
Chamberof
Commerceeven foundit necessaryin 1926to issue an appeal to the city's
by the end of the decade-39.9 and 41.8 fatalitiesper 100,000people respectivelyin 1929.
Withfewexceptions,in fact,the numberof motorvehicledeaths in each of these fivemajor
southerncities ran higher,proportionate
to population,thanin eitherNew York or Chicago,
and total fatalitiesin the last fiveyearsof the decade alone numberedmore than 1,700.See
U.S. Bureau of the Census, MortalityStatistics. 1926 (Washington,D.C.: G.P.O., 1929),
Pt. 2, pp. 142-44; U.S. Dept. of Commerce,StatisticalAbstractof the UnitedStates. 1930
(Washington,D.C.: G.P.O., 1930),pp. 390-91; U.S. Dept. of Commerce,StatisticalAbstract
of theUnitedStates. 1932 (Washington,D.C.: G.P.O., 1932),pp. 363-64.
39Norfolk
Journaland Guide,June22, 1929.
40Nashville
Banner,July21, 1923.
4Atlanta Independent,Aug. 31, 1922,Sept. 27, 1923,Feb. 21, 1924,Apr. 10, 1924.
42A.T. Robertson,"AmericanCities and the CriminalClasses," AtlantaChristianIndex,
105(Oct. 29, 1925),5.
32
AmericanQuarterly
motoriststo avoid runningdownanyof the old soldiersin townforthe annual reunionofConfederateveterans.43
Extremelybitterdenunciationsof the automobileand its consequences
wereoccasionallyvoicedduringthe decade. Significantly,
though,such remarkswere nevercouched withinany largerproposalto limitthe sales or
licensingof motorcars, and most appeared in publicationsthat also expressed more favorableattitudestoward motor vehicles at one time or
another.In 1922 the NashvilleReview suggestedsome of the advantages
that accrued to the individualwho was forcedto disposeof his vehiclebecause of the postwareconomicdepression:"he is havingmore funtoday
than ever before,because he has timenow to spend an hour at home occasionally,to sit down and visitwitha friend,or to read a good book, instead of racingmadlyover the countryjust to get somewhereand start
back again."" Others sympathizedwith all pedestrianswho were condemnedto sufferthe vicissitudesof motortraffic."We have givenup the
streetsand now we will soon have to giveup the sidewalks,"a labor commentatorin Birminghamlamented,"and whenthat crowningvictoryhas
been establishedforthe ownersand repairersof cars, the only thingfor
the average citizen to do is hunthimselfa cave or go back to the primeval."45 Most of this pronouncedcriticismwas directed against the
in the urbanlife-style
transformations
broughtabout by widespreaduse of
motorcars, and manyregrettedthe passingof an older and morecomfortable wayof lifethatthe comingof the automobileheralded.Donald Davidson was, not surprisingly,
amongthose in the southernurbanintellectual
communitywho were most disturbedby the impact of technologyand
mechanization
on traditionalhabitsand mores.He recognizedwithsadness
in The Leviathanthat "Cities thatpreservedthe finestflavorof theold regimehad to be approachedover brand-newroads wherebillboards,tourist
camps,fillingstations,and factoriesbrokeout in a modernistic
rash among
the wateroaks and Spanish moss."46An anonymouslocal bard in Atlanta
deliveredperhapsthe severestpoeticindictment
autoof the ever-present
mobileto be encounteredanywhereduringtheperiod:
Givemea housebythesideoftheroad
Farfrom
thetown'sturmoil;
Whereoneinhalesthereeking
scent
Ofburning
gasandoil;
Wherethelilting
songsofmating
birds
43Birmingham,
2 (Mar. 1926),6.
44Nashville
Review,3 (Apr. 20, 1922),21.
45Birmingham
SouthernLabor Review,5 (July25, 1923),6.
46Quotedin George B. Tindall, The Emergence of the New South, 1913-1945 (Baton
Rouge,La.: LouisianaState Univ.Press, 1967),p. 257.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
33
Arehushedineverybower,
Bytherushandroarofmotorcars
Ofninety-odd
horsepower.
Givemea housebythesideoftheroad
Wheremidnight's
quietskies
Aregashedwithglarish
motor
lights,
Andpiercedwithfrenzied
cries;WhereI canrestatpeaceat night
Andneverleavemybed,
Excepttoriseatintervals
Andgatherupthedead.47
References to atmosphericpollution by the emissions of gasolinepoweredvehicleswere rarelyencounteredduringthe decade, and the increased level of noise in the central city due to motor trafficwas also
thoughtto be a minorproblem,thoughit too was mentionedoccasionally.
The bulkof thecommentary
on motorvehiclescenteredon the problemof
trafficcongestionand on the alterationof prevailingpatternsof urban
mobilityand life-style.This was true not onlyforthe whiteurban middle
class, whoseviewswerebest reflectedin themajordailynewspapersand in
chamberof commercepublications,but also apparentlyforthe black middle class and the whiteurbanworkingclass. The opinionsof all groupstoward the motorvehicleare, in the finalanalysis,impossibleto fullydetermine, largely because most such opinionswere never preservedin the
historicalrecord-except to the extentthat theywere reflectedin automobilesales figures-and because manyblack and labor unionpublications
were at best but partiallyrepresentativeof the sentimentsprevailingin
On the basis of
eitherthe black community
or amongwhiteworkingmen.
existingevidence,however,attitudestoward the automobilecannot be
differentiated
alongracialor class lines.
Several southerncities, most notably Atlanta and Birmingham,experienced a substantial influxof small, gasoline-poweredcommercial
vehicles called "jitneys" in the early years of the decade, and this phenomenonand the attemptsto deal withit gave rise to considerablecommentin some black and labor publications.Jitneys,whichusuallycarried
fromfiveto seven passengers,were rarelyconfinedto fixedroutes.They
notonlycontributed
to theglutof motorvehicleson downtownstreets,but
theyalso siphonedoffpatronsfromthe establishedstreetcarlines. An organized campaignwas successfullymountedagainstthejitneyby the BirminghamRailway,Light and Power Companyand the city'schamberof
commerce,resultingin the strictregulationof jitneys by a public ref47Atlanta
Life,June18, 1927.
34
AmericanQuarterly
erendumon the urban transportationissue in April 1923. Jitneyswere
bannedcompletelyfromthestreetsofAtlantain 1924.The SouthernLabor
defendedthejitneyas the motorcar of
Review,publishedin Birmingham,
indeedof all those who could not affordthe luxuryof a
the workingman,
privateautomobile.The effortsto regulatethejitneywere directedby the
streetcarcompanyand big businessmen,accordingto this analysis,and
were notablyunaccompaniedby comparable restrictionson the use of
privatemotorvehicles."You don't hear of any efforton the part of our
Civic bodies and cityofficialsto forbidthese automobilesfromusingthe
streets,"the editorsdeclared. "Oh, No. Robert,theyonlywantto put the
offthe streetand thusdeprivethepoor
poor man's automobile,The Jitney,
of the littlepleasures of an automobileride and a quick tripto and from
work and incidentallyforce him to render highertributeunto Caesar,
while the more fortunateride in privatelyowned cars."48The Birmingham Labor Advocate agreed, proposingthe jitney as preferableto the
streetcarand concludingthatthe privatelyownedautomobilewas perhaps
the best means of transportationfor the workingman:"The gas driven
methodis cleaner,as safe,is morerapid,and a bettermethodthantheold
way of packingthem in like sardines,and shakingthemup to make the
breakfastdigestbetter,and the people who have to be taken to workand
and reback again are eagerlyacceptingthe newmethodof transportation
fusingto be strap hangers,and dividendproducersfor wateredstock."49
Both publications,however,also containedon otheroccasions a varietyof
attitudesthatwere fartess favorableto the "gas drivenmethod,"whether
operated.
privatelyownedor commercially
Amongthe most dependenton citystreetcarsforurban transportation
were southernblacks, manyof whomcould not affordprivatemotorvehicles. Yet blacks had theirown special grievancesagainst streetrailway
lines. They were increasinglydissatisfiedby the appearance of streetcar
segregationordinancesin most southerncities in the early 20th century,
and many complainedof rude treatmentby streetcarconductorsand of
Blacks organizedstreetcarboycottsin
poor servicein black neighborhoods.
manycitiesaroundtheturnof thecentury,and evenattemptedto establish
streetcompaniesto competewithestablishedwhite-owned
transportation
car lines. Nashville blacks, for example, formeda short-livedmotorbus
line in 1905 and 1906 in an effortto provideadequate servicein the black
and Norfolkblacks protestedin 1921 againstthe city'sefforts
community,
to restrictthe operationof "colored jitneys" along Church Street. "The
jitneyspenetrate,as far as possible,this colored residentialsection,"the
Journaland Guide observed,"and affordthe onlymeans of transportation
SouthernLabor Review,4 (Nov. 1, 1922),4.
48Birmingham
Labor Advocate,June2, 1923.
49Birmingham
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
35
that the colored people have of gettingto the business section of the
city."50The editorsof the Atlanta Independent,however,devoted their
efforts
to protectingthe streetcarcompanyfromthe threatsposed by the
jitney,and were in fact the most vocal proponentsforthis pointof view
anywherein thecity."Atlanta is infested,"theycharged,"witha countless
numberofjitneybusses whichdash aroundAtlantastreetslike tadpolesin
a mudhole.... Jitneybusses, verylargely,add to the traffic
problemand
make traveldangerous.The majorityof the driversof these busses disregardtraffic
regulationsand dartaroundthestreetsin sucha harum-scarum
waythata pedestrianhardlyknowswhichwayto dodgethem.They are not
a publicutility,but a privatepropositionforpublicgain,and in no waycontributeto the welfareof the city." The paper consistently
demandedthat
"our streetcar systemshouldnotbe crippled....
On theotherhand,it was inevitablethata numberof blacks wouldcome
to see in the automobilethe mostdesirablealternativeto the streetcar.An
interracialmeetingheld in Atlanta in August 1921 protestedthe inconvenienceof JimCrow streetcarsand recommendedthat conductorswho
mistreatedblack patronsbe "immediatelydismissed."Also proposedwas
an "exclusivebus line operatedby coloredcapitalists."The mostinteresting of the propositionsadopted at thisgatheringwas also one of the most
obviousmeansof dealingwiththe problem:"Buy a car ofyourown and escape jim-crowismfromstreet car service."52Some years later, a black
correspondent
of an
suggestedin a letterto the Independentthe formation
"automobileclub thatwouldtake up womenand childrenon thestreetsand
who[sic.] wouldgiverepairworkto ourownmen."53
The impactof the motorvehicleon the urban black community,
North
or South,has yet to be fullyexamined.In his studyof two ruralGeorgia
counties,however,ArthurRaper suggestedthat the automobileenabled
tenantfarmersto attainan unprecedented
levelof racial equalityand socioeconomicstatus. "Scarcely ever beforehave richand poor, educated and
ignorant,self-styledsuperiorsand acknowledgedinferiors,landlordsand
landless, whitefolks and black, riddenin the same type of vehicle; and
neverbeforehave theyriddenso fastthat theycould not see who was approaching."The motorcar could transportruralblacks manymilesaway
fromthe restrictions
and whitescrutinyof theirlocal communities,
and on
thewaytheywereusuallysubjectonlyto the same regulationsthatapplied
50See August Meier and Elliott Rudwick,"The BoycottMovement Against Jim Crow
Streetcarsin the South, 1900-1906,"Journalof AmericanHistory,55 (Mar. 1969),766-67;
NorfolkJournaland Guide,Apr. 2, Apr. 23, 1921.
5"AtlantaIndependent,Oct. 4, June14, 1923.
52AtlantaIndependent,Aug. 25, 1921.
53LetterfromS. J.Lindsey,in AtlantaIndependent,Oct. 14, 1926.
36
AmericanQuarterly
to whites.Raper concludedthat "the opportunitiesaffordedby the automobileprovidea basis fora new mobilityforwhitesas well as Negroes,
mores-upon
based upon personalstandardsratherthanupon community
does not
what the individualwantsto do ratherthan whatthe community
in otherwords,because
want himto do." The automobilewas significant,
it provided"the mechanicalmeans for a greaterdegree of self-direction
and self-expression."54
This thesisis obviouslyspeculative;but it is not unreasonableto assume
that the geographicalmobilityaffordedby the motorcar was especially
valued by the membersof an oppressedracial group,or thatthe statusof
automobileownershipwas particularlysoughtby thoseon the lowerrungs
of the socioeconomicladder. Thus it is probablethatthe greatmajorityof
urban blacks and lower-classwhiteswere quite favorablydisposedtoward
ofits
themotorcar, and notmuchinterestedin the abstractcontemplation
larger social and culturalimplications.Accordingto the NorfolkJournal
and Guide, "There are too manypeople ridingin personallyowned automobilesthatoughtto be ridingin publicconveyancesor walking.The tendencyto carrynoteson cars insteadof carryingnoteson homesis a serious
one, and affectsno groupmore seriouslythan it does the colored American." This black middle-classviewclassifiedthemotorcar as an "unnecessaryluxury"fortheblack masses thatshouldnottake precedenceoverthe
ownershipof "more substantialpossessions," but it also suggestedthat
automobileownershipwas popularin theblack community.55
There were manysouthernurbandwellers,though,who engagedin conand of thesea considerablenumtemplatingthe automobile'simplications,
ber were fearfulof the motorvehicle's threatto communitystandardsof
decencyand morality-to suchan extentthattheseattitudesconstitutevirtuallya separate genreof commentaryrelated to the automobile.Motor
vehicles were accused of aiding and abettingcriminalactivity,fundato the degeneration
mentallyalteringsexual mores and thus contributing
of youth,shatteringthe bonds of the traditionalfamilyunit,desecrating
the tendenciestowardsecularismand materithe Sabbath and reinforcing
alism. Thoughreligiousspokesmenplayed the leading role in formulating
thatsuchobservationsapand broadcastingtheseopinions,it is significant
peared at one timeor anotherin virtuallyeverypublicationof generalcirculationin southerncitiesduringthe 1920s.The NashvilleChristianAdvocate, for example,directlylinkedthe motorcar to the risingcrimerate:
54ArthurRaper, Preface to Peasantry:A Tale of Two Black Belt Counties(Chapel Hill:
Univ. of NorthCarolina Press, 1936),pp. 174-75. An earlyattemptto assess the impactof
the automobileon urban Negro residentialpatternscan be foundin Harlan W. Gilmore,
"The Old New Orleans and the New: A Case forEcology,"AmericanSociological Review,
9 (Aug. 1944),385-94.
55Norfolk
Journaland Guide,Oct. 24, 1925,Jan. 14, 1928.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
37
"With the use of an automobileforescape the highwayman
may flashhis
pistol into the face of his victimeven in the crowded streets at noonday. .".
The Nashville Banner, a major urban daily, commentedin
1921 that "The 'gasoline age' . . . has broughtwithit quite a floodof
crime" that did not begin to reach large-scale proportions"until the
motorcars."57Some writersevidentlysaw in the
adventof high-pressure
arrivalof technologically"modern" crime a grave threatto the civilized
community."There is somethingwrongwithour Governmentand social
system,"a Nashville editorcomplained,"when bloody thievescan rove
our streetsand highwaysin swiftautomobiles,whilethelaw-abidingcitizen
is compelledto go unarmedand to be a defenselessspectatorof theirmurderous projects."58The South Carolina newspapermanWilliam Watts
Ball, in a commencementaddress to the College of Charlestonin 1925,
of American societyand the failureof govlamentedthe regimentation
ernmentalregulationsto solve growingsocial problems,especiallycrime.
Ball seemed equally disturbed,however,that "The motorcarremainsunprohibited,
just as thoughthe banditsthat infestNew York and Chicago
and operate witha daringand success neverdreamedof by Dick Turpin
and JackSheppard,couldget alongwithoutgasoline."59
Moral questions raised about the automobileand other new innovations,especiallymotionpictures,wereforthemostpartconcernedwiththe
interrelated
issues of changingsexual mores,the"degeneration"of American youthand the declineof the tightlyknitfamily.The youthful
"flapper"
ofthe 1920swas portrayedbytheMemphisCommercial-Appealas a young
female"who does not fearto take 'joy rides'withany man who willinvite
her." And her male counterpart,the "flipper,""drinksbootlegwhiskey,
drivesan automobileand inviteseveryflapperhe sees to take a ride."60
Concernon thisscore cut across racial and class linesas well.The Birmingham Labor Advocate attributedthe declineof youthto "nightautomobile
rides,and the consequentand inevitablebottleof whitelightning,"
whilea
black writerin Atlantacomplainedof "pleasure seeking"amongthe city's
black youth:"They go automobileridingat nightsand all day Sunday,
throwing
awaytheirhardearningsfora fewhourspleasure."61
56Nashville
ChristianAdvocate,85 (July25, 1924),933.
57Nashville
Banner,Aug. 31, Nov. 12, 1921.
58NashvilleTennessean, Aug. 12, 1921. Throughoutthe decade, the Tennessean called
formore elaborate examinationproceduresformotorvehicleoperator'slicenses,to insure
thatonly"men of responsiblecharacter"were allowedto operate automobiles.See Nashville
Tennessean,Jan.31, 1928.
59WilliamWatts Ball, "CommencementAddress: College of Charleston," in Anthony
Harrigan,ed., The Editor and the Republic. Papers and Addresses of WilliamWatts Ball
(Chapel Hill: Univ.ofNorthCarolinaPress, 1954),pp. 83-84.
60Memphis
Commercial-Appeal,
May 8, 1922.
6'Birmingham
Labor Advocate,Dec. 17, 1921;AtlantaIndependent,July14, 1921.
38
AmericanQuarterly
Much of this,of course,was partof the inevitableconflictbetweengenerations;but the crucial pointis that manyobserversinsistedon tracing
this conflictto "outside forces" whichincludedthe automobile.Rarely,
however,was the motorcar held up as the sole culprit.In mostcases, the
principalreasonforthe degenerationofyouthwas thoughtto be thebreakdownin traditional,highlyorganizedfamilystructures."Quite correctly,"
a Nashvillewriternoted in 1926, "all who take a pessimisticviewof the
such as theirunyouthof the day, wholamenttheiralleged shortcomings,
graciousnessof manners;thefreedomwithwhichthe sexes mingleand mix;
the scant regardshownfortradition;the seemingabsence of mostof the
forthe change
conventionsof the Victorianage; agree that responsibility
must be fixedon the home."62The automobilewas directlylinkedto the
decline of the home, however,and "joyriding"seemed to be the most
bondsof familyand the
popularexampleused to illustratethe fragmented
declininglevel of parental authority.An Atlantajudge concludedon the
basis of his courtexperience"that a large percentageof cases are the direct resultof too muchautomobileand too littleparentalcontrol.It is not
too muchto ask theparentsto throwin theclutchand puton thebrakesor
our entirecivilizationwill take one last joy ride to destruction."He also
in 1921 of the link between
lauded an Atlanta grandjury's investigation
automobilesand moral degenerationin the city.63A Nashville minister
was convincedthat"especiallyin thelarge cities. .. the safetyofthehome
is in peril." The popularityof outsideamusementsthreatenedto rendthe
fabricof the tightlyknitfamilybeyondrepair."The pictureshowsand the
automobile,"he wrote,"call the people,youngand old, fromtheirhouses
and everyyear adds to the problemof conservingthe familylife."64The
home seemed challenged by menacingforces that were numerousand
curthreateningindeed,fromthe "restlessnessof the time" to ill-defined
rentsof youthrebellionand parentalpermissiveness.But in almost every
instancesome mentionwas made of the motionpicturetheaterand of the
automobilewhichstoodominously"at thedoor."65
Older courtshippatterns,especially to the extent that they involved
to maintainin an age of motorcar mobility,
chaperonage,were difficult
and the automobilewas inevitablydrawninto discussionsof allegedlyin"Automobiles,corn whiskey,and degenerate
creasingsexual promiscuity.
men," one writersuggested,"have contributedmoreto the debaucheryof
The SalvationArmyin Nashville
our girlsthan almost anyotherthing."66
62NashvilleTennessean,May 1, 1926.
63NashvilleChristianAdvocate,82 (Oct. 7, 1921), 1254.
64TheRev. Richard L. Ownbey,"The Church and Leisure," Nashville ChristianAdvocate, 88 (Jan. 14, 1927),42.
65Birmingham
Age-Herald,June27, 1920.
66Birmingham
Labor Advocate,Nov. 3, 1923.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
39
estimatedthat the majorityof unwed mothersin the Army's"maternity
homes" could blame theirconditionon "the predatorydriversof automobiles. . . ." The editorsof the Tennesseanpreferredto place the ultimate
responsibility"at the door of the home," but were quite willingto
agree that the motorvehiclewas the principal"mediumused to ruinthe
girlsof tenderages."67The religiousliteratureof the timecontainedmore
thanits share of franticreferencesto the unseenhorrorsof "parkingwith
drawnblindsand lightsout"68but such commentswere not limitedto the
clergy.Indeed, attemptsto enforcemoral standardsthroughmotionpicture censorshipboards and the preservationof the pristineSabbath were
the decade, and in some
notablein most major southerncitiesthroughout
involvedmotorvehicles.
instancestheseattemptsdirectlyor indirectly
A vague statuteenactedin New Orleans in 1921was designedto prevent
the use of motorcars for"immoralpurposes," but most legal effortsto
insurethe motorvehicle'sconformity
to traditionalmoral standardscenteredon the operationof gasolinefillingstationsand auto repairshopson
the Sabbath. Gasoline stationswere allowedto operateon Sundaysin New
Orleans, along withpharmaciesand certain food stores. In Atlanta, an
the Chiefof Police to enforcethe Sundayclosinglaw
ordinanceinstructing
was tabled in the
withrespectto automobiletireand parts establishments
City CommisCity Council in 1925 by a vote of 18-12. The Birmingham
sion's effortsin 1922 to preventthe Sunday operationof automobilerepair shops created such a public furorthat the commissionersamended
the existingordinanceto allow the "operationof a service forthe relief
of automobilesbecomingdisabled on Sunday" as an activityin the public
interest.69
The operationof gasoline fillingstationson the Sabbath was
permittedin all of these cities, eitherthroughthe amendmentor nonenforcement
of existinglaws.
In Nashville,however,the operationof gasolinestationsand auto repair
facilitieswas prohibitedthroughoutthe decade even thoughnumerous
attemptswere made in the CityCouncil to eliminateor modifythispolicy.
No exceptionto the existingSundayclosingordinancewas made in Nashville for any auto-relatedbusiness in the early 1920s, and in December
the sale of gasoline and oil or
1923, an ordinancespecificallyprohibiting
the operationof motorvehiclesales or servicefacilitieswas passed by the
"7NashvilleTennessean,June16, 1926.
68Robertson,
"AmericanCitiesand theCriminalClasses," p. 5.
69Cityof New Orleans, ArchivesDept., Synopsisof Ordinances,1841-1937 (typescript,
City Archives,New Orleans Public Library),p. 24; New Orleans CommissionCouncil,Qfficial Proceedings,Feb. 28, 1927, p. 3; Atlanta City Council Minutes (Officeof City Clerk,
Atlanta, Ga.), XXIX, 256; BirminghamNews, Mar. 7, 1922; City of Birmingham,Laws
GoverningTrafficAs Provided in the BirminghamCode, 1930 (Birmingham:City of
Birmingham,
1930),p. 292.
40
AmericanQuarterly
CityCouncil. In April 1924,thisordinancewas repealedby a voteof 14-9,
but the repealingbill was vetoed by Mayor Hilary E. House and his vote
was upheld in the Council. Other attemptsto repeal or modifythe 1923
ordinancewere initiatedin June 1924 and in 1925 and 1929, but in all
cases they failed either for lack of council supportor because of the
mayoralveto. The onlysuccessfulmodification
of the law was achievedin
June 1928-allowing serviceon the Sabbath fordisabled vehicleson the
publicstreets.Mayor House justifiedhis vetoeson the groundsthatgasoline stationownersand attendantsdid notwishto workon Sundays,buthis
vetoeswere sustainedin theCouncillargelybecause of desiresto maintain
thepurityoftheSabbath.70
On the whole,however,public sentimentas expressedin the southern
urbanmedia was largelyopposed to Sabbatarian restrictions
on the motor
car. Indeed, the Sunday drive had apparentlybecome a habit of most
motorists.Opinionson publicdancingand Sunday movieswerevariedand
intensethroughoutthe decade, but even the motorcar's criticsfoundit
difficult
to supportmeasureswhichrestrictedthe recreationaluses of the
automobile.A Memphis publication,for example, drew attentionto the
unnecessaryinconveniencesattendantto the closingof gasoline stations
and auto repairshopson Sundays: "Everybodywantedto enjoya Sunday
outingin the automobile,but realizedhe was takinga bigchance. He might
runout ofgas, have a punctureor breakdownmilesawayfromhome.Then
the wholefamilywouldhave to walk back."'71The Birmingham
Labor Advocate, on otheroccasions quite concernedwiththe threatof motorcars
to moral standards,commentedsarcasticallyon October 13, 1923 that
the Birmingham
Commissionerof Public Safety"shouldhave requiredthe
motorcyclesquad to see thateverycouplewhowentautomobiling
last Sunday had theirmarriagelicense withthem so that no one would question
why some of them went into such retiredplaces and stayed so long."72
Even religiouspublicationspaused to considerthe advantagesas well as
the disadvantagesof the motorvehicle."The benefitsto be derivedfrom
thatwe have waitedso longto congood roads are so great it is surprising
structgood roads," the ChristianAdvocate declared in 1920.Thoughmotoring encouraged "the reckless expenditureof money in automobile
travel" and "the desecrationof the Sabbath," as well as "many immoral
practices," the editors concluded that "All good things are liable to
70SeeCityof Nashville,Digest of the Ordinancesand Resolutionsof the Cityof Nashville
(Nashville: City of Nashville, 1917), II, 498-99; Nashville City Council Minutes (Officeof
MetropolitanClerk, Nashville),XXII, 159, 175-76, XXIII, 138, 245, 248; "Ordinances Enacted BytheCityCouncil,Cityof Nashville"(Officeof MetropolitanClerk), II, 94-95, 147.
7"Tattler,I (May 25, 1929),4.
72Birmingham
Labor Advocate,Oct. 13, 1923.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
41
abuse."73 The NorfolkJournal and Guide was inclined to doubt the
but it neverthebenefitsof the automobilein the urban black community,
of
less foundthe motorvehicle to be, on the whole,a usefulinstrument
socialimprovement.
of the worldon wheels,
blessingsis the putting
Chiefamongits enumerated
and
withtheurbancommunities
inlinking
theruraldistricts
whichhas resulted
In thelist
theworldintocloserpersonalcommunication.
brought
has generally
and
of lifetowardthe unessentials
of evilschargedto it is the accentuation
thegoodthathas
ofless strictmorality.
Be thisas itmay,however,
thefostering
theevilsthatalwaysitis more
overbalances
comeinitswakeso preponderantly
tobepraisedthancussed.
of the automobilewas, in thisview,"spiritual"
The principalcontribution
ratherthan material,because the motorcar was responsiblefor"promotbetweenthe innermostof people, strengthening a closer communication
and revealingthevast elementsof good thatstillexist
ingtiesof friendship
ina worldofhustleand bustle."74
The proposals put forwardfor dealing with the social, economic and
culturalconsequencesof the automobilewereas variedas the attitudestoward the motorcar. The most commonsolutionofferedto the problemof
was simplyto make more roomforcars
risingmotorvehicleregistrations
-through the constructionof additionalroads, the pavingand widening
of existingstreetsand the provisionof more parkingspace. Many writers
to ease constressedthe need forurban planningand trafficengineering
traffic
flowthroughthe centralcity.A numgestionand insurean efficient
of existingstreetber of commentatorsalso called forthe strengthening
car systemsas a means of bluntingthe auto's impacton urbantransportation patterns.75Others suggested that the organizationof automobile
laws and
clubs wouldmorefullyinsuremotorists'observanceof thetraffic
their responsibility
to the public interest.76Many proposals were soon
One editor appealed to Birmingham
revealed as hopelesslyineffective.
citizensto preventtrafficcongestionby not putting"automobilesto unnecessaryuses."77Atlanta businessmenorganizeda "Be Careful Drive"
and therebyreduce
in 1923to alert citizensto the dangersof motortraffic
the accidentrate.78And the NashvilleTennesseanproposedthatthe radio,
73Nashville
ChristianAdvocate,81 (July23, 1920),931.
74Norfolk
Journaland Guide,May 12, 1928.
75See"City's ProgressDepends on StreetCar Service," MemphisChamberof Commerce
Journal,5 (July1922),11.
76See NashvilleBanner,Feb. 28, 1922; MemphisChamberof CommerceJournal,5 (Apr.
1922),33-34.
77Birmingham
Age-Herald,July29, 1926.
78AtlantaConstitution,
Feb. 5, 1923.
42
AmericanQuarterly
anotherrecenttechnologicaldevelopment,was "destinedto entirelycounoftheautomobileincallingpeoplefromthehome."79
teracttheinfluence
The ambiguousresponseof southernurbanitesto the motorvehiclewas
clearlyillustratedby the Ku Klux Klan, an organizationwhose members
decried the moral degradationtheyassociated withautomobileswhileat
the same time employingmotorcars extensivelyin city rallies and other
used in parades and
Klan activities."The Ford car, whichwas frequently
later in floggings,"one historianconcluded,"came to be almost as symwithregard
bolic of the Klan as the fierycross."80The same uncertainty
betweenespousedbeliefand actual
to the automobile,the same distinction
practice,can justifiablybe ascribed to a large numberof southernurban
dwellersin the 1920s,regardlessof theirracial, socioeconomicor religious
differences.
The varyingattitudesin southerncities towardthe automobileand its
consequences cannot, however,be comprehendedapart fromthe larger
dimensionof social awarenessand concernthat characterizedthe decade.
The motor car was, obviously,a widely accepted symbolof complex
in the social and economicfabricof urban life,a symbol
transformations
thatusuallybore a greaterweightof meaningthanits real characterwarranted. The automobile,after all, could hardly be held completelyreor unwantedpregnancies.John
sponsibleforeitherurbandecentralization
B. Rae has noted that much criticismof the motorcar simply"exemplified man's propensityto blame his technologyratherthan himselffor
whateverevilconsequencesit mightproduce,"and he concludesthat"The
automobileitselfwas not responsibleforthe materialistic,secular mood
of the 1920's any more than it was responsiblefor crime and moral
laxity."98'The truthof this observationis incontestable;but it misses the
point.Technologicalinnovationshave always represented,in varyingdegrees, the developmentsin human societythat have broughtthem forth,
developmentsthat are usually but dimlyperceivedand partiallyunderstood. It was clear to almostall observersin the 1920sthattechnologywas
a highlysignificantfactor in alteringthe past and shapingthe future.
Whethertechnologywas to be welcomedas symbolicof a new and more
prosperousage, or damned as subversiveof age-old values and mores is
perhapsless importantthanthe factthat all observerstendedto see technologyas a fundamentalforce in American life,and the automobileas
of the technologicalinnovationsappearing
probablythe most significant
79NashvilleTennessean,Mar. 9, 1927.
80WilliamR. Snell, "Fiery Crosses in the Roaring Twenties: Activitiesof the Revised
Klan inAlabama, 1915-1930,"Alabama Review,23 (Nov. 1970),257.
8"TheAmericanAutomobile.A BriefHistorY(Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 1965),p.
95.
The AutomobileinSouthernCities
43
in the period. The motor vehicle was a more impressivepiece of machinerythan a radio, more personalin its impactthan a skyscraperor a
dynamo,and certainlymoretangiblethanelectricity.
Thus it was generally
morelegibleas a symboland moreapparentinitsconsequences.
In major southerncitiesin the 1920sthe automobileand its virtueswere
hailed and promotedvigorouslyby the organizedbusinesscommunity,
especially in the firstyears of the decade. But as the decade progressed
many business-oriented
publicationsand organizationsexpresseda rising
concernabout the motorcar's threatto streetcarlinesand thegrowingtoll
of deaths and injuriesforwhichit was responsible.Downtownmerchants
were especially worriedover the motor trafficcongestionthat plagued
most centralcities throughoutthe period. Black and labor unionspokesmen perhaps reflectedrelativelygreater sympathyfor the plightof the
pedestrian,but theyalso clearly appreciatedthe opportunitiesfor status
and mobilitythat the motorcar offered.Many writers,especiallyclergymen, lamented the auto's allegedly unfavorableimpact on traditional
moral standardsand the familyunit,thoughmost of these observations
were apparentlyjeremiads aimed at undesirable secular forces that
seemed to be underminingolder values-and which the automobile
seemed to symbolizeperfectly.And all the while,millionsof urbanSouthernerspurchasedmotorvehicles in record numbersand fullyfacilitated
what Thomas D. Clark called "the most effectiveYankee invasionthat
everdisturbedsoutherncomplacency.
To what extentwas the South uniquein its urban responseto the automobile?The regiondid lag behindotherareas of the countryin adopting
the motorvehicle,and no major southerncity containedas many cars
proportionateto populationas did the nation as a whole by 1930. This
patterncould have resultedfroma relativelygreaterculturalresistance
to technologyand its consequences,but it was morelikelydictatedby economic necessity.Southernersmay have been more suspiciousof fundamentalsocial changethantheirneighborsto the Northand West, but they
were also generallyless able to affordautomobiles.It is also possiblethat
criticismsof the motor car on religiousand moral groundswere more
prevalentin southerncitiesthanwas the case in urbancentersin otherregions,thoughsuch attitudeswere voiced at one timeor anotherin every
area of the country.Certainly,theultimateprecedencewhichthe automobile was givenover alternativemeans of urban transportation
was hardly
unique to the South. In the finalanalysis,the answersto these questions
can only be determinedthroughcomparativestudiesof attitudestoward
the motorvehiclein othersectionsof the country,studieswhichshouldtell
"2TheEmergingSouth (New York: OxfordUniv.Press, 1961),p. 127.
44
AmericanQuarterly
in theoverallAmericanresponse
us a greatdeal about regionaldifferences
ingeneral.
notonlyto themotorcar butto technologicalinnovation
The startlingfact remainsthat eventhoughthe awarenessof the motor
impacton the societywas widespread,and eventhough
vehicle'ssignificant
some observersseriouslyquestionedthe ultimatebeneficenceof thisimpact, Americansaccepted the realityof the automobilewithrelativeease.
Suspicionsand doubtsabout the motorcar were clearlya minorthemein
the
the largelyfavorablechorus that greeted the automobilethroughout
country.That this patternalso prevailedin the nation's most culturally
conservativeand economicallyimpoverishedregionis perhaps especially
significant.
Ambiguitytowardthe motorvehiclein southerncitiesduring
the 1920s existednot so muchin practiceas in thought.Motor cars were
apparentlypurchasedby most Southernerswho could affordthem,and by
many who could not; but there was considerabledisagreementand confusionover the substance and implicationsof the social change which
motorvehiclessymbolized.In thissense,the intellectualand psychological
responses to the automobile mirroredthe larger cultural uncertainty
abroad in the South-and in the nationas a wholeforthatmatter-about
the meaningof modernity.
And it was simplyimpossibleto shape the automobileto the needs of local communitieswhenattitudestowardthemotor
vehicleitselfwere so ambiguousand uncertain.The problemof the motor
car in the citywas thus as muchthe resultof an intellectualcrisisas anythingelse. Justas southernurbanitesfailedto fullyunderstandthe multifacetedconsequencesof the motorvehiclein theircities,so also did they
fail to develop any coherentor consistentstrategyfordealingwiththose
consequences. The result,of course, was that cities, and the life-styles
of theirinhabitants,were increasinglyaltered to meet the demands and
createdbytheautomobile.
opportunities