The original Winton automobile ad
A new edition of Scientific American landed on newstands on this day in 1898, and within its pages one could find the very first magazine advertisement for an automobile. Cleveland, Ohio, based Winton Motor Carriage Company ran the ad, which asked readers to “Dispense with a horse and save the expense, care and anxiety of keeping it. To run a motor carriage costs about ½ cent a mile.”
1898 Winton
Alexander Winton, like many bicycle makers at the time, began experimenting with single-cylinder engines in 1896. He was soon manufacturing motors suitable for powering horseless carriages, leading him to incorporate his new car company the following year on March 15. The first Winton vehicles were hand assembled and included padded seating, a leather r...