1902 – The Jackson Automobile Company Is Founded
The Jackson Automobile Company was incorporated in Jackson, Michigan, on July 19, 1902, by automotive pioneer Byron J. Carter and business partners George A. Matthews and Charles Lewis. Carter, an experienced inventor and mechanic, served as the company’s first vice president and played a major role in developing its earliest automobiles. Among its first products was the Jaxon, a steam-powered vehicle introduced for 1903, followed by gasoline-powered models including the Orlo. Carter left the company in 1905 after his partners declined to adopt the friction-drive transmission he had developed, later using the design in the Cartercar. Jackson automobiles earned a reputation for durability, and the company remained in business until the early 1920s.
1934 – Harold T. Ames Files a Patent for Retractable Headlights
Harold T. Ames filed a patent application for an innovative retractable automobile headlight system on July 19, 1934. The design allowed headlights to move into concealed compartments when not in use, reducing wind resistance and creating a smoother exterior appearance. Ames, an executive within E.L. Cord’s automotive organization, assigned the invention to the Cord Corporation. A version of the concept became one of the defining features of the revolutionary Cord 810, which debuted in 1935 for the 1936 model year. Although Ames received the headlight patent, the Cord 810’s celebrated overall design was led by Gordon Buehrig and his styling team. The Cord became the first volume-production automobile equipped with hidden headlights, inspiring similar designs for decades.
1964 – Lee Petty Makes His Final NASCAR Start
Three-time NASCAR champion Lee Petty made the final start of his racing career at Watkins Glen, New York, on July 19, 1964. Driving a Plymouth in the NASCAR Grand National event, Petty completed nine laps before retiring with handling problems and finishing 22nd. His son Richard Petty also competed in the race, which was won by Billy Wade. Lee Petty had been one of NASCAR’s earliest stars, earning 54 victories, winning championships in 1954, 1958 and 1959, and capturing the inaugural Daytona 500 in a famously close finish. A severe crash during a qualifying race at Daytona in 1961 significantly curtailed his driving career, although he returned for occasional appearances before retiring following the Watkins Glen event.
2006 – Tesla Unveils the Original Roadster Prototype
Tesla Motors unveiled prototypes of its first automobile, the all-electric Roadster, during an invitation-only event at the Santa Monica Airport on July 19, 2006. Based in part on the lightweight Lotus Elise platform, the two-seat sports car challenged longstanding perceptions that electric vehicles had to be slow, short-ranged or utilitarian. Tesla promoted the Roadster as capable of accelerating from zero to 60 mph in approximately four seconds while traveling more than 200 miles on a charge. The presentation marked the public emergence of Tesla as an automobile manufacturer and introduced the company’s strategy of using a high-performance premium vehicle to help fund the development of more affordable electric cars. Regular Roadster production began in 2008.
2021 – Subaru Announces the All-New 2022 WRX
Subaru announced on July 19, 2021, that an entirely new WRX would soon make its debut for the 2022 model year. The redesigned model became the second generation of the WRX produced independently from the Impreza line. The WRX name had first appeared in 1992 on high-performance versions of the Impreza and remained closely connected to that model until Subaru separated the two nameplates beginning with the 2015 model year. Identified internally by the VB chassis code, the 2022 WRX introduced a turbocharged 2.4-liter flat-four engine producing 271 horsepower. Buyers could select a six-speed manual transmission or Subaru’s continuously variable automatic transmission, while standard all-wheel drive continued a tradition established by earlier WRX models.
