The race started at 6 am on April 23, 1900, from London's Hyde Park. courtesy Beaulieu
The race started at 6 am on April 23, 1900, from London's Hyde Park.
It was a civil affair: The contestants made regular stops, including breakfast in Alfred Harmsworth's Calcot Park. courtesy Beaulieu
It was a civil affair: The contestants made regular stops, including breakfast in Alfred Harmsworth's Calcot Park.
In Edinborough, the racers stopped for a group photo, before heading back to London. courtesy Beaulieu
In Edinborough, the racers stopped for a group photo, before heading back to London.
The race was, in a way, a public relations effort to show the public cars were safe and reliable. courtesy Beaulieu
The race was, in a way, a public relations effort to show the public cars were safe and reliable.
The contestants drove over 100 miles each day, an impressive rate for cars of the age. courtesy Beaulieu
The contestants drove over 100 miles each day, an impressive rate for cars of the age.
They also paused for speed trials and four hill climbs along the way. courtesy Beaulieu
They also paused for speed trials and four hill climbs along the way.
The top speed was set by Charles Stewart Rolls (as in Rolls-Royce), who took a 12-horsepower Panhard up to 37.63 mph. courtesy Beaulieu
The top speed was set by Charles Stewart Rolls (as in Rolls-Royce), who took a 12-horsepower Panhard up to 37.63 mph.
The Mayor of Newcastle made an appearance when the race stopped in his city. courtesy Beaulieu
The Mayor of Newcastle made an appearance when the race stopped in his city.
This was spring in the UK, so the weather wasn't always great. courtesy Beaulieu
This was spring in the UK, so the weather wasn't always great.
According to one newspaper account, the only casualties were one dog and one horse. courtesy Beaulieu
According to one newspaper account, the only casualties were one dog and one horse.
In 1900, automobiles weren’t much more impressive than the horse-drawn carriages they were meant to replace. Internal combustion engines offered about 12 horsepower, but they were also loud, dirty, and unreliable. In a public effort to dispel that image—or at least the unreliable part—the Automobile Club of Great Britain and Ireland organized the 1,000 Mile Race of 1900.
Between April 23 and May 12, 65 cars raced throughout the UK, pausing during the marathon for four hill climbs and one speed trial. According to a contemporary account of the race in the Brisbane Courrier, the goal was to prove the car was “a serious and trustworthy means of locomotion; not a toy dangerous and troublesome alike to the public and its owner.”
It was an ambitious route. The contestants started in London, crossing through Bristol, Birmingham, and Manchester on the way north to Edinburgh. They hit Newcastle, Sheffield, and Nottingham on the trip back to London, covering roughly 100 miles each day, according to Grace’s Guide, a non-profit project that documents British industrial history.
By all accounts, the race was a success. The Courrier reported that 46 of the cars that started the race made it back to London. Grace’s Guide puts that number at 35, but even that is quite impressive, especially considering the only casualties were one dog and “one unmanageable horse,” which broke its leg in a collision with a car and had to be destroyed. The race was won by Charles Stewart Rolls (as in Rolls-Royce), who drove a 12-horsepower Panhard that topped out at 37.63 mph.
Photographer Albert Argent Archer covered the race, and an album of his shots was purchased by the National Motor Museum Trust at a Bonhams auction in October, for £5,000 ($7,854). The Trust had a special interest in the photos, taken by Albert Argent Archer, because they feature third place finisher John Montagu, whose son, the current Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, is its founder. The photos will be digitized and offered for sale through the online Motoring Picture Library.
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