What The American Road Trip Was Like 100 Years Ago

Campsites catered to motorists of all stripes, including presidents and industry titans. In 1921, President Warren Harding dined at a camp in Maryland with Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and other leading figures of industry (viaAtlas Obscura).Ford and Edison were members of the so-called "Four Vagabonds," which included Henry Firestone, the tire industrialist, and John Burroughs,

Campsites catered to motorists of all stripes, including presidents and industry titans. In 1921, President Warren Harding dined at a camp in Maryland with Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and other leading figures of industry (via Atlas Obscura). Ford and Edison were members of the so-called "Four Vagabonds," which included Henry Firestone, the tire industrialist, and John Burroughs, the nature writer. 

According to The Henry Ford, the Four Vagabonds went on yearly excursions through states such as West Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia. They also visited the Everglades, Adirondacks, and Catskill mountains. These sweeping road trips are better described as caravans, as the Four Vagabonds would travel in as many as 50 vehicles, which included a mobile kitchen and trucks filled with the lastest camping equipment. 

But again, car camping wasn't a elite pursuit. Ordinary road trippers could access campsites across the country, which were usually located in parks and other natural areas. Campers are said to have shared a playful comaraderie, addressing each other by nicknames rather than pry about their personal lives. This was part of a nomadic spirit that was central to many trippers' journeys.

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