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U.S. Census Bureau Daily Feature for September 13: First Auto Fatality


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WASHINGTON --Sept. 13, 2015: Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

FIRST AUTO FATALITY

Profile America — Sunday, September 13th. When Henry Bliss stepped off a streetcar at Central Park West and 74th Street in New York on this date in 1899, automobiles were a novelty. Thus, he didn't look carefully and was run over by an almost silent electric taxi. The accident was the first fatality in the U.S. involving an automobile. At the time, there were fewer than 8,000 motor vehicles in the whole country. As the number of registered automobiles climbed rapidly, so did the number of deaths. In 1999 — one century later — some 37,000 drivers, passengers and pedestrians were killed on the nation's roads. In recent years, the number has trended down to fewer than 33,000 fatalities as of 2014, even though the number of cars continues to increase. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at Census.

Sources: Kane's Famous First Facts, 5470 Automobiles in 1899: Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970, p. 716 Fatalities in 1999: Fatalities