Death of Henry H. Bliss

Henry Bliss, 1873

The death of Henry H. Bliss (June 13, 1830 – September 14, 1899) was the first recorded case of a person being killed by a motor vehicle accident in the Western Hemisphere.^[1]^{[note 1]}

Automobile crash

On September 13, 1899, Henry Hale Bliss was disembarking from a streetcar at West 74th Street and Central Park West in New York City, when an electric-powered taxicab (Automobile No. 43) struck him and crushed his head and chest. He died from his injuries the next morning.^[2]

Arthur Smith, the driver of the taxicab, was arrested and charged with manslaughter but was acquitted on the grounds that he had no malice, nor was he negligent.

The passenger, Dr. David Edson, was the son of former New York City mayor Franklin Edson.

Legacy

A plaque was dedicated at the site on September 13, 1999, to commemorate the centenary of this event. It reads:

“

Here at West 74th Street and Central Park West, Henry H. Bliss dismounted from a streetcar and was struck and knocked unconscious by an automobile on the evening of September 13, 1899. When Mr. Bliss, a New York real estate man, died the next morning from his injuries, he became the first recorded motor vehicle fatality in the Western Hemisphere.^{[note 1]} This sign was erected to remember Mr. Bliss on the centennial of his untimely death and to promote safety on our streets and highways.

”

The ceremony was attended by his great-granddaughter, who placed roses on the place where Bliss was struck.

Notes

1 2 In this context "Western Hemisphere" means "The half of the earth comprising North and South America and surrounding waters."

References

↑ Dimeo-Ediger, Winona (September 2009). Johns, Chris, ed. "Saved By the Belt". National Geographic. National Geographic Society. 216 (3). ISSN 0027-9358.
↑ "Fatally Hurt by Automobile" (PDF), The New York Times, New York City, September 14, 1899

External links

First car death at the Wayback Machine (archived June 18, 2002)
Remember Bliss at the Wayback Machine (archived April 13, 2000)
Citystreets.org - Henry Bliss Plaque

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[hemisphere-2] 1 2 In this context "Western Hemisphere" means "The half of the earth comprising North and South America and surrounding waters."

[1] Dimeo-Ediger, Winona (September 2009). Johns, Chris, ed. "Saved By the Belt". National Geographic. National Geographic Society. 216 (3). ISSN 0027-9358.

[NYT-3] "Fatally Hurt by Automobile" (PDF), The New York Times, New York City, September 14, 1899