Adorning the front page of The Canberra Times, this day 58 years ago, was a photograph of a Ford Quadricycle and its driver, Mr Tom Myers, chugging into Canberra. The Quadricycle was a replica of the first car built by Henry Ford.
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The curious car and its driving team left Melbourne and took three days for the journey to Canberra. The Quadricycle was produced in Melbourne in eight weeks from plans and photographs of the original 1896 machine built by Henry Ford.
The replica's constructors, Messrs Tom Myers and Jim Cameron, took turns at the wheel over a 1600 mile route to Brisbane to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of the Ford Motor Company. Mr Forster said the trip would be the longest ever made by the vehicle.
The Quadricycle, which had a seat surmounting four bicycle wheels, was driven by a two-cylinder, three horse-power engine, which propelled it at a maximum 25mph (40.2km/h).
Mr Myers had grown side-levers and a moustache for the occasion. Both he and Mr Cameron wore bright red ski suits to shield them from the weather.
The vehicle had no windscreen nor hood to protect occupants from the elements.
