Early Transportation: A Quiz About Old-Timey Ways of Getting Around

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Last updated · 7 min play time

More than a hundred years ago, men and women had a much harder time moving around the country - and the world - than they do now. There were hot air balloons, blimps, weirdly-shaped bikes, steam trains, biplanes, and all kinds of other modes of transportation. As time went on, new developments in transportation changed the landscape.

In this quiz, we'll ask you some questions about transportation the way it used to be, in the good old days, before high-speed jets and mass produced Japanese sedans. Time to hop into your sidecar and answer some early transportation questions. 


I'm a 3-time Emmy-winning game show producer, writer, director and published author. I dig traveling, watching hockey, photographing wildlife and exploring the cultural and social fabric of society.

Early Transport Quiz Questions

15 Questions · 282 Plays · 1 Comment

Question 1

After making a fortune selling photographic plates, Freelan Oscar Stanley ventured into what early form of transportation in the late 1890s with his twin brother Francis?

  • A
    Snowmobiles
  • B
    Subways
  • C
    Steam-powered cars
  • D
    Helicopters

Question 2

Early trains ran the gamut from workhorses used to transport coal and goods to more upscale ways for the rich to travel. In early train jargon, what was known as a "Pullman"?

  • A
    Type of track that was easy to lay down
  • B
    The engine's chimney
  • C
    The cowcatcher
  • D
    Sleeper car

Question 3

Old-timey jeeps conjure up images of patriotic and heroic GIs on the battlefield. What is one of the leading theories about the origin of the word "jeep"?

  • A
    From a German word meaning "tire"
  • B
    Derived from the initials GP, or "general purpose"
  • C
    From the sound a bird makes
  • D
    Because they were "cheap" to manufacture

Question 4

Founded in 1912 by Thomas Frederick Watson, Watsonian Squire is a company that produces what conveyances that are now considered vintage here in the U.S.?

  • A
    Sidecars
  • B
    Streetcars
  • C
    Motorcoaches
  • D
    Rotorcrafts

Question 5

The now hilarious-looking penny-farthing is the most famous of all the old-timey bicycles. How did it gets its name?

  • A
    The distance it could go
  • B
    From two British coins
  • C
    A woman named Penny Farthing
  • D
    It was an old insult meaning "odd"

Question 6

During the Civil War, President Lincoln leaned on Professor Thaddeus Lowe to devise a vehicle to do recon on Confederate soldiers. Lowe came up with "The Enterprise," which was what kind of vehicle?

  • A
    Hot air balloon
  • B
    Rudimentary helicopter
  • C
    Submersible boat
  • D
    Bird-drawn kite

Question 7

Before the Model T, there was the 1901 Mercedes 35 hp automobile, marketed by Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft, or DMG. How did Mercedes get its name?

  • A
    It was a combination of the founders' three names
  • B
    From the engineer's daughter
  • C
    It means "fast" in German slang
  • D
    It was a made-up word

Question 8

The Italian song "Funiculì, Funiculà" was written to commemorate the first two-track funicular to travel up what mountain about 6 miles from Naples?

  • A
    Mount Vesuvius
  • B
    Mount Viso
  • C
    Mount Etna
  • D
    Mount Italiano

Question 9

This is a Concorde buggy, known for its low-hanging sides, and named for the place where it was first manufactured, the town of Concord in what New England state?

  • A
    Vermont
  • B
    New Hampshire
  • C
    Massachusetts
  • D
    Maine

Question 10

A biplane was a staple of early aviation. How did the sesquiplane differ from the traditional biplane?

  • A
    It had four propellers
  • B
    There was an extra wheel on top
  • C
    It had a third wing
  • D
    The second wing was smaller

Question 11

Because it became the first city in U.S. to have streetcars run exclusively on electric power in 1886, what Eastern U.S. city still has the nickname "The Electric City"?

  • A
    Richmond, VA
  • B
    Buffalo, NY
  • C
    Scranton, PA
  • D
    Providence, RI

Question 12

The German-invented Laufmaschine, later known as a "hobby-horse," was an early type of bicycle that differed from modern bicycles in one key way. What was it?

  • A
    It had no pedals
  • B
    The wheels were oval
  • C
    The person riding it lay horizontally
  • D
    It had four wheels

Question 13

We've all heard of blimps and dirigibles, but what's the difference between these two types of airships?

  • A
    Blimps are always smaller
  • B
    The dirigible is more rigid
  • C
    They use a different gas to stay airborne
  • D
    There's no difference

Question 14

This was the "Model T of the air," an early plane introduced by Ford with the explicit instructions from Henry Ford that it "fit in his office". What was it called?

  • A
    The Flash
  • B
    The Flame
  • C
    The Flivver
  • D
    The Flicker

Question 15

The “first USA production motorcycle” was made by the Waltham Manufacturing Company, which was founded in 1893 by Charles Metz. What was the name of Metz's first ride?

  • A
    The Statesman-Bob
  • B
    The Flywheel-Hawk
  • C
    The Orient-Aster
  • D
    The Western-Waldorf

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