A review of Ken Burns’ “Horatio’s Drive: America's First Road Trip”

“♪ He'd have to get under—get out and get under—to fix his little machine
He was just dying to cuddle his queen
But ev'ry minute
When he'd begin it
He'd have to get under—get out and get under—then he'd get back at the wheel ♪

♪ A dozen times they'd start to hug and kiss
And then the darned old engine, it would miss
And then he'd have to get under—get out and get under—and fix up his automobile ♪”

– “He'd Have to Get Under – Get Out and Get Under (to Fix Up His Automobile),” a Vaudeville hit from 1913

Some journeys are epic, and done for “serious” reasons – such as frontier exploration, political diplomacy, and scientific discovery. Other journeys are not serious at all, and are done more on a whim. “Horatio's Drive” was in the latter category. In the summer of 1903, Horatio Nelson Jackson undertook the first cross-country automobile journey across the United States. It turned into a race, whose prize was nothing more than bragging rights. The cars broke down many times along the way, and they had to wait for supplies to arrive by train at times. Horatio Nelson Jackson brought along a mechanic named Sewall K. Crocker, and his pet pit bull Bud. There were also letters to Horatio's wife Bertha Richardson Jackson back at home. For reasons unknown to history, he called her “Swipes.” Tom Hanks acts as the voice of Horatio Nelson Jackson, adding his talents to the film.

Bud, Jackson's pet pit bull

This film has its hilarious moments, despite the fact that Ken Burns is not really known for humor in his films. But the film is also more engrossing than one might think. It's amazing how often these cars broke down at this time, because they weren't as well-made as the cars of later generations. This was part of why Jackson convinced a professional mechanic (the aforementioned Sewall K. Crocker) to accompany him. Sometimes, Crocker would be able to fix the problem on his own; but at other times, they were compelled to wait days (sometimes more than a week) for spare parts to arrive. Ironically, this was long after the country had been crisscrossed by railroads, so the railroads were able to deliver supplies far faster than cars could do at this time. There were few paved roads in the United States at this time, I might add, and most of those were within the limits of America's cities. Thus, the group traveled on a lot of dirt roads, and stopped in out-of-the-way places where many townspeople had never seen a car before. (Cars were something of a novelty for people at that time.)

Jackson driving the Vermont on the 1903 cross-country drive

The journey started when Horatio Nelson Jackson bet someone that he could do it, for a grand total of about $50 (if I remember correctly). But the journey cost him far more than that, and Jackson never collected the money anyway. Thus, for Jackson, it seems that it was never about the money. It seems to have been about proving to the world that he could do it. It was also about having a lot of fun along the way. He got a lot of publicity for his medical practice in this way, and was something of a hero for much of the country. Later, he became a hero in less glamorous ways, as he fought for his country in the ugly maelstrom of the Great War. But he was far more famous for this highly-publicized drive, than for anything that he did in the war. Tom Hanks brings him to life with considerable skill, as mentioned earlier, lending his distinctive voice to the project.

Exhibit at the National Museum of American History recreating Horatio's Drive

I don't want this review to get much longer than it currently is, so suffice it to say that this is an underrated film. Ken Burns is good at using newspaper headlines, photographs from the time, and even some silent footage of Horatio himself to tell the story. It has moments of drama as well as humor, and captures an era in automotive history. It's a lot more fascinating than you might think.

DVD at Amazon

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