Monday Open Line

An invention that improved the early automobile so anyone could start one up was this month in 1915, awarded to Charles F. Kettering for the self-starter. Before that, it took muscle, some mechanical knowledge, and a bit of a risk to hand crank the engine of a car for ignition. In his lifetime, Kettering was awarded 140 patents for various automobile features, but also such things as an incubator for premature babies. Furthermore, he co-founded the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research in New York. The impact of the self- starter was rapid. In 1915, there were just under 2.5 million cars in the U.S. five years later, the number was over 8 million. Today, U.S. roads are clogged with more than 246 million motor vehicles. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at <www.census.gov>.

Sunday, August 18th. An emotional and legal battle that lasted many decades ended on this date in 1920, changing the course of U.S. political history. The event was the certification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. The amendment prohibits discrimination based on sex with regard to voting — in effect, allowing women to vote. Two days earlier, Tennessee had become the required 36th state to ratify the amendment, in spite of last minute efforts by some state lawmakers to overturn the legislature’s action. American women exercised their new right for the first time in the 1920 presidential election. In last year’s presidential election, 63.7 percent of women voted, compared to just under 60 percent for men. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at <www.census.gov>.

Saturday, August 17th. Many families are squeezing in a last week of vacation before school gets under way. These getaways will take people to the mountains, lakes, ocean beaches, and the country’s network of national parks and recreation areas for one last summer frolic. Many will be sightseeing trips, while others have more defined goals, such as fishing, camping, or hiking. Americans go on 350 million leisure trips each year, averaging about 4½ nights away from home. More than eight-out-of-10 of these trips are by car, and about 15 percent involve air travel. When away from home, more than 40 percent of travelers stay in hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts. You can find current data on the country’s economy by downloading the new America’s Economy mobile application at <www.census.gov/mobile>.