INTRIGUING GEM.(Escape Roads)

Byline: BROOKS BRIERLEY Electric-powered automobiles were once a big deal. As the 20th century began, a Hartford, Connecticut, combine, Pope Manufacturing and the Electric Vehicle Co. (with the help of Studebaker), was building hundreds of electric cars annually using the Columbia brand name.

In contrast, most American gasoline-engine pioneers were making their first 25 or 50 cars then. The Columbia runabout was basic transportation, resembling a horse-drawn vehicle, with a single bench seat. It has a 64-inch wheelbase and 30-inch wood-spoke wheels (covered by leather fenders), ...

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