Anita King (1884-1963)-- Part 4: American Stunt Driver, Actress, Cross-Country Driver and Thoroughbred Race Horse Owner

I finally became aware that I hadn't finished this account of an amazing woman whom I had come across while writing about Kissell Kars, an early American automobile.

I started it back on May 21 and 22, 2018.  You can go back to those entries by clicking on the Anita King actress label below.

She started her trip by driving north to San Francisco from California in 1915 on August 25.    She spent several days doing publicity appearances in the Panama-Pacific World's fair.  With even more fanfare, saying  that "if men can do it, so can a woman," she headed east.

After many promotional stops  along the way and coverage by major newspapers on October 19, 1915, after 49 days on the road, she reached New York City.  This means she was driving the famous Lincoln Highway, which was just two years old at the time and not in particularly good shape, a major accomplishment for a woman at the time.

She received a hero's welcome in New York City.   One newspaper related that she had arrived with California air in her tires.

In his book "A Reliable Car and A Woman Who Knows It:  The First Coast-to-Coast  Trips By Women, 1899-1916," Curt McConnell devotes a whole chapter to Anita King, noting that she was the first woman to accomplish this without accompaniment.

An Amazing Woman.  --RoadDog