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| Petite Journal ran this image on March 7, 1909, showing Thomas Koen driving the first car in Korea. Courtesy of Brother Anthony |
By Robert Neff
In early spring 1909, a great beast, 15 feet long, five feet wide and weighing nearly three tons, roared through the streets of Seoul. Slow-moving oxen, heavily laden with firewood, stately gentlemen out for a morning stroll, peddlers with their ponderous burden of wares, Korean ponies (notorious for their orneriness and biting) and snarling dogs were all forced to scramble for safety as the vehicle passed.
According to the Petite Journal (March 7, 1909) the automobile age had arrived in Korea in the form of a White Motor Company steam car. In its amusing print, we can see Thomas A. Koen, chief engineer in the Korean imperial household, at the wheel, goggles protecting his eyes from the dust and wind. Next to him, his expression feigning disinterest, is his fellow American J. F. Manning, an engineer with the American-owned Seoul Mining Company. Sitting in the back, their scarves flying in the air, are two young Italian women ― the daughters of the Italian Consul-General to Korea, Luigi Casati.
White Motor Company was well-known in the United States and its steam cars were popular with those who could afford them. The Secret Service used one to follow President Theodore Roosevelt's carriage through the streets and the first official White House car ― under President William Taft ― was a White Motor steamer. So, it is not surprising one of these luxurious steamers would eventually wind up on the peninsula.
There are, however, many uncertainties to the claim this was the first automobile in Seoul. We know Koen received the vehicle and, after "mastering its operation," took a party of distinguished guests (including U.S. vice-consul Gordon Paddock, Casati and a Japan Chronicle correspondent) out for a ride. The correspondent wrote:
"[The] Koreans and Chinese have had the shock of their lives. They are now gradually becoming used to it, but on its first appearance they were possessed with the idea that some strange and weird demon had visited the earth to administer punishment for their various sins."
But who was truly guilty of sin? According to White Motor Company general sales manager C.A. Hawkins:
"The car was ordered by the manager of a large mining company and he gave us the most explicit instructions as to how we were to make the shipment. It seems that the Koreans are not favorably disposed toward automobiles and they exclude them from the country by imposing a prohibitive import duty. On the other hand, the mining company, by the terms of its concession, was permitted to import mining machinery free of duty."
Hawkins' instructions were clear:
"I want you to box us the machine so thoroughly that the most energetic custom inspector will have no desire to break in. Mark the box 'Mining Machines' in English, Japanese, Chinese and Korean and I guess everything will be all right."
Shortly after the car's arrival Koen gave up his position with the Korean government and went to work for Seoul Mining Company. The car is not mentioned again.
In early March 1910, Charles A. Crispin, a supervisor with the American-owned Oriental Consolidated Mining Company in northern Korea, said he knew of only two automobiles in Korea. One was a $5,000 French car owned by the manager at his mine and the other was a small car owned by a Frenchman in Seoul. Crispin declared driving an automobile in Korea was next to useless.
Note everyone agreed. In mid-1910, a Korean living in Seoul imported two French Paige Cars and, along with his friends, raced the cars through the streets of Seoul startling pedestrians and animals. However, more often than not, the cars soon broke down and required "a string of bulls" to haul them back home, providing the naysayers ― like Crispin ― the opportunity to laugh in derision.
Their laughter was short-lived. Within three years there were more than 30 cars in Korea. The automobile age had arrived.
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