George Baldwin Selden - Rochester Wiki

Detroit may be the first place you think of when you think of the history of cars but Rochester may be more appropriate.

George Baldwin Selden was born in Clarkson, NY (ouside of Rochester NY) in 1846. Over the course of his life he had many professions but most notably he was credited with first patenting the automobile.

Though initially he didn't actually produce any vehicles he eventually was forced to start production in order to go after larger automobile companies for patent infringement. The Selden Motor Car Company was born but never came of age due to many losses in court and a major loss of finances. Selden died of a stroke in Rochester, NY in 1922. The company evolved into building trucks but was closed in 1930 after being absorbed into the Bethlehem Truck Company of Pennsylvania. The Selden factory, then on Probert Street, is now home to RF Communications. To this day there's an elevator in the building that still bears the Selden name.

* Born: September 14, 1846 in Clarkson, New York
* Died: January 17, 1922 in Rochester, New York
* Was a board certified lawyer.
* Inventor who was granted the first U.S. patent for an automobile
* Started Selden Motor Car Company based in Rochester NY
* Anyone making cars had to pay Selden patent money