Bertha Benz And The First Road Trip

Adventure Almanac Episode 1

What was your favorite road trip? Do you remember your first road trip? Bertha Benz and Karl Benz started the automobile factory that became Mercedes-Benz. However, if it wasn’t for Bertha, Karl’s automobile might not have made it out of the garage. In this episode, we learn about Bertha’s courage and creativity as she completed the first road trip.

Bertha Benz was born in 1849 in Germany. She married Karl Benz and supported him as they worked together to create the first car. They nearly lost everything multiple times, but eventually found success when Bertha took the prototype Patent Motorwagen 3 without permission and embarked on a road trip in 1888.

From Mannheim to Pforzheim, the first road trip was only 65 miles (104km). Bertha and two of her sons took the car and drove into the unknown. The car didn’t even have a fuel tank! Bertha solved multiple problems and even invented a few things along the way.

Listen to Episode 1, Bertha Benz and the First Road Trip, for a short story about Bertha’s adventure. (13 minutes)