Old Photograph Hansom Cab Edinburgh Scotland

Old photograph of a Hansom Cab in Edinburgh, Scotland. The hansom cab is a kind of horse drawn carriage designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York. The vehicle was developed and tested by Hansom in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. Originally called the Hansom safety cab, it was designed to combine speed with safety, with a low centre of gravity for safe cornering. Hansom's original design was modified by John Chapman and several others to improve its practicability, but retained Hansom's name. There were up to 7500 hansom cabs in use at the height of their popularity and they quickly spread to other cities such as London, and Glasgow in the United Kingdom, Dublin in Ireland, as well as continental European cities, particularly Paris in France, Berlin in Germany, and St Petersburg in Russia. The cab was introduced to other British Empire cities and to the United States during the late 19th century, being most commonly used in New York.



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