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 A Brief History of AAA Southern New England
Today’s AAA Southern New England and its predecessor auto clubs can trace its beginning back to the start of the 20th century. The Rhode Island Automobile Club, founded in 1900, was one of the nine clubs that met in Chicago in 1902 to form the American Automobile Association, now known as AAA.
Meanwhile, in late 1900, the Massachusetts Auto Club of Boston was born, and through mergers became known as the Boston Motor Club during the 1920’s. The Worcester Automobile Club was incorporated in 1905, but also traced its roots to 1900 as an organization of car owners and enthusiasts.
By the mid-1930’s, the Clubs in Boston, Worcester and Rhode Island operated independently as the Boston Automobile Club, Bancroft Automobile Club, and the Automobile Club of Rhode Island. In 1987 Worcester and Rhode Island merged to form AAA South Central New England. AAA Massachusetts (formerly Boston club) joined in 1996, and AAA Berkshire County in 2004, to form the present AAA Southern New England.
A more detailed history of the Club begins below. |
 A Century Observed:
On March 4, 1902, AAA was established in Chicago by nine regional auto clubs. The first headquarters office was in New York City. Its initial purpose was to promote the establishment of safe roads, a principle that still runs strong in this 45-million-member organization. Today, AAA - a not-for-profit organization of motor clubs serving members through some 1,100 offices in the United States and Canada - continues to function as the “traveler's champion,” monitoring activities that could impact freedom of mobility. AAA experts regularly testify before congressional committees and federal agencies on issues affecting AAA members and the public including: highway and air traffic system infrastructures, automobile and truck safety initiatives, fair travel taxes and recreation fees, improving highway safety, and balancing improved mobility with environmental and air quality concerns.
AAA's long history of public service and advocacy for traffic safety, consumer, automotive and travel issues had to begin somewhere. The beginnings of the AAA organization, and indeed the automobile club movement in general, can be traced right back to Southern New England. Today, AAA Southern New England is a vital part of the National brand, and the auto clubs that have come to comprise it are rich in history. This document will serve to uncover that history and trace the roots of what is now the fifth largest club in the AAA federation.
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 The Roots of AAA Southern New England:
The Club’s evolution has been continual and dynamic; merger activity and the restructuring of club borders have created a lively history that borders on the complex. The most significant progenitor of AAA Southern New England is the Rhode Island Automobile Club. This club was one of nine original founding auto associations that met on March 4, 1902 in Chicago to form a national federation that would fight for improved roads in the United States. The original members of AAA National along with the respective founding dates are:
Chicago Automobile Club, 1900; Automobile Club of America, 1899; Automobile Club of New Jersey, 1900; Long Island Automobile Club, 1900; Rhode Island Automobile Club, 1900; Philadelphia Automobile Club, 1900; Automobile Club of Utica, 1901; Grand Rapids Automobile Club, 1902; and Princeton University Automobile Club, 1901.
The Rhode Island Automobile Club came into being shortly after the dawn of the Auto Age, on May 31, 1900. Founded in Newport – by Frederick C. Fletcher, R. Lincoln Lippitt, Richard S. Howland, H.A. DuVillard, and Julian Chase – its purpose and objectives were very similar to those of our Club today.
One possible exception can be found in a sentence in its by-laws, which read “…generally to maintain a social club devoted to the sport of automobilism throughout the country.” Historical records do indicate that it was a social distinction to be a member of the Club, and activities consisted of auto-oriented sporting contests such as reliability runs, hill climbs, and speed contests.
One of Rhode Island Automobile Club’s most enduring contributions was its recognition of the need for a national association, but its activities on the regional level laid the groundwork for what would eventually become AAA Southern New England in 1996. These activities flourished until the outbreak of World War I, during which they gradually diminished. The Club soon became inactive, and for most of the following decade, while the automobile transformed from a rich man’s toy to an integral part of American transportation, the Automobile Club movement in Rhode Island lay dormant until 1925.
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 Pre-History: “Early Players”
AAA Southern England – in its present form – can also be traced back to Auto clubs in Worcester and Boston. On October 11, 1900, the first auto club charter was granted in the state of Massachusetts; the Massachusetts Auto Club of Boston was born. Four months later, in January 1901, the New England Automobile Club was incorporated in Boston. In 1904, the two clubs merged, forming the Bay State Automobile Association, headquartered at the Lenox Hotel in Boston.
In 1923, Thomas P. Henry was elected President of AAA National. Within a year, he had brought the National Motorists Association (85,555 members) and The Bay State Automobile Association (287 members) into the AAA family. At the time, the total AAA membership was 280,000 – almost 1,000 times the membership of the Bay State Club.
In March of 1924, the Bay State Automobile Association voted to change its name to the Boston Motor Club – in part “to properly classify and unify it as related to AAA as one of its affiliated clubs” – as reported in the minutes of the group’s Board of Governors. Those minutes reflect the high spirits of the new AAA affiliate: “The Vice President [of the club] spoke in stirring words, brimming with enthusiasm… for what could be accomplished in the future if everybody put his shoulder to the wheel.”
The Boston Motor Club was on the road – albeit a bumpy one (at least initially). There was much work to be done. Until it joined AAA, the Massachusetts club was still largely a social organization; it didn’t even offer emergency roadside service.
Some of the Boston Motor Club’s early difficulties were reported by AAA National Vice President Fred Harries, during an address to the club’s Board in April of 1924, after a largely unsuccessful attempt to recruit members during a Boston auto show. “First, in regard to the show, we had as attractive a booth there as we could possibly get,” Harris stated. “But we had terrible opposition from the Automobile Legal Association… highly discouraged salespeople…and a horrible telephone system.”
That speech did end on a positive, forward-looking note: “You have got to cut the red tape if you are going to put this thing across,” Harries charged. “Every one of the governors must realize that we’re going to build a big thing.”
As part of this building effort, the Boston Motor Club hired Daniel Hickay as its first Secretary (later to be re-named General Manager) on July 2,1924. The Club took Vice President Harries’ admonitions seriously. By December of that same year, 202 new members had nearly doubled the club’s rolls. Dues were $10 per year. The orientation of the organization began to change from social to service-driven. In 1924, it began to offer touring services to its members, and emergency road service was introduced in 1925. The Secretary’s report for 1925 outlined some of the fledgling club’s new and improved activities:
• Provided road service to 104 members at an average cost of $.40 to the entire membership.
• Dispensed thousands of AAA roadmaps and Boston City maps
• Responded to more than 5,000 calls for road information
• Arranged 5,000 hotel accommodations
• Grown membership to 1,098
The Boston Motor Club was also beginning to function actively as a booster of tourism, a leader in traffic and highway safety, and advocate for consumer rights for motorists. The club began helped to increase pedestrian awareness, broadcast road conditions for motorists, educate drivers about safety issues, and champion a fight against increasing the gas tax. In 1927, the club absorbed the commercial National Automobile Association, and did the same with the North Shore Auto Club during the following year. By 1929, the club began to offer foreign travel as well as notary public services to its members.
By 1936, the Boston Automobile Club had worked out a system of reciprocal road service with other clubs. AAA had nearly a million members nationally, and it was spending close to $2 million a year on safety issues. However, the Great Depression had taken its toll: the Boston club’s membership had failed to keep up with its activities. In 1938, the club had only 2,770 members and was having trouble meeting its financial obligations. If the club were to continue to serve the Boston area, it needed help. AAA National provided the safety net; it took over the Boston Automobile Club on November 2, 1938, establishing it as a division of the federation that would continue until 1996 when it was divested from National to AAA South Central New England to form AAA Southern New England. The Massachusetts club had come to include the state of New Hampshire up until the divestiture, when the New Hampshire club moved north to become part AAA Northern New England, headquartered in Maine.®
Although the Worcester Automobile Club was formally incorporated on November 28, 1905, its roots go back beyond that date. As early as 1900, when there were no more than twenty automobiles in Worcester, W.J.H. Nourse started an organization of car owners and enthusiasts. Nourse deserves to be remembered as the founding father of the Worcester Automobile Club, although James W. Bigelow was the first president of the original club. The Worcester club was never affiliated directly with AAA National.
In late 1905, the club established its first headquarters in the Chase Building on Front Street in Worcester. In that same year, the club held its first hill climb, up Dead Horse Hill on Stafford Street. The hill climb was an annual club event for years. Membership increased rapidly, reflecting the enormous interest in the new “gas buggies.” At the annual meeting in May 1906, President John P. Coughlin reported that membership had jumped from 81 to 331 in one year.
During World War I, with all its demands on industry and society, the club lost a great deal of support, and by the end of the war, activity nearly came to a halt. However, in 1920, according to club records, fifteen men re-established the Worcester Automobile Club. On April 9, 1924, after the 100-member requirement had been reached, the club became an official AAA affiliated organization called the Bancroft Automobile Club. This club was dedicated as much to practical problems of motoring as to the social and recreational aspects. A separate affiliate of the national organization, the Wachusett Automobile Club, was formed in 1928, with membership in northern Worcester County. It disbanded in 1934, when Bancroft Automobile Club absorbed its membership. The Bancroft Club would later become AAA Central Massachusetts in the mid-1980’s. In 1987, AAA South Central New England was created when the Automobile Club of Rhode Island and AAA Central Massachusetts. (formerly Bancroft) consolidated operations and merged memberships.
AAA Merges With AAA Berkshire County
In July 2004, AAA Southern New England and AAA Berkshire County formed an even stronger AAA presence in Southern New England when the two clubs merged.
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 The Rhode Island Automobile Club Re-emerges After WWI:
On October 8, 1925, Articles of Association for a non-business corporation to be known as the Automobile Club of Rhode Island were filed with the Secretary of State. The following day, the incorporates met in the office of the law firm of Edwards and Angell, electing three Providence businessmen as directors of the motor club. James B. Barrett, the first president, was an official of the Biltmore Hotel and had been instrumental in securing Room 119 as the Club’s first office. Samuel W. Burchiel, vice president, began a career that was to last until his death in 1953. The third director, E. Ladew Durant, became secretary-treasurer. At their first regular Meeting in November, discussion included plans to place directional signs throughout the city of Providence, and to solicit membership with the goal of gaining affiliation with the American Automobile Association. Affiliation, however, would have to wait until membership was further developed since a minimum of 100 members was required; as 1925 drew to a close only 26 paid-up members could be claimed.
1926 started off with a bang. A membership drive was launched with a Biltmore Hotel dinner which was attended by 50 leading citizens and presided over by Providence Mayor Joseph H. Gainer whose speech was broadcast on WJAR. By February, 1926, the membership was up to 177 and the Club had become an affiliated member of the American Automobile Association.
The tradition of high quality service to members and the motoring public was begun in earnest at this time as directional signs throughout the city and state were erected, a providence road map was published and more contract garages joined the organization.
Legal assistance became a membership benefit in July, when Attorneys were secured in Pawtucket, Westerly and Newport to help members with their auto-related legal problems. Later that month, the Club’s first branch office opened in the Viking Hotel in Newport – at the time, it was a summer-only operation.
August saw the inauguration of a weekly Thursday evening broadcast over WJAR during which Club personnel discussed such subjects as auto touring, consumer tips for motorists, and reminiscences of the old Rhode Island Automobile Club. The following month, Personal Accident Policy was incorporated into membership with all new members and renewals receiving coverage of $1,000 for loss of life of life and a weekly $10 indemnity of 26 weeks.
The advantage of Club membership was becoming apparent to an increasing number of motorists; the year ended with a total of almost 700.
Since that time, AAA – in its many forms in this region – has continued to develop the long-standing tradition of member-focused service initiatives. Roadside assistance – almost synonymous with the AAA brand – is the perennial reason for new club membership. 2002 and beyond poses new challenges. In a fast-paced, consumer-driven modern society, AAA Southern New England recognizes the need to effectively retain members. Expanding differentiated product and service offerings seems to be the key to helping keep AAA valuable in the face of greater consumer choice. In that light, there is a traceable history of product evolution and service expansion within AAA Southern New England’s lineage.
From free headlight adjustments begun in 1928 to driving school courses in 1946 to bicycle safety demonstrations in 1957, AAA has worked diligently to promote motorist and pedestrian safety. From Bail Bond services introduced in 1930 to detailed TripTiks in 1970 to discounted admissions to cultural and sporting events, AAA has increased the value of carrying a membership card. Whether it be anti gas-tax lobbying during the mid 1930’s to domestic oil crisis activism during the 1970’s to the Approved Auto Repair program introduced in the 1980’s, the club has championed motorist rights, serving as the voice of drivers as consumers. An array of expanded services has been added over time as well: auto financing in 1939; travel agency services in 1950, club guaranteed batteries in 1970; financial and insurance services in 1987; 24-hour “virtual branch office” access via the internet in during the late 1990’s. In sum, the power behind an AAA Southern New England membership card has only continued to increase.
AAA has certainly come a long way in the past 100 years, and AAA Southern New England has been a vital and substantive part of the federation’s storied history, as evidenced by this document. AAA – on both a national and local level – continues to enhance and improve member benefits, to fight on the behalf of motorist rights, to lead public service efforts on the behalf of consumers, to lobby for better traffic safety and more funding for transportation infrastructures, and to stand up for one of the most fundamental and quintessential American rights: freedom of mobility.
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©2008 AAA Southern New England, all rights reserved |
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