Ford Model T, 1914, Open Touring Car

Topical stamp collectors will be able to add to their "car" collections when a six-stamp souvenir sheet is issued featuring Canadian automobiles on August 23, 1993. It is the first of a four-year series on historic vehicles, highlighting transportation's major role in Canada's development. The most significant transportation revolution on this century has been the mass-production automobile. The supply and demand for newer and faster vehicles never ceases as Canadian continue to make innovative contributions to the fascinating story of the automobile. Vehicles powered by internal combustion engines began to appear in Europe in the 1880s as dozen of inventors strove to develop the automobile. The enthusiasm for self-powered vehicles in Canada was initially hampered by streets better suited to carriages and sleighs, and trains were available to avoid bumpy and slow treks over poor roads. As the advantage became clearer - no fixed itineraries, no time schedules, and the more autos were used - the better the road became, car sales boomed. The Ford Motor Company called the "working man's car", the Model T, "The Universal Car", since millions were manufactured in the U.S., Canada and around the world. In 1904 Ford signed an agreement with the Walkerville Wagon Company to establish a branch factory in Canada. At the outset of the agreement the Canadian firm was given the sole rights in the British Empire, a market protected by tariffs. With this special access to overseas markets, Canada became the second largest automobile producer in the world from 1918 to 1923. The Model T was introduced in 1909 and continued in production until 1927. During that period over 75,000 were made in Canada. Refinement of assembly line techniques dropped the price to a very affordable $450. Beginning in 1914 engines were also built in Canada, greatly increasing the Canadian content. And Canadian Model T were available in blue, distinguishing themselves from their black-only American counterparts. This souvenir sheet was created by using images of the six cars, drawn and illustrated on computer. All of the line, tonal and full-colour drawings were produced in Aldus Freehand. The typography and image assembly was done in Quarkxpress.