Journal Entry for 3/20/2026
I learn a lot by taking classes at Olli/UNT in Denton, County, Texas. On Thursday, 3/19/206 I enrolled in a class called "Bertha's Grand Day Out." Now, I have to say, the title didn't mean anything to me until I learned who was Bertha!
Bertha, Wife of Carl Benz
Born Cacilie Bertha Ringer on 5/3/1849, in Pforzheim, Germany, going by the name of Bertha, she married Carl Benz, Inventor of (later known as the Mercedez Benz) in 1872. They say, behind every good man is a woman. It was because of Bertha's financial support, her engineering intuition, and bold public demonstration of the Benz Patent-Motorwagen that transformed (without her husband's knowledge), a little-known invention into a world-changing technology!
Carl was a just a tinkerer - Bertha was the Brains
- Bertha invested her dowry and bankrolled the Benz
- Bertha invented the first Leather Brakes
- Bertha cleared fuel lines with a hat pin
- Bertha repaired the ignition with a garter belt
- Bertha field tested the prototype
- Bertha was a woman - she had no patent rights
- Bertha designed and added wire insulation
While Carl was tinkering, Bertha made history
Bertha was a mother of two boys, but she wasn't about to sit around devoting her life to domestic chores. One day, she told Carl she was going out for a while, and she was taking the boys. Carl didn't know she took the Motorwagen (Benz) out on a journey driving 105 km (65 miles) from Manheim to Pforzheim with her two sons.
Bertha made the world's first long distance auto trip
The trip didn't go without problems, but Bertha was a top-notch problem solver and solved every problem she encountered on the road and kept going!
- Her journey proved the car's reliability!
- Her journey generated massive publicity, leading to the sale of the Mercedez Benz!
- She convinced skeptics that motorized travel was practical and safe!
Bertha was the First Automotive Marketer
Her bold and daring trip was successful. Bertha's story was covered in the newspapers. The crowds cheered for Bertha! She launched the first automotive PR campaign by simply driving, problem-solving, and proving to the world that anything is possible when you believe in yourself. Suddenly, the world knew and accepted Carl Benz's invention. And the rest was history!
The moral of the story
Throughout history, there has been patterns in which women made historic achievements that have been overlooked or attributed to men because credit was never allowed to be given to a woman. Women were not allowed to get a patent or recognition by society. Women, like Bertha's inventions were stolen, discounted or presented under a man's name.
P.S. Hannah Williams may like this blog post.
Notes: This story was created by taking class notes. The images were created by asking Gemini AI to create a like image of Bertha Benz and her boys and Bertha using a hat pin to repair the Benz while driving.
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