The electric klaxon horn was a divisive fixture of the urban soundscape in the early automotive era.
Photographer: National Motor Museum/Heritage Images/Getty Images)
A Loud Warning From the Past About Living With Cars
Klaxon automotive horns, once standard safety equipment, disappeared from the roads after World War I. But the tensions they exposed about urban noise still echo.
Some 110 years ago, an ear-splitting noise ricocheted across North America and Europe. Its sound: “aaaOOgah!!”
That distinctive metallic screech was emitted by a klaxon, a mechanical horn powered by electricity, then a captivating recent innovation. The klaxon filled a niche in the early 1900s, a time when street signage was minimal, driving rules were nascent, and mass adoption of the turn signal was still decades away. Simply by pressing a klaxon’s button, a driver could declare their intention to go right or left, alert pedestrians, or send a warning when approaching a blind curve. Alternatively, they could do it simply for fun.