The image at left is a detail from a much larger photograph of Broadway in 1905. It shows two interesting vehicles: the sightseeing bus on the left and the cab on the right. We know that both of these vehicles were electrics; that much should be evident from their configurations and the giant motors underneath the cab. It seems no two of the sightseeing buses were the same, and they were operated by various hotels around New York City, so researching them has proved difficult.

As for the electric cab, it appears to be an evolution of the Electrobat, considered to be the first successful electric vehicle. The builder was likely the Electric Vehicle Company of New York City, which bought the rights to the Electrobat in 1897 and was eventually bought by Columbia. However, we see that Electric Vehicle Company contracted Specialty Electric from Cincinnati to build its cabs, so they likely contracted with other companies as well.

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