The First Woman Driver in Spring City

Iva Kugler held the distinction of being the first woman driver in Spring City.  Iva was born on her grandfather's farm in Schwenksville in 1894.  Her father was Elmer Kugler and her mother was Mary Z.  The family all called her Mary Z (Z for Ziegler) as all five Kugler boys married girls named Mary.

When Iva was eight years old the family moved to 136 New Street in Spring City.  A few years later in 1908 her father built a garage on Central Avenue near New Street.  Central Garage  or Kugler's, as it was often called, was given a franchise from Ford Motor Company that same year to sell new cars.  Iva was now 14 years old and intrigued with the Model T's. She wasted no time in learning to drive one. There were not many people driving cars in those days and it was particularly startling to see a woman at the wheel.  Iva was one of the first women in the area to drive and the first woman in Spring City for sure. It is not clear whether a driver was required to have a license in 1908 but that was not stopping Iva.  She did however get a license two years later at age 16.  She celebrated by taking a long trip - all the way to Pottstown, by way of Sanatoga! As she went through Sanatoga, she was startled to see a number of policemen mounted on horses. "Boy, I'm going to get it this time," she thought. "But she didn't hit anything and no one tried to stop her. (It is speculated that the crowd she saw gathered was for the dedication of the Sanatoga Firehouse which took place in 1911.)

Working for her father at the Spring City Garage was a bright young mechanic named Jesse Yeager. Jesse prized one particular racer and decided to put a body on it. The car preformed well and was a sight to see, with all of it brass fixtures highly polished. This was the car they took to Atlantic City on their honeymoon.  Jess did all the driving of this car as he would not let Iva touch the wheel.  As they departed on their trip they were delayed by a flat tire over on Wall  Street. One of Iva's brothers was summoned to help and soon they were able to resume the honeymoon.  They stayed a half block from the ocean. "It was cold in November," Ida recalled "but then who cared?"

In 1914 the garage added Hupmobiles to its line and after that Jesse Yeager took on the job of business manager. The garage closed sometime around 1940. The last reference I have is a 1935 newspaper advertisement.

In 1953 Jesse and Iva Yeager began spending their winters in a Fort Lauderdale, Florida. In 1966 they purchased a new home there. Jesse died that October never getting a chance to enjoy the new place.  Ida continued to spend her winters in Florida and was still doing so in 1978 when a story about her appeared in the local newspaper. Iva died in 1984 and is buried at Zion Cemetery outside of Spring City.