Sibrandus Stratingh became known as the inventor of the very first electric car. But the Groningen chemist and inventor was also responsible for the first ‘ordinary’ car. Because that is what you can rightly call the steam engine that drove through Groningen in 1834 with Stratingh at the driving seat.

Nothing has survived of Stratingh's steam car. But the Groningen university museum does have another of his inventions on display. There is a cart weighing less than three kilos that moves by means of a battery. It comes from 1835 and is considered the very first electric car in the world. More literature can be found in the show notes.

This episode was written and researched by Ulco Kooystra and Christien Boomsma. Sound and editing is done by Rob van der Wal. Voice-over is done by Tom Wilcox.

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Want to know more about Stratingh?

Ulco Kooystra, The Chemistry Artist. The innovative science of Groningen professor Sibrand Stratingh Ez 1785-1841 (Hilversum 2021)