At the Davenport Electric Fest our mission is to honor the history of electric motor technology while advancing the adoption of electric vehicles and equipment to help build a sustainable future. 

 

Thomas Davenport was probably the first person in the world to foresee an electric future. Born in Williamstown, Vermont in 1802 and trained there as a blacksmith, he moved to Brandon in 1823. Over the next decade he developed a strong interest in the new science of electricity. In 1834 he began working full-time on developing an electric motor. In 1837 the U.S, and British governments granted him the first patents ever awarded for one. Davenport devoted the rest of his life to building, developing and refining a variety of electric motors and applying them to commercial purposes. He also foresaw electrically-powered transportation, experimenting with a miniature electric train as early as 1836.

 

Davenport never earned a penny from his electrical experiments. He continued with them until his early death in 1849 because he believed that electric power was cleaner, quieter, safer and more efficient than anything that had come before and that it would change the world. At the Davenport EV Fest we in Brandon today embrace that heritage in the form of the cutting-edge EV technology of today to create the clean, safe, efficient future Davenport devoted his life to developing.