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The world\u2019s first parking meter was installed in Oklahoma City on July 16th, 1935.\n\nPark-O-Meter No. 1 was the brainchild Carl C. Magee, who\u2019d moved to Oklahoma after being acquitted of manslaughter in New Mexico. Indignant opponents of his system considered paying for parking to be un-American, as it forced drivers to pay what amounted to a tax on their cars without due process of law.\n\nIn this episode, The Retrospectors uncover the colourful past of another parking meter pioneer, Roger Babson; unpick the financial model still used by POM parking meters to this day; and get all hot-under-the-collar about penalty charges issued 90 years ago\u2026 \n\nFurther Reading:\n\u2022 \u201816 July 1935: the world\u2019s first parking meter is installed\u2019 (MoneyWeek, 2014): https://moneyweek.com/329940/16-july-1935-the-worlds-first-parking-meter-is-installed\n\u2022 \u2018Gravity Research Foundation Monument \u2013 Atlanta, Georgia\u2019 (Atlas Obscura, 2016): https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/gravity-research-foundation-monument\n\u2022 \u2018The im parking meter celebrates 87th anniversary\u2019 (CBS Saturday Morning, 2022):\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-tB03VCOrw\n\nThis episode first premiered in 2023, for members of \U0001f334CLUB RETROSPECTORS\U0001f334 - where you can also DITCH THE ADS and get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 100 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast. Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!\n\xa0\nWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/retrospectors\n\xa0\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Ollie Peart.\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2024.\n\n\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices