In December 1902, the New York Herald ran a story about an engineering wunderkind who lived in Hagerstown, Indiana. Twelve-year-old Ralph Teetor had designed and built his own gasoline-powered automobile. He also had built a generator to supply electricity to his home and his neighbors'.
Such feats in themselves were remarkable, yet the newspaper feature somehow omitted mentioning the most amazing fact of all, that Ralph Teetor was totally blind. The reporter apparently had failed to notice.
Anyone who knew Ralph Teetor would have forgiven the oversight, for the boy, who lost his sight at age five, functioned so well that he always enjoyed the frequent opportunities to meet people who either did not realize or did not believe that he could not see.
Though Teeter is little known today outside of engineering circles, he nevertheless ranks among the outstanding automotive pioneers of the 20th century as an inventor, company president and industry leader. His most famous automotive invention was the Speedostat, now known universally as cruise control, but Teetor had other inventions as well. He designed and patented one of the first automatic gear shifts. He built an improved type of lawn mower and even designed a "Suitfolder" suitcase to keep packed clothing from wrinkling. He loved music and theater, speedboats, auto racing, and fishing. He counted among his friends and colleagues automotive leaders such as car builder Fred Dusenberg and Charles Kettering of General Motors.
The story of this remarkable man is told by his daughter, Marjorie Teetor Meyer, in her book, One Man's Vision: The Life of Automotive Pioneer Ralph R. Teetor.