The first automobile in Southern California appeared in 1897. It was built in a shop on Fifth Street in Los Angeles by S.D. Sturgis. The passenger seen in the rear seat was William H. Workman, father of Los Angeles' Mayor Boyle Workman.
It was powered by a four-cylinder gasoline engine. It is the Erie and Sturgis Gasolene Carriage (Trap body style), built by J. Philip Erie and Samuel D. Sturgis (and a silent third party who managed to muck up future production) from scratch based on Erie’s own designs, over a period of nearly two years at a cost $30,000.
The driver is Erie his ownself, and the passenger is indeed William H. Workman, himself the former Mayor of Los Angeles. At the time of the picture he was serving on the City Parks Commission, and later would be Treasurer of the City for three terms from 1901 to 1907. His son Boyle, named for William's father-in-law Andrew Boyle (a fascinating fellow in his own right), wasn't elected to the City Council until 1919, after which he was chosen President of that body and served as acting Mayor on occasion.
William (the dude in the back seat) developed the land that he inherited from his father-in-law into what is Boyle Heights today.
http://waterandpower.org/museum/Early_City_Views%20(1800s)_Page_4.html
Thanks Steve!
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