15 Strange Ways People Traveled Before Modern Transportation

Getting from one place to another used to involve some pretty unusual arrangements. Horses were useful, of course, but people also relied on dogs, camels, human-powered carts, and vehicles that looked like somebody’s unfinished experiment. Some inventions were surprisingly clever, while others seem almost impossible to imagine using on a regular basis. And although a few of these ideas eventually disappeared, they left behind photographs that make modern commuting look wonderfully ordinary. There were even trains with airplane propellers and bicycles that required a remarkable sense of balance. Here are 15 unusual ways people traveled before today’s transportation systems became part of everyday life.

People Actually Rode in Giant Wheelbarrows

In early 20th-century Beijing, people used enormous single-wheeled carts to transport passengers and goods, with workers pushing or pulling them through the streets.

This Railway Car Was Pulled by Dogs

A photograph from Nome, Alaska, in 1906 shows passengers riding in a small rail cart pulled along the tracks by a team of dogs.

Someone Put an Airplane Propeller on a Train

Germany’s experimental Schienenzeppelin used a rear-mounted propeller for propulsion, creating a railway vehicle that looked more like an airplane without wings.

This Bicycle Had One Very Uncomfortable Problem

A photograph from 1889 captures a man riding a penny-farthing down the steps of the U.S. Capitol, balancing above an enormous wheel with very little room for error.

Camels Were Used to Transport an Entire Boat

A photograph from Western Australia in 1900 shows a camel caravan carrying a boat to Nannine, demonstrating just how versatile these animals were for transporting cargo.

This Passenger Chair Came With Human Porters

In India, travelers could be carried in a type of portable seat known as a dandy, an arrangement documented in a 1924 photograph.

Even a Sedan Chair Could Be Mule-Powered

A photograph taken around 1910 in China shows a sedan chair carried by two mules, adapting a traditionally human-powered form of transport for animal assistance.

Buenos Aires Once Had Horse-Powered Streetcars

A photograph from around 1900 shows horse-drawn trams passing the Casa Rosada.

This Tricycle Ran on Steam

Inventors Jules and Paul Cornu built a steam-powered tricycle in France in 1901, showing just how experimental personal transportation could get before modern motorcycles took over.

A Korean Woman Traveled in a Carried Chair

A photograph published in 1901 shows a Korean woman seated in a sedan chair.

Dogs Were Doing the Work of Delivery Trucks

An early photograph from Alaska shows a team of dogs hauling a loaded freight sled, transporting supplies across terrain where wheeled vehicles were impractical.

Camels Were Hauling Supplies for Horse Coaches

In Queensland, Australia, a 1902 photograph shows camels crossing the Bulloo River with horse feed intended for Cobb & Co., a major coaching company.

This Ship Could Break Through a Frozen Lake

The Russian icebreaker Angara was photographed crossing icy Lake Baikal in the early 1900s, allowing transportation to continue through conditions that stopped ordinary boats.

Early Motorized Transportation Had Three Wheels

A 1900 illustration shows an unusual Columbia motorized tricycle, offering a glimpse of the experimental vehicles being developed around the dawn of the automobile age.

Four Passengers Shared This Tiny Horse Cart

An archival photograph from India shows four men riding together in a small two-wheeled cart pulled by a horse.