In 1912, Florence French and her veterinarian husband moved to Oak Bay from Montreal.
They had their car, a 1912 Detroit Electric, delivered by train.
“She used the car to drive to the Empress hotel for tea for 37 years,” said Cam Rawlinson, founding member of the Island’s chapter of the Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association.
It was most likely the first electric vehicle in the region.
This year marks the car’s 100th birthday, and the Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association hopes to bring it back home to mark its anniversary year, from Aug. 1 to Aug. 18.
The association owns the car, but it resides at the B.C. Hydro Museum at Stave Falls near Mission.