
The hydrogen fuel cell is not a new idea. It was invented in 1839 by Sir William Grove, a Welsh judge, but at that time there were NO vehicles on the road! It took 127 more years to develop a car with a fuel cell.
Still, development of the cell progressed over the years and in October of 1959, Harry Karl Ihrig, an engineer for the Allis – Chalmers Manufacturing Company, demonstrated a 20-horsepower tractor that was the first vehicle ever powered by a fuel cell.