Chauncey Thomas

Chauncey Thomas (1822-98) was Boston's premier carriage-builder for more than fifty years. Though he died before his company began making automobile bodies, Boston's loyal elite continued to choose Thomas coachwork for their horseless carriages. Today Thomas is better known as the author of 'The Crystal Button or, Adventures of Paul Prognosis in the Forty-Ninth Century', a work of science fiction set in 49th century Boston. Written from 1872-1878 in order to take his mind off of business cares, it was first submitted to Boston literary editor George W.W. Houghton in 1880, who initially rejected it. However the great success of Edward Bellamy's 'Looking Backward', published in 1888, established a strong niche market for this type of novel, and Houghton took on the project, which was first published in 1891 by Houghton, Mifflin & Company.