The origin of that story is Charles Steinmetz, and it involves Henry Ford, a $10,000 invoice and placing a X in chalk. http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/charles-proteus-steinm...
"Practically anyone famous for his knowledge can be offered up as the virtuoso in this tale... Nikola Tesla, Thomas Edison, George Washington, the electrical genius Charles Proteus Steinmetz... How long this story has been around is a mystery."
Whu?
"In 1900, 40% of American automobiles were powered by steam, 38% by electricity, and 22% by gasoline.[19]"
Now I just want to know how they were dealing with power storage...