Electricity has been used to power automobiles since the 1830s, when Scottish inventor Robert Anderson built a rudimentary electric carriage. At the turn of the 20th century, it was the most popular means of motor vehicle propulsion; it was clean, quiet, reliable, and especially well-liked by wealthy women who appreciated—and could afford—the autonomy that electric cars offered. However, electric vehicles were also heavy, expensive, limited in range, and required a great deal of time to recharge, and these drawbacks could not be easily addressed with then-available technologies.