Where was the very first auto show?

Nope, not Detroit.

Paris, like 1899 or something.

1899 sounds correct to me. Don't know where.

I know Cadillac was at the NY show in Jan 1903, but there were earlier shows than that.

The first automobile show in the world was held in Paris in 1898 at the Tuilleries Gardens. Only a handful of the new-fangled "automobiles" were exhibited at the outdoor location. To prove the validity of this new mode of transportation, exhibitors had to drive their vehicles from Versailles to Paris. Although he opened this first Paris Motor Show, the President of France was openly skeptical about the automobile and punctuated his opinion by leaving the auto show in a horse-drawn carriage.

And to think a little over 100 years later what a mighty juggernaut the current French automobile industry is.

198060[/snapback]

They built the "Maginot Line... would you expect more from the French when it comes to cars?

OcnBlu you got it.......yep Paris.