Bowlus is an American luxury

travel trailer A caravan, travel trailer, camper, tourer or camper trailer is a trailer towed behind a road vehicle to provide a place to sleep which is more comfortable and protected than a tent (although there are fold-down trailer tents). It provides the ...

with a front door, aerodynamic shape and polished

aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...

body.

Hawley Bowlus William Hawley Bowlus (May 8, 1896 – August 27, 1967) was an American designer, engineer and builder of aircraft (especially gliders) and recreational vehicles in the 1930s and 1940s. Today he is most widely known for his creation of the worl ...

designed and built the travel trailer using his knowledge of aircraft construction. Aspects of the design were used on the first aluminum-body

Airstream Airstream is an American brand of travel trailer ("caravan" in British English) easily recognized by the distinctive shape of its rounded and polished aluminum coachwork. This body shape dates back to the 1930s and is based on the Bowlus Road C ...

trailers, the Airstream Clipper. Bowlus stopped producing the trailers in 1936. Production of a modernized, enlarged travel trailer resumed in 2013 in Oxnard, California.

History

Founding and early years

The first Bowlus was designed and built by

in 1934. Bowlus was a designer, aerospace engineer and the builder of the

Spirit of St. Louis The ''Spirit of St. Louis'' (formally the Ryan NYP, registration: N-X-211) is the custom-built, single-engine, single-seat, high-wing monoplane that was flown by Charles Lindbergh on May 20–21, 1927, on the first solo nonstop transatlant ...

aircraft. From 1934 to 1936, over eighty Bowlus were built at Bowlus’ family ranch in San Fernando, California. In 1936, Wally Byam who founded

adapted the design for the Airstream Clipper after selling Bowlus trailers. In November 1936, Bowlus stopped building travel trailers and did not transfer assets to another party. Approximately half of the original Bowlus travel trailers have survived. In a Scottsdale Gooding & Company auction, a vintage Bowlus Road Chief sold for $187,000.

Modern Era

Bowlus was revived by Geneva Long and her family in 2014. The modern travel trailers are longer, wider and taller than the originals and are lightweight. The new Endless Highways model is described as being the most advanced travel trailer in the world. The modern-era company is headquartered in Oxnard, California. Each travel trailer is made with

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech-oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 30 ...

wood, 2024 T3 aluminum and

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

countertops. The company manufactures several versions of the trailer, including the Endless Highways, Endless Highways Performance Edition and the Terra Firma

Technology

The Endless Highway was the first travel trailer to use lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries. Endless Highways travel trailers can run for up to two weeks without hookups.

Appearances

A Bowlus Road Chief appeared in the 1935 Hollywood movie Red Salute. In 2016, Bowlus partnered with Bentley for the launch of the Bentley Bentayga during

Monterey Car Week Monterey Car Week is a week in August in which a number of car-related events are held in and around Monterey, California. Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance The Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance is held on the final Sunday of Monterey Car Week. It i ...

. In 2017, a Bowlus Endless Highways appeared in a Squarespace commercial that was part of a Super Bowl Advertising Campaign with

Keanu Reeves Keanu Charles Reeves ( ; born September 2, 1964) is a Canadian actor. Born in Beirut and raised in Toronto, Reeves began acting in theatre productions and in television films before making his feature film debut in '' Youngblood'' (1986). ...

References

{{reflist 1934 establishments in the United States Caravan and travel trailer manufacturers