The Duryea Motor Wagon Company, established in 1895 in
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...
, was the first American firm to build gasoline
automobile
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with Wheel, wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, pe ...
s.
History
Founded by
Charles Duryea
Charles Edgar Duryea (December 15, 1861 – September 28, 1938) was an American engineer. He was the engineer of the first-ever working American gasoline-powered car and co-founder of Duryea Motor Wagon Company. He was born near Canton, Il ...
and his brother
Frank
Frank or Franks may refer to:
People
* Frank (given name)
* Frank (surname)
* Franks (surname)
* Franks, a medieval Germanic people
* Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang
Curr ...
, the company built the
Duryea Motor Wagon
The Duryea Motor Wagon was among the first standardized automobiles and among the first powered by gasoline. Fifteen examples were built by the Duryea Motor Wagon Company of Chicopee, Massachusetts, between 1893 and 1896. Their enterprise follo ...
, a one-cylinder four horsepower car,
first demonstrated on September 21, 1893, in
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...
, on Taylor Street in
Metro Center. It is considered the first successful gas-engine vehicle built in the U.S.
In 1895, a second Duryea (built in 1894),
driven by Frank, won the
''Chicago Times Herald'' race in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
on a snowy
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden and ...
day. He traveled 54 miles (87 km) at an average 7.5 mph (12 km/h), marking the first U.S. auto race in which any entrants finished. That same year, the brothers began commercial production, with thirteen cars sold by the end of 1896. Their first ten production vehicles were the first automobiles sold in the United States.
Banking on the idea that future racing successes would propel their market share, the brothers entered two vehicles in Britain's
London to Brighton Veteran Car Run
The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is the world's longest-running motoring event, held on a course between London () and Brighton (), England. To qualify, participating cars must have been built before 1905. It is also the world's largest g ...
. Frank placed first and beat out the nearest competition by 75 minutes.
The brothers went their separate ways by the end of the century, over a dispute for financing that would have required moving the company to Detroit. Frank helped produce the
Stevens-Duryea
Stevens-Duryea was an American manufacturer of Veteran and Brass Era automobiles in Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, between 1901 and 1915 and Vintage Cars from 1919 to 1927.
The company was founded by J. Frank Duryea and J. Stevens Arms and Too ...
(at gun maker
Stevens) until 1927, while Charles produced Duryea vehicles as late as 1917. Based in
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading ( ; Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Reddin'') is a city in and the county seat of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city had a population of 95,112 as of the 2020 census and is the fourth-largest city in Pennsylvania after Philade ...
, it was not uncommon for residents to see him motoring a brand new automobile from City Park out to Mount Penn, managing the
switchback road as a final test of durability and refinement.
Charles Duryea moved to Reading in February 1900. By 1901, Duryea and Sternbergh incorporated the
Duryea Power Duryea Power Company was a manufacturer of Brass Era automobiles in Reading, Pennsylvania. It was one of several similarly named companies that early automobile pioneer Charles Duryea was involved with.
The 1904 ''Duryea Straight-Line Phaeton'' ...
Company "for the manufacture of iron, steel, bath, any metal or wood or both, including automobiles, motors, propellers, and part of either." By March 1902, after overcoming difficulties procuring factory space, and a devastating flood of the
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...
, Duryea was manufacturing one three-wheel, three-cylinder, gasoline powered automobile each week. Most buyers were doctors, who enjoyed the power, reliability, and heady 20 mile-an-hour top speed of his vehicles.
![1899 Duryea](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/1899_Duryea.JPG)
By 1905, Duryea's fifty workers were manufacturing sixty cars a year, including the four-wheel Phaeton, which soon sold for $1,600. Duryea's automobiles were a success, but a fight among the company's partners led to collapse of the business in 1907. Undaunted, Charles Duryea designed a new automobile with significant design innovations, including a two-cylinder, air-cooled engine, which he named the "Buggyaut." Manufactured in a garage at 32 Carpenter St., the Buggyaut was an inexpensive auto with large wheels designed for rural markets and unpaved roads. To make the car affordable, Duryea introduced a simple body design, mounted on the side bars of the chassis, in usual buggy fashion, that made the Buggyaut light and easy riding. The two-passenger model, complete with top, sold for only $700, but the Buggyaut never achieved the success that he had envisioned. In 1914, Duryea closed the garage and left Reading.
In 1916, eight years after
Henry Ford
Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production. By creating the first automobile that mi ...
introduced his
Model T
The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by Ford Motor Company from October 1, 1908, to May 26, 1927. It is generally regarded as the first affordable automobile, which made car travel available to middle-class Americans. The relati ...
, Duryea made another attempt to produce his own "car for the people." With financing from
Keyser Fry
Keyser is a Dutch, Afrikaans and Norwegian surname meaning "emperor" or an Anglicized form of cognate surnames like German Kaiser. It may refer to:
Places
* Keyser, Ontario, Canada
* Keyser, West Virginia, United States, a city named after Willi ...
of Reading, he created the Duryea GEM, a cross between an automobile and a motorcycle, with a newly designed engine and suspension. Advertised as the "Biggest Idea in the History of the Motor Car and the Last Word in Automobile Construction," the Duryea GEM combined the comfort and stability of an automobile with the simplicity, handling, and economy of a motorcycle. It was also extremely affordable, costing only $250 and boasting an impressive 65 miles of driving per gallon of gasoline. Once again, however, lack of funding forced Duryea to drop the project, with only six being thought to have been built. The GEM was the last automobile built by Charles Duryea.
Although Charles did discuss with Frank Duryea the building of the first commercially successful American automobile, Frank was the actual builder during their collaboration. He did correspond with his brother Charles regarding what did and did not work in the design. Charles left Springfield in 1892 before construction began. This was documented in transcripts during the
Selden Patent trial.
Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles in
Boyertown, Pennsylvania
Boyertown (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Boyerschteddel'') is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania. The population was 4,055 at the 2010 census. Boyertown is known for the many painted fiberglass bears that can be found throughout the town and boroug ...
hosts an annual Duryea Day Antique and Classic Car Show, which features an extensive collection of automobiles manufactured in southeastern Pennsylvania in the early 20th century. Since 1951, the
SCCA
The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting road racing, rallying, and autocross in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs many programs for both amateur and professional r ...
has sponsored a biannual "Duryea Hillclimb" race in Reading which traces Charles' original test route.
See also
*
Buckeye gasoline buggy
The Buckeye gasoline buggy, also known as the Lambert gasoline buggy, was an 1891 gasoline automobile, the first made in the United States. It was also the first automobile made available for sale in the United States. It was initially a three- ...
*
Duryea Motor Wagon
The Duryea Motor Wagon was among the first standardized automobiles and among the first powered by gasoline. Fifteen examples were built by the Duryea Motor Wagon Company of Chicopee, Massachusetts, between 1893 and 1896. Their enterprise follo ...
*
Duryea Power Duryea Power Company was a manufacturer of Brass Era automobiles in Reading, Pennsylvania. It was one of several similarly named companies that early automobile pioneer Charles Duryea was involved with.
The 1904 ''Duryea Straight-Line Phaeton'' ...
*
List of defunct United States automobile manufacturers
This is a list of defunct automobile manufacturers of the United States. They were discontinued for various reasons, such as bankruptcy of the parent company, mergers, or being phased out.
A
* A Automobile Company (1910–1913) 'Blue & Gold' ...
References
External links
{{commons category, position=Duryea vehicles
Photo of Duryea Motor Wagon Company factory, Springfield, Massachusetts Detroit Public Library (copyright retained for unpublished photonegative)
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States
Brass Era vehicles
Vehicles introduced in 1895
Manufacturing companies based in Springfield, Massachusetts
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1895
Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1900
1895 establishments in Massachusetts
1900 establishments in Massachusetts
Defunct manufacturing companies based in Massachusetts