![Haynes-Apperson 1903 Surrey Auto on London to Brighton Veteran Car Run 2009](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Haynes-Apperson_1903_Surrey_Auto_on_London_to_Brighton_Veteran_Car_Run_2009.jpg)
Haynes-Apperson Company was a manufacturer of
Brass Era
The Brass Era is an American term for the early period of automotive manufacturing, named for the prominent brass fittings used during this time for such things as lights and radiators. It is generally considered to encompass 1896 through 1915 ...
automobile
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods.
The year 1886 is regarde ...
s in
Kokomo, Indiana, from 1896 to 1905. It was the first automobile manufacturer in
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
, and among the first in the United States.
Elwood Haynes
Elwood Haynes (October 14, 1857 – April 13, 1925) was an American inventor, metallurgist, automotive pioneer, entrepreneur and industrialist. He invented the metal alloy stellite and independently co-discovered martensitic stainless steel ...
, one of the founders, worked on early types of
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 ...
and was the inventor of
stellite
Stellite is a range of cobalt-chromium alloys designed for wear resistance. The alloys may also contain tungsten or molybdenum and a small, but important, amount of carbon.
History
Stellite is a trademarked name of Kennametal Inc. Prior to tha ...
, and many of the early advances in automobile technology were first invented by the company.
History
The company was founded by
Elwood Haynes
Elwood Haynes (October 14, 1857 – April 13, 1925) was an American inventor, metallurgist, automotive pioneer, entrepreneur and industrialist. He invented the metal alloy stellite and independently co-discovered martensitic stainless steel ...
and brothers
Elmer
Elmer is a name of Germanic British origin. The given name originated as a surname, a medieval variant of the given name Aylmer, derived from Old English ''æþel'' (noble) and ''mær'' (famous). It was adopted as a given name in the United State ...
and
Edgar Apperson
Edgar Apperson (October 3, 1870 – May 12, 1959) was an American automobile manufacturer and engineer.
He, along with his brother Elmer, was the first to create one of the world's first horseless carriages, and Edgar was the first to install th ...
. In 1894, the trio built one of the first gasoline powered vehicles in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, at Apperson's Riverside Machine Works. By 1898 the company was producing one new car every two to three weeks, and selling early models for $2,000 (
USD
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
). At the end of that year, they relocated the company to a large factory where they designed two additional models. They brought on a larger workforce and increased the production rate to between two and three new cars each (year). From there business began to boom, five cars in 1898, thirty 1899, 192 in 1900 and 240 in 1901. Production increases kept the factory open 24 hours a day, and two shifts of workers were needed to keep the factory running at capacity.
![Haynes-Apperson Ad](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Haynes-Apperson_Ad.jpg)
Haynes-Apperson automobiles were known for their "long distance running" capability. The company regularly competed their cars in endurance races. A Haynes-Apperson was among the cars entered in the first automobile race in America, the
Chicago Times-Herald
The ''Chicago Times'' was a newspaper in Chicago from 1854 to 1895, when it merged with the ''Chicago Herald'', to become the ''Chicago Times-Herald''. The ''Times-Herald'' effectively disappeared in 1901 when it merged with the ''Chicago Record' ...
race from Chicago and
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...
in 1895.
[History of the Indianapolis 500] The last model designed by the company had a three-speed transmission and was capable of 24 mph on
pneumatic tires
A tire (American English) or tyre (British English) is a ring-shaped component that surrounds a wheel's rim to transfer a vehicle's load from the axle through the wheel to the ground and to provide traction on the surface over which t ...
. In 1902, the brothers had turned a large profit from the enterprise and they decided to split up to form their own companies. The
Apperson
The Apperson was a brand of American automobile manufactured from 1901 to 1926 in Kokomo, Indiana.
Company history
The company was founded by the brothers Edgar and Elmer Apperson shortly after they left Haynes-Apperson; for a time they con ...
automobile company was formed that year, and in 1905, Haynes-Apperson was renamed the
Haynes Automobile Company
The Haynes Automobile Company was an American automobile manufacturing company that produced automobiles in Kokomo, Indiana, from 1905 to 1924. The company was formerly known as the Haynes-Apperson company, and produced automobiles under that ...
.
The 1904 ''Haynes-Apperson Light Car'' was a
runabout seating two passengers, selling for $1,550. The horizontal-mounted water-cooled
flat twin
A flat-twin engine is a two-cylinder internal combustion engine with the cylinders on opposite sides of the crankshaft. The most common type of flat-twin engine is the boxer-twin engine, where both pistons move inwards and outwards at the same ti ...
, situated at the rear of the car, produced 11 hp (8.2 kW). A 3-speed transmission was fitted, and the car used an angle iron frame. The ''
Tonneau
A tonneau ( or ) is an area of a car or truck open at the top. It can be for passengers or cargo.
A tonneau cover in current automotive terminology is a hard or soft cover that spans the back of a pickup truck to protect the load or to improve ...
'' had a similar flat-twin of 17 hp (12.7 kW), situated at the front of the car, and three-speed transmission was fitted. The angle iron-framed car weighed 2300 lb (1043 kg), seated five, and sold for $2,500.
An 1894 Haynes is in the permanent collection of the
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
's
National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...
.
Commemorative festival
Since 1977 a race in
Kokomo, Indiana, for runners and walkers has been held during the "Haynes-Apperson Festival" in commemoration of the pioneer auto company
See also
*
Duryea brothers
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, I ...
, makers of the first American automobile
*
Ransom Olds, maker of early production American automobile
Notes
External links
Haynes-Apperson Festival
References
* ''Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly'' (January, 1904)
{{Kokomo, Indiana
Motor vehicle manufacturers based in Indiana
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States
1890s cars
1900s cars
Companies based in Kokomo, Indiana
Defunct companies based in Indiana
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1896
Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1905
1896 establishments in Indiana
1905 disestablishments in Indiana
Veteran vehicles
Brass Era vehicles
Highwheeler