The Lexington was an automobile manufactured in
Connersville, Indiana
Connersville is a city in Fayette County, east central Indiana, United States, east by southeast of Indianapolis. The population was 13,481 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of and the largest and only incorporated town in F ...
, from 1910 to 1927. From the beginning, Lexingtons, like most other Indiana-built automobiles, were assembled cars, built with components from many different suppliers. The Thoroughbred Six and Minute Man Six were popular Lexington models.
Origins
The Lexington Motor Company was founded in 1909 in
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...
, by Kinzea Stone, a Kentucky race horse promoter from
Georgetown, Kentucky
Georgetown is a home rule-class city in Scott County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 37,086 at the 2020 census. It is the 6th-largest city by population in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is the seat of its county. It was originall ...
. Several months later, the company outgrew its building.
In 1910, a group of
Connersville
Connersville is a city in Fayette County, east central Indiana, United States, east by southeast of Indianapolis. The population was 13,481 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of and the largest and only incorporated town in Fa ...
businessmen noted the community had too much tied up in the
buggy and
carriage
A carriage is a private four-wheeled vehicle for people and is most commonly horse-drawn. Second-hand private carriages were common public transport, the equivalent of modern cars used as taxis. Carriage suspensions are by leather strapping an ...
industry, which was being displaced by the growing use of the automobile. The group enticed the infant Lexington Motor Car Company to relocate from Lexington to a new plant at 800 West 18th Street in the
McFarlan industrial park, with headquarters at 1950 Columbia Avenue.
[Clymer, Floyd. ''Treasury of Early American Automobiles, 1877-1925'' (New York: Bonanza Books, 1950), p. 172.] John C. Moore, the company's chief engineer, immediately started on improvements to the Lexington to keep the company ahead of its competition. His 1911 multiple exhaust was reported to give 30 percent more power on less fuel. Each cylinder had a separate exhaust. Dual exhaust pipes and mufflers were used.
The company entered both the
Glidden Tour
The Glidden Tours, also known as the National Reliability Runs, were promotional events held during the automotive Brass Era by the American Automobile Association (AAA) and organized by the group's chairman, Augustus Post. The AAA, a proponent ...
and
Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...
in 1912.
Acquisition and expansion
Financial difficulties were solved in 1913 when E.W. Ansted acquired Lexington to assemble the six-cylinder Howard for a contract with a Chicago distributor. The resultant company was named Lexington-Howard. In 1915, the name changed back to Lexington Motor Company. The regular four-cylinder engine was supplemented by a light six and a supreme six. With the new Ansted engines, Lexington's cars became modern and powerful. In 1916, Lexington was using the
Continental
Continental may refer to:
Places
* Continent, the major landmasses of Earth
* Continental, Arizona, a small community in Pima County, Arizona, US
* Continental, Ohio, a small town in Putnam County, US
Arts and entertainment
* ''Continental'' ( ...
engine.
Lexington's first plant expansion was in 1915. A factory building was erected just north of the office. Also built at the same time was a smokestack with the Lexington name in lighter color bricks. Four years later the company built a assembly building just west of the office.
In 1917, Moore put together a new automobile frame with a rigid box cross-section that eliminated the problem of jammed doors caused by frame flexing. This car also had an emergency brake affixed to the drive shaft. In 1918, Lexington autos featured hardtop enclosures made by the Rex Manufacturing Company, also of Connersville.
Also in 1918, the newly formed Ansted Engineering Company acquired Teetor-Harley Motor Corporation of
Hagerstown, Indiana
Hagerstown is a town in Jefferson Township, Wayne County, Indiana, Jefferson Township, Wayne County, Indiana, Wayne County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the United States Census 2010, 2010 census, the population was 1,787.
History
Hagers ...
. In 1919, the Ansted Engine building was erected just north of the Lexington plant and extended to 21st Street. The combined Lexington and Ansted facilities measured three blocks long and two blocks wide totaling of floor space.
Heyday
![United States Automotive 1921](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/United_States_Automotive_1921.jpg)
Two short-wheelbase race cars with the powerful Ansted engine were built by Lexington for the 1920
Pikes Peak
Pikes Peak is the List of mountain ranges of Colorado#Mountain ranges, highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, in North America. The Ultra-prominent peak, ultra-prominent fourteener is located in Pike National Forest ...
hill climb.
The cars placed first and second in their initial outing and brought home the Penrose trophy. Again in 1924, Otto Loesche won, with an 18-minute 15-second dash and brought the trophy home for keeps. The Penrose trophy is on display at the Fayette County Historical Museum on Vine Street, Connersville Indiana.
The formation of the United States Automotive Corporation was announced by President Frank B. Ansted at the
New York Auto Show
The New York International Auto Show is an annual auto show that is held in Manhattan in late March or early April. It is held at the Jacob Javits Convention Center. It usually opens on or just before Easter weekend and closes on the first Su ...
on January 12, 1920. It was a $10 million merger with the Lexington, the Ansted Engineering Company, and Connersville Foundry Corporation, all from Connersville, plus the Teetor-Harley Motor Corporation of Hagerstown. 1920 marked the high point of Lexington production with over 6,000 built.
On December 16, 1921,
William C. Durant
William Crapo Durant (December 8, 1861 – March 18, 1947) was a leading pioneer of the United States automobile industry and co-founder of General Motors and Chevrolet. He created a system in which a company held multiple marques – each s ...
, founder of
General Motors
The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
and former GM president, ordered 30,000 Ansted engines for his new Durant Six being built in
Muncie, Indiana
Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the county seat, seat of Delaware County, Indiana, Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs ...
, by Durant Motors, Inc. Late in 1921,
Alanson Partridge Brush
Brush Motor Car Company (1907-1909), later the Brush Runabout Company (1909-1913), was based in Highland Park, Michigan.
History
The company was founded by Alanson Partridge Brush (February 10, 1878, Michigan – March 6, 1952, Michigan). He ...
(designer of the
Brush Runabout
Brush Motor Car Company (1907-1909), later the Brush Runabout Company (1909-1913), was based in Highland Park, Michigan.
History
The company was founded by Alanson Partridge Brush (February 10, 1878, Michigan – March 6, 1952, Michigan). He ...
and consulting engineer to General Motors) sued the company, alleging the Ansted engine infringed a number of his patents.
Phase-out
The
post-World War I recession of the early twenties hurt the Lexington Motor Car Company and United States Automotive Corporation. Production in 1922 plummeted to roughly a third of that of 1920.
In 1923, Ansted Engine Company entered receivership, with Durant as a principal claimant. Lexington also entered receivership in 1923.
In 1926 and 1927, respectively,
E.L. Cord
Errett Lobban "E. L." Cord (July 20, 1894 – January 2, 1974) was an American business executive. He was considered a leader in United States transport during the early and middle 20th century.
Cord founded the Cord Corporation in 1929 as ...
's
Auburn Automobile
Auburn was a brand name of American automobiles produced from 1900 to 1937, most known for the Auburn Speedster models it produced, which were fast, good-looking and expensive. However, after the 1929 Wall Street Crash, and the economic downturn ...
Company purchased Ansted Engine and the Lexington Motor Car Company. The Lexington was soon phased out.
Models
The early Lexingtons of 1910 to 1913 were
four-cylinder
The engine configuration describes the fundamental operating principles by which internal combustion engines are categorized.
Piston engines are often categorized by their cylinder layout, valves and camshafts. Wankel engines are often categorize ...
automobiles built on to
wheelbase
In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (front ...
s, with
body styles including 2 seat
runabouts and
roadsters
__NOTOC__
Roadster may refer to:
Transportation
* Roadster (automobile), an open, two-seat, often sporty car
** Roadster utility, an automobile with an open-topped roadster body and a rear cargo bed
* Roadster (bicycle), a utilitarian bicycle, typ ...
, 5 and 7 passenger
tourers, and
limousine
A limousine ( or ), or limo () for short, is a large, chauffeur-driven luxury vehicle with a partition between the driver compartment and the passenger compartment.
A very long wheelbase luxury sedan (with more than four doors) driven by a prof ...
s.
1914 marked the introduction of a
six-cylinder
The straight-six engine (also referred to as an inline-six engine; abbreviated I6 or L6) is a piston engine with six cylinders arranged in a straight line along the crankshaft. A straight-six engine has perfect primary and secondary engine balan ...
auto on a 130" (3302 mm) wheelbase. In 1915, the 29 hp (22 kW) Light Six rode on a 128 in (3251 mm) wheelbase and the 41 hp (31 kW) Supreme Six on 130 in (3302 mm), offering a range of body styles: 3 seat roadster, 5, 6, and 7 passenger tourer, and 7 passenger limousine.
In 1916, the Thoroughbred Six sold for US$2,875,
[Clymer, p. 172.] the Minute Man Six tourer US$1,185
and
convertible
A convertible or cabriolet () is a passenger car that can be driven with or without a roof in place. The methods of retracting and storing the roof vary among eras and manufacturers.
A convertible car's design allows an open-air driving expe ...
sedan US$1,350.
Both offered electric horns.
For 1919, new enclosed bodies were marketed with names like Coupelet, Sedanette, and Salon Sedan all with six-cylinder engines and a 122 in (3099 mm) wheelbase.
There were two series of 1921 and 1922 Lexingtons: Series S, a 47 hp (35 kW) six-cylinder on a 122 in (3099 mm) wheelbase, and Series T, a 60 hp (45 kW) six on a 128 in (3251 mm) wheelbase. Body styles included 5 and 7 passenger tourer, sedan,
coupe
A coupe or coupé (, ) is a passenger car with a sloping or truncated rear roofline and two doors.
The term ''coupé'' was first applied to horse-drawn carriages for two passengers without rear-facing seats. It comes from the French past parti ...
, and sedanette, and 7 passenger Salon Sedan.
In 1924 and 1925, Lexington again offered two versions: the Concord, a 65 hp (48 kW) six on a 119 in (3023 mm) wheelbase, and the Minute Man, a 72 hp (54 kW) six on a 123 in (3124 mm) wheelbase. Body styles included 5 and 7 passenger tourer, sedan, and coupe, 5 passenger Royal Coach, and 5 passenger
Brougham
Brougham may refer to:
Transport
* Brougham (carriage), a light four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage
* Brougham (car body), an automobile with a similar style
Automobile models
* Cadillac Brougham, 1987–1992
* Chrysler New Yorker Brougham, c. 1 ...
.
In 1926 and 1927, Lexington offered the Model 6-50, with the same engine and wheelbase as the Concord, in 4 passenger roadster or
landaulet Landaulet may refer to:
* Landaulet (carriage), horse-drawn carriage
* Landaulet (car)
A landaulet, also known as a landaulette, is a car body style where the rear passengers are covered by a convertible top. Often the driver is separated from t ...
, and a 5-passenger
phaeton, sedan, or
landau
Landau ( pfl, Landach), officially Landau in der Pfalz, is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990 ...
sedan.
Production totals
The following lists the number of Lexington's in each year, from 123 in 1909 up to 6,128 in 1920, followed by a decline to 183 in 1926, the final year.
References
External links
1918 Lexington Minute Man advertisement*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lexington (Automobile)
Brass Era vehicles
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States
Motor vehicle manufacturers based in Indiana
Fayette County, Indiana
History of Lexington, Kentucky
1900s cars
1910s cars
1920s cars
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1910
American companies established in 1910
Defunct manufacturing companies based in Indiana
1927 disestablishments in the United States
Historic American Engineering Record in Indiana
Vintage vehicles
Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1927
Cars introduced in 1909