Ole Evinrude, born Ole Andreassen Aaslundeie (April 19, 1877 – July 12, 1934) was an American entrepreneur, known for the invention of the first
outboard motor with practical commercial application.
Biography
Ole Evinrude was born in
Hunndalen in the municipality of
Vardal
Vardal is a former municipality in the old Oppland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now divided between Gjøvik Municipality and Vestre Toten Municipality in the traditional distric ...
(now
Gjøvik
is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Toten
Toten is a traditional district in Innlandet county in the eastern part of Norway. It consists of the municipalities Østre Toten and Vestre ...
), in
Oppland
Oppland is a former county in Norway which existed from 1781 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020. The old Oppland county bordered the counties of Trøndelag, Møre og Romsdal, Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Akershus, Oslo and Hedmark. The c ...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...
. The Evinrude surname, which he adopted in the United States, is an
oeconym from the Evenrud farm in
Vestre Toten, where his mother was born. In October 1881, his father emigrated to America, followed the next year by Evinrude, his mother and two siblings. Three additional siblings were born in America. The family settled on a farm in Ripley Lake near
Cambridge, Wisconsin. At age sixteen, Evinrude went to
Madison Madison may refer to:
People
* Madison (name), a given name and a surname
* James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States
Place names
* Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...
, where he worked in machinery stores and studied engineering on his own. He became a machinist while working at various machine tool firms in
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...
,
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
, and
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
.
In 1900, Evinrude co-founded the custom engine firm Clemick & Evinrude. In 1907, he invented the first practical and reliable
outboard motor, which was built of steel and brass, and had a crank on the flywheel to start the two-cycle engine. In 1907 he had built his first gasoline-powered outboard motor, and two years later, Evinrude Motor Company was founded in Milwaukee. The simplest type of engine the company produced was a 2-stroke internal combustion engine that was powered by a mixture of gasoline and oil.
Evinrude reported that his invention was inspired by rowing a boat on Okauchee Lake, a small lake outside
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...
, on a hot day to get
ice cream
Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as ...
for his girlfriend, Bess.
[ ] By 1912, the firm employed 300 workers. Evinrude let two motorcycle-mad teens tinker in his
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...
-based machine shop; one was named
Arthur Davidson, who went on to Harley-Davidson motorcycle fame, also based in
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...
. Ole Evinrude formed
Evinrude Outboard Motors
Evinrude Outboard Motors was a North American company that built a major brand of two-stroke outboard motors for boats. Founded by Ole Evinrude in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1907, it was formerly owned by the publicly traded Outboard Marine Corpo ...
, which he sold in 1913 in order to look after his sick wife.
In 1919, Evinrude invented a more efficient and lighter two-cylinder motor. Having sold his part in Clemick & Evinrude, he founded
ELTO or the Elto Outboard Motor Company. (ELTO was an acronym for "Evinrude Light Twin Outboard".) Although Elto faced stiff competition from other companies, such as the
Johnson Motor Company
Johnson Outboards was an American manufacturer of outboard motors founded by the four brothers Louis, Harry, Julius and Clarence Johnson.
History
The original company that made Johnson inboard motors and outboard motors was the Johnson Brothers ...
of
South Bend, Indiana
South Bend is a city in and the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, on the St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total of 103,453 residents and is the fourt ...
, Evinrude's company survived through acquisitions, eventually forming the
Outboard Marine Corporation.
His wife Bess died in 1933, at only 48 years old, and Ole Evinrude died the following year, 57 years old.
They were both buried at Pinelawn Cemetery in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...
. After Evinrude died, his son,
Ralph Evinrude
Ralph S. Evinrude (September 27, 1907 – May 21, 1986) was an American business magnate who was chairman of Outboard Marine Corporation, and the husband of singer and entertainer Frances Langford.
Evinrude was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Be ...
, took over day-to-day management of the company, eventually rising to chairman of the board. The company is now called
Evinrude Outboard Motors
Evinrude Outboard Motors was a North American company that built a major brand of two-stroke outboard motors for boats. Founded by Ole Evinrude in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1907, it was formerly owned by the publicly traded Outboard Marine Corpo ...
, and is owned by
Bombardier Recreational Products
BRP Inc. is the holding company for Bombardier Recreational Products Inc., operating as BRP, a Canadian manufacturer of snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, side by sides, motorcycles, and personal watercraft. It was founded in 2003, when the Rec ...
.
[Odd Lovoll]
''Ole Evinrude'' (Norsk biografisk leksikon)
/ref>
References
Further reading
*
* Carstensen, Fred. "Evinrude, Ole," ''American National Biography Online'', Feb. 2000.
* Jacobson, Bob. ''Ole Evinrude and His Outboard Motor''. Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society, 2009.
*Lambrecht, Ralph E.
"A Wisconsin Legend: Ole Evinrude and his Outboard Motor,"
''Wisconsin Magazine of History'', vol. 89, no. 3, (Spring 2006), pp. 16–27.
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evinrude, Ole
1877 births
1934 deaths
People from Oppland
People from Gjøvik
People from Cambridge, Wisconsin
20th-century American inventors
American business executives
American company founders
Norwegian emigrants to the United States