A high wheeler is a car which uses large diameter wheels that are similar to those used by
horse-drawn vehicle
A horse-drawn vehicle is a mechanized piece of equipment pulled by one horse or by a team of horses. These vehicles typically had two or four wheels and were used to carry passengers and/or a load. They were once common worldwide, but they have m ...
s. These cars were produced until about 1915,
predominantly 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 territo ...
.
Design
High wheelers were derived from horse-drawn
wagons,
and often were conversions of these. Similarly to these wagons, they often feature
wood-spoke wheels, suspensions and boxy wooden bodies.
The large-diameter slender
wheel
A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction with axles, allow heavy objects to be ...
s were frequently with solid rubber
tire
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 ...
s, to provide ample ground clearance on the primitive roads of the late 19th century.
These cars were produced in many body styles. The most common were the
motorized wagon (utility vehicle)
runabout,
roadster and
buggy, some with detachable
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 ...
s.
File:International Torpedo - Coupe Florio 2015 01.jpg, International Harvester Auto-Buggy
File:1911 International Wagon.JPG, 1911 International Harvester Auto Wagon
File:Vintage International Harvester Auto Buggy (5043226321) (cropped).jpg, International Harvester Auto Wagon
File:Sears Model L.JPG, Sears Model L
Image:Patent, Duryea Road Vehicle, 1895.png, Patent drawing
A patent application or patent may contain drawings, also called patent drawings, illustrating the invention, some of its embodiments (which are particular implementations or methods of carrying out the invention), or the prior art. The drawings ...
for the Duryea Duryea may refer to:
* Duryea (surname)
*Duryea Motor Wagon Company, first American automobile company
*Duryea, Pennsylvania
Duryea is a borough in the Greater Pittston area of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, south of Scranton. The ...
Road Vehicle, 1895
File:George B Selden driving automobile in 1905.jpg, George B. Selden
George Baldwin Selden (September 14, 1846 – January 17, 1922) was a patent lawyer and inventor who was granted a U.S. patent for an automobile in 1895.Flink, p. 51 ''Probably the most absurd action in the history of patent law was the grantin ...
driving an automobile in 1905
File:Lenoir Hippomobile.jpg, Lenoir Hippomobile
The Hippomobile is an automobile invented by Étienne Lenoir in 1863 which carried its own internal combustion engine. It was based on his 1860 invention, the Lenoir gas engine.
History
In 1863 the Hippomobile, powered by one cylinder internal ...
History
Before
gasoline engines became widely available, high wheelers were powered by
electric motor
An electric motor is an electrical machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a wire winding to generate force ...
s or
steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...
s.
The decline of the high wheeler began when standard automobiles became more sophisticated and inexpensive. The end came with the popularity of the
Ford 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 ...
.
The last high wheelers were built around 1915.
Manufacturers
The following companies produced high-wheeler cars:
*
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
*
Anchor Buggy
The Anchor Buggy was a short-lived United States automobile manufacturer; the high wheeler was manufactured by the Anchor Buggy and Carriage Company in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, in 1910 and 1911.
An 1890 advertisement for the Anchor Bugg ...
*
Åtvidabergs Vagnfabrik
*
Best
Best or The Best may refer to:
People
* Best (surname), people with the surname Best
* Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer
Companies and organizations
* Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain
* Best Lock Corporation ...
*
Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have of ...
*
Buckeye
*
*Clymer
*
Cole
Cole may refer to:
Plants
* Cole crops of the genus ''Brassica'', especially cabbage, kale, or rape (rapeseed).
People
* Cole (given name), people with the given name Cole
* Cole (surname), people with the surname Cole
Companies
* Cole Moto ...
*
*
Columbia Electric
Columbia was an American brand of automobiles produced by a group of companies in the United States. They included the Pope Manufacturing Company of Hartford, Connecticut, the Electric Vehicle Company, and an entity of brief existence in 1899, ...
*
*
De Schaum
The De Schaum was an American automobile manufactured in Buffalo, New York from 1908 to 1909. The company offered a 7 hp High wheeler called the De Shaum and Seven Little Buffaloes.
History
William A. De Shaum was William A Shaum with a ...
*
DeWitt
*
*
Duryea Duryea may refer to:
* Duryea (surname)
*Duryea Motor Wagon Company, first American automobile company
*Duryea, Pennsylvania
Duryea is a borough in the Greater Pittston area of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, south of Scranton. The ...
*
*
Electrobat
*
Eureka
Eureka (often abbreviated as E!, or Σ!) is an intergovernmental organisation for research and development funding and coordination. Eureka is an open platform for international cooperation in innovation. Organisations and companies applying th ...
*
Fuller*
*
Hatfield
*
Haynes-Apperson
Haynes-Apperson Company was a manufacturer of Brass Era automobiles in Kokomo, Indiana, from 1896 to 1905. It was the first automobile manufacturer in Indiana, and among the first in the United States. Elwood Haynes, one of the founders, worked o ...
*
*
Hobbie Accessible
*
Holsman
*
Holyoke
Holyoke is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, that lies between the western bank of the Connecticut River and the Mount Tom Range. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 38,238. Located north of Springfiel ...
*
International Harvester
The International Harvester Company (often abbreviated by IHC, IH, or simply International ( colloq.)) was an American manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, automobiles, commercial trucks, lawn and garden products, household e ...
*
*Jeannin
*
Jewell/Jewel*
*
Keystone
*
Kiblinger
*
King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the ti ...
*
*Lindsley
*
Luverne*
*
McIntyre*
*
*
Reliable Dayton
*
Schacht*
*
Sears
*
Single Center
*Sperry Electric
*
Staver
*
*
Success
*
*
Waverley Electric*
Waverley Electric
/ref>
* Woods*
**
* Companies which also produced cars other than high wheelers
References
Sources
*Kimes, Beverly Rae and Clark Jr, Henry Austin. ''Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805-1942'' (Third Edition). Iola, WI: Krause. 1996. {{ISBN, 0-87341-428-4
Car body styles
Car classifications
Highwheeler
1890s cars
1900s cars
1910s cars
Veteran vehicles
Brass Era vehicles