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Gray Marine Motor Company was a U.S. manufacturer of marine engines between 1910 and 1967. These ranged from one to six cylinders in both gas and later diesel layouts, which were used in pleasure boats, work boats, and military craft.
Gray was based in
In 1921 Frank L. Klingensmith, William Blackburn (from
The marine engine division continued operations for over forty years, and is most known for converting automotive engines for fishboats, cruisers and
Gray Marine Motor Company was a U.S. manufacturer of marine engines between 1910 and 1967. These ranged from one to six cylinders in both gas and later diesel layouts, which were used in pleasure boats, work boats, and military craft.
Gray was based in Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...
. Many fishing boats, lobsterboats, tugs and pleasure craft used Gray engines. These boats usually fell between 12 and 32 feet. Many of their engines were marinized automotive engines from Hercules, Studebaker
Studebaker was an American wagon and automobile manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana, with a building at 1600 Broadway, Times Square, Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1852 and incorporated in 1868 as the Studebaker Brothers ...
, Pontiac, 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'' (a ...
, American Motors
American Motors Corporation (AMC; commonly referred to as American Motors) was an American automobile manufacturing company formed by the merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and Hudson Motor Car Company on May 1, 1954. At the time, it was t ...
or General Motors Diesel Division
General Motors Diesel Division (GMDD) was a marketing and customer service unit of General Motors founded in 1938. It sought customers for GM's diesel engines, which had undergone major development during the 1930s. It was most active in associ ...
.
Gray also produced a line of outboard motors. Rather than a ninety-degree gearbox, a curved housing connected motor to propeller. The lower-unit housing contained a flexible inner rotating shaft.
Origins
Gray Marine started in 1892 and was re-branded Gray Motor Company about 1910 by O. Mulford and his partners Paul and David Gray. The engines were also used by Traffic Motor Truck Corporation of St Louis,Koehler Truck
Koehler is a transliteration of the German surname Köhler, referring to a man making charcoal from wood. Notable people with the surname include:
* Ana Luiza Koehler (born 1977), Brazilian comics artist and architect.
* Arthur Koehler (1885– ...
of New Jersey, Panhard
Panhard was a French motor vehicle manufacturer that began as one of the first makers of automobiles. It was a manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its final incarnation, now owned by Renault Trucks Defense, was formed b ...
truck, and the Crow-Elkhart
The Crow-Elkhart was an American automobile manufactured from 1909 until 1924 by the Crow-Elkhart Motor Company of Elkhart, Indiana, founded by Martin E. Crow. The company manufactured both four and six cylinder models. After World War I, C ...
car. Prairie Queen tractors
Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
also used this engine in 1922.
Automobiles
In 1921 Frank L. Klingensmith, William Blackburn (from Cadillac
The Cadillac Motor Car Division () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) that designs and builds luxury vehicles. Its major markets are the United States, Canada, and China. Cadillac models are distributed ...
) and Frank F. Beall (from Packard) took over the Gray Motor Company, renaming it Gray Motor Corporation with $4 million capital, with the intent of competing with Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
. Two models of Gray car were made using the Beall developed Z motor. The Z engine was a 12-18 horsepower, 4 cylinder, L-head design that was said to resemble the model T Ford
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 ...
engine.
By 1924 the company was in poor financial condition and Mulford managed to buy back the marine engine division, re-establishing Gray Marine Motor Company. Gray Motor Corporation ceased producing cars by 1926.
Marine Engines
The marine engine division continued operations for over forty years, and is most known for converting automotive engines for fishboats, cruisers and World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
landing craft
Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force ( infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are large ...
, such as the Canadian Ramped cargo lighter and the famed Higgins boats. Gray built their own engines up to 1924, but converted automotive engines from about April 1924 on. During WWII, Gray Marine built 100 marinized GM style 71 series diesels a day using GM cylinder blocks.Grayson, Stan. ''Engines Afloat, Vol. II'' (Marblehead, MA: Devereaux Books, 1999), p.116.
On June 14, 1944, the company was purchased by Continental Motors Company
Continental Motors Company was an American manufacturer of internal combustion engines. The company produced engines as a supplier to many independent manufacturers of automobiles, tractors, trucks, and stationary equipment (such as pumps, gen ...
for $2.6 million. John W. Mulford, the son of O. Mulford, was made general manager of Gray. Gray continued to make marine engines in the post-war period until its closure by Continental in about 1967.
References
{{Authority control Marine engine manufacturers Manufacturing companies based in Detroit Engine manufacturers of the United States