The Great American Car Rush: When Anyone Could Build an Automobile
The Great American Car Rush: When Anyone Could Build an Automobile
In 1895, there was one American automobile company. By 1900 there were thirty, producing about 2,500 cars. By 1908 there were more than 250 active manufacturers. By 1910 the number approached 500. By 1929, consolidation had brought that number down to 44. By 1950, it was a handful.
More than 2,000 American companies tried to build automobiles between the 1890s and 1950. Almost all of them failed. This is their story — and the story of what they tell us about American mechanical ingenuity at the turn of the twentieth century.
If You Could Cast an Engine Block, You Could Build a Car
The early automobile industry wasn’t born in boardrooms. It was born in machine shops, carriage factories, bicycle repair barns, and blacksmith forges. The knowledge required to build a car engine — casting iron, machining cylinders, turning crankshafts, assembling transmissions — was not exotic in 1900. It was the ordinary competency of skilled tradesmen across industrial America.
The country already had an enormous base of mechanical expertise. The Civil War had industrialized the North. The railroad era had created a generation of machinists, boilermakers, and ironworkers. Bicycle manufacturing in the 1880s and 1890s had produced an even larger cohort of precision mechanics who understood gearing, chain drive, and lightweight frame construction. The same hands that built bicycles built the first cars. The Wright Brothers are the most famous example, but they were hardly alone.
When the automobile arrived, the barrier to entry was remarkably low by modern standards. You needed:
- A machine shop or access to one
- A foundry to cast engine blocks, or a supplier willing to take your order
- A carriage maker or woodworker for the body
- Enough capital to build a prototype and a few production cars
- A dealer network, or just word of mouth
The Auto History Preservation Society has documented how thoroughly this era was driven by grassroots mechanical innovation — inventions and refinements coming not from centralized R&D labs, but from individual shop floors across the country.
In November 1895, the trade journal The Horseless Age published its first issue. It listed 73 firms already involved in motor carriage manufacturing or supply. That was 1895. The gold rush had barely started.
The Numbers
| Year | Approx. U.S. Auto Manufacturers |
|---|---|
| 1895 | 1 (Duryea) |
| 1900 | 30 |
| 1908 | 250+ |
| 1910 | ~500 |
| 1920 | ~100 |
| 1929 | 44 |
| 1940 | ~10 |
| 1950 | handful |
The collapse wasn’t sudden — it was the inevitable result of economics. Henry Ford’s moving assembly line at Highland Park drove the price of the Model T from $850 in 1909 to $260 by 1924. No small manufacturer could compete with that. Cadillac’s introduction of the electric self-starter in 1912 eliminated the one major advantage electric cars held over gasoline. World War I disrupted supply chains and shifted factory capacity. The Great Depression of 1929 killed off the rest.
The Library of Congress Automotive Industry research guide and Chronicling America newspaper archive are remarkable resources for reading the contemporary coverage of this era — the boom, the shakeouts, and the disappearances.
For a comprehensive look at the full list of defunct American automobile manufacturers , Grokipedia maintains an extensive catalog. The PartsGeek automotive timeline is also a useful visual reference.
The Companies: Electric Cars
The electric car was not a modern invention. It was the first dominant technology — and a whole industry grew up around it before gasoline won. I’ve written more about this era in my Detroit Electric post .
Anderson Electric / Detroit Electric (1907–1939) — Detroit, MI The longest-surviving dedicated electric car manufacturer in American history. ~13,000 cars built. Notable owners included Clara Ford, Thomas Edison, and John D. Rockefeller Jr. Detroit Electric enthusiast site | More in our Detroit Electric post
Baker Electric (1899–1915) — Cleveland, OH Marketed as “The Aristocrat of Motordom.” Set land speed records, sold to President Taft for the White House fleet. Grokipedia: Baker Electric | More in our Detroit Electric post
A 1909 Detroit Electric — one of the longest-surviving electric car manufacturers in American history, producing cars from 1907 to 1939.
Columbia Electric (1897–1913) — Hartford, CT The first mass-produced electric automobile in the United States, built by Pope Manufacturing. Twin motors, five-speed transmission, 88-volt battery, top speed 18 mph. More in our Detroit Electric post
Milburn Light Electric (1914–1923) — Toledo, OH Pioneered roll-out battery replacement — depleted packs rolled out on casters, fresh ones rolled in. 75-mile range. Buick bought the factory in 1923. Grokipedia: Milburn Light Electric | More in our Detroit Electric post
Riker Electric (1896–1902) — Brooklyn, NY Built by Andrew Riker, one of the genuine early electric vehicle engineers. Riker later moved to gasoline cars and joined Locomobile. Grokipedia: Riker Electric
Studebaker Electric (1902–1912) — South Bend, IN Before Studebaker committed fully to gasoline automobiles, they produced electric vehicles for a decade. The carriage-to-car transition in miniature. More in our Studebaker post
Waverley Electric (1898–1916) — Indianapolis, IN Built as Waverley, then Pope-Waverley, then Silent Waverley. Favored by Thomas Edison. Produced in Indianapolis — the same city that would later produce Cole, Stutz, Marmon, and Duesenberg. Grokipedia: Waverley Electric | More in our Detroit Electric post
Woods Electric (1899–1916) — Chicago, IL Produced electric cars and one of the earliest American hybrids — the 1917 “Dual Power” combined a four-cylinder gasoline engine with an electric motor. A century ahead of its time.
The Companies: Steam Cars
Before gasoline was king, steam had serious believers. Steam engines were well-understood technology — railroad engineers, factory owners, and marine operators had run them for decades.
Stanley Motor Carriage Company (1897–1924) — Newton, MA The most famous American steam car. Built by identical twins Francis and Freelan Stanley. The Stanley Steamer held the land speed record in 1906 at 127.66 mph — faster than any gasoline car of the era. Quiet, powerful, and genuinely competitive until infrastructure (needing water every 20–30 miles) and startup time killed the concept. Grokipedia: Stanley Motor Carriage Company
White Motor Company (steam era 1900–1911) — Cleveland, OH White built steam-powered cars until 1911, then transitioned entirely to gasoline and eventually trucks. President Theodore Roosevelt used a White steam car — the first automobile used by a sitting U.S. President. Grokipedia: White Motor Company
Locomobile (1899–1929) — Bridgeport, CT Started as a steam car company, one of the first to mass-produce automobiles in America. Transitioned to gasoline, became a luxury marque, and finally closed in 1929. The name itself — “locomotive” + “automobile” — captures the steam era’s mindset. Grokipedia: Locomobile
Lane Steam Car (1900–1910) — Poughkeepsie, NY A smaller regional steam car producer, typical of dozens of firms that saw steam as the logical extension of existing industrial knowledge.
The Companies: Cyclecars
The cyclecar was the startup culture of its day — lightweight, cheap to build, and powered by motorcycle engines. They boomed from 1910 to the early 1920s, then collapsed almost entirely when Ford dropped the price of the Model T below $300. I’ve written more about this in my Cyclecar post .
Argo (1912–1916) — Jackson, MI — A friction-drive cyclecar, typical of the scrappy engineering of the era.
Briggs-Detroiter (1912–1915) — Detroit, MI — Built in the city that would become synonymous with American car manufacturing.
Imp (1913–1914) — Auburn, IN — Same town that would later house Cord and Duesenberg. Sometimes the ambition outlasted the finances.
Scripps-Booth (1913–1922) — Detroit, MI — Started as a cyclecar, evolved into a proper small car, acquired by General Motors, then discontinued. A complete arc in under a decade.
Trumbull (1913–1915) — Bridgeport, CT — Another short-lived cyclecar entrant from an industrial New England city.
See the full cyclecar story for the complete picture of that remarkable and short-lived industry.
The Companies: Indiana’s Automotive Golden Age
Indiana deserves its own section. At the peak of the car rush, Indianapolis and the surrounding towns hosted one of the densest concentrations of automobile manufacturing in the world. It wasn’t a coincidence — Indiana had carriage factories, machine shops, and a culture of mechanical entrepreneurship that translated directly into car building. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway , opened in 1909, wasn’t just a racing venue — it was a testing ground and marketing platform for Indiana’s automotive industry.
American Underslung (1906–1914) — Indianapolis Famous for dropping the frame below the axles rather than resting on top of them — giving the car an exceptionally low center of gravity and distinctive look. An engineering innovation that was ahead of production realities.
Auburn Automobile Company (1900–1937) — Auburn, IN Started as a conventional carmaker, nearly bankrupt by the 1920s, rescued by E.L. Cord, and transformed into a stylish luxury brand. The Art Deco Auburn 851 Speedster of 1935 is one of the most beautiful American cars ever made. More in our Cord & Duesenberg post
Cole Motor Car Company (1909–1925) — Indianapolis One of Indiana’s most respected luxury car makers. Introduced a V8 in January 1914 — second only to Cadillac. First to use balloon tires. First detachable cylinder head. Joseph Jarrett Cole built a company that produced 40,000 vehicles across 20 models before closing in 1925. Cole Motor Car Registry | Cole Factory at LOC | Gilmore Car Museum Cole Gathering
Cord (1929–1937) — Auburn, IN E.L. Cord’s masterpiece brand — front-wheel drive, coffin-nose hood, hidden headlights. The Cord 810 and 812 are among the most influential American automobile designs ever made. More in our Cord & Duesenberg post
Duesenberg (1920–1937) — Indianapolis The finest American automobile ever built by most measures. The Model J, with its 265 hp straight-eight, was the most powerful production car in the world when launched. “It’s a Duesy” entered the English language as a synonym for excellence. More in our Cord & Duesenberg post
Empire (1909–1919) — Indianapolis A modest-priced car from an Indianapolis producer — one of dozens of mid-range makes that flourished briefly before being squeezed out between Ford’s low prices and the luxury market’s cachet.
Henderson (1912–1915) — Indianapolis Another short-lived Indiana entrant. The Hendersons are better remembered today for the Henderson motorcycle, which outlasted the car.
Inter-State (1909–1919) — Muncie, IN Built in Muncie, another Indiana industrial city with a strong manufacturing base. Ceased production after a decade.
Lexington Motor Car Company (1910–1927) — Connersville, IN Connersville’s carriage industry enticed Lexington to relocate from its original home in Lexington, Kentucky. The company produced respectable quality cars for 17 years before folding. Grokipedia: Lexington automobile
Marion Motor Car Company (1904–1915) — Indianapolis Where Harry Stutz learned to build cars before founding his own company. Marion produced 7,158 automobiles before merging with Imperial in 1914. More in our Marion Motor Car post
Marmon (1902–1933) — Indianapolis The Marmon Wasp won the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911. Marmon built quality automobiles for three decades, including the magnificent Marmon Sixteen — a 200-hp V16 introduced in 1931 that competed directly with Cadillac and Packard. Killed by the Depression. Grokipedia: Marmon Motor Car Company
National Motor Vehicle Company (1900–1924) — Indianapolis One of Indianapolis’s pioneering auto manufacturers. Started with electric cars, switched to gasoline, became known for performance, and closed in 1924.
Overland (1903–1926) — Indianapolis (later Toledo, OH) At its peak, the second-largest automobile manufacturer in the United States behind only Ford. Founded in Terre Haute, grew through Indianapolis, moved to Toledo under John Willys, and eventually became Willys-Overland. More in our Overland post
Pathfinder (1911–1918) — Indianapolis A mid-priced Indiana car that found a niche before disappearing in the disruptions of World War I.
Premier Automobile Company (1903–1925) — Indianapolis Premier was known for air-cooled engines early in its life and for quality construction throughout. Built for 22 years — a respectable run by early auto industry standards.
Stutz Motor Company (1911–1935) — Indianapolis Harry Stutz — who’d worked at Marion Motor Car — founded his own company and achieved immediate fame when a Stutz Bearcat finished 11th at the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911 after being assembled just five days before the race. The Bearcat became the sporting car of the Jazz Age. Grokipedia: Stutz Motor Company
The Companies: A–F
Abbott-Detroit (1909–1918) — Detroit, MI A well-regarded quality car that couldn’t survive WWI’s disruption to materials and manufacturing. Grokipedia: Abbott-Detroit
American Austin / American Bantam (1930–1941) — Butler, PA An American version of the British Austin Seven — a tiny, economical car licensed for U.S. production. Later evolved into the American Bantam, which produced the original Jeep prototype for the U.S. Army in 1940. The Jeep contract went to Willys; Bantam closed shortly after. Grokipedia: American Bantam
Apperson Brothers (1898–1926) — Kokomo, IN Elmer and Edgar Apperson helped Elwood Haynes build one of the first American gasoline cars in 1894, then struck out on their own. They produced quality cars for nearly three decades. Grokipedia: Apperson Brothers Automobile
Ben-Hur Motor Company (1915–1916) — Willoughby, OH Lasted barely a year. Named after the famous novel and its chariot race — suggesting ambitions somewhat larger than the company’s means.
Biddle (1915–1922) — Philadelphia, PA A Philadelphia luxury car with a devoted following. Custom coachwork, quality construction, quietly gone by 1922. Grokipedia: Biddle
Briscoe (1914–1921) — Jackson, MI Benjamin Briscoe had been a co-founder of General Motors with Billy Durant. His own Briscoe automobile was a solid mid-priced car that couldn’t find enough market to survive. Grokipedia: Briscoe
Brush Runabout (1907–1913) — Detroit, MI A deliberately simple and cheap car — wooden axles, wooden frame, coil spring suspension — designed to undercut even Ford. Novel engineering that proved too fragile for real-world use.
Chalmers (1908–1923) — Detroit, MI Hugh Chalmers was a sales genius who ran Thomas-Detroit before founding his own brand. Produced solid, well-marketed cars; eventually merged into Maxwell, which became Chrysler. Grokipedia: Chalmers automobile
Chandler (1913–1929) — Cleveland, OH Marketed as “The Car with the Marvelous Motor” — an early example of automotive tagline marketing. Quality mid-priced cars for 16 years. Grokipedia: Chandler Motor Car Company
Daniels (1916–1924) — Reading, PA A genuine luxury car built in Pennsylvania. George Daniels believed he could compete with Packard and Pierce-Arrow in the high-end market. He came close, for a while.
Davis (1908–1929) — Richmond, IN Another Indiana entry — Richmond had a strong manufacturing tradition. Davis produced solid cars before closing on the eve of the Depression.
Dort (1915–1924) — Flint, MI Josiah Dallas Dort had been Billy Durant’s business partner in building Durant-Dort Carriage Company — the foundation of what became General Motors. Dort’s own car company was a smaller, more modest affair. Grokipedia: Dort Motor Car Company
Duryea (1895–1917) — Springfield, MA / Reading, PA The beginning. Charles and Frank Duryea built the first American gasoline automobile in 1893 and won the first American automobile race in 1895. Their company sold the first commercially produced American cars. It didn’t survive the competitive onslaught that followed. Grokipedia: Duryea Motor Wagon Company
Elcar (1916–1931) — Elkhart, IN Indiana again. Elkhart was a manufacturing hub — best known for musical instruments and later RVs — and Elcar was its automotive chapter. Built for 15 years before the Depression ended it.
Elmore (1900–1913) — Clyde, OH Known for two-stroke engines at a time when four-stroke was becoming standard. Acquired by General Motors in 1909, discontinued by 1913.
Essex (1919–1932) — Detroit, MI The lower-priced companion to Hudson — Hudson’s strategy to compete with Ford and Chevrolet. Essex was the first low-priced car to offer a closed body as standard equipment (1922), making it genuinely accessible to middle-class buyers. Replaced by the Terraplane in 1932. Grokipedia: Essex automobile
Franklin (1902–1934) — Syracuse, NY Franklin was the great apostle of air-cooled engines at a time when the rest of the industry moved to water cooling. Lightweight, fuel-efficient, and genuinely innovative. Charles Lindbergh owned one. The Depression killed it. Grokipedia: Franklin Automobile Company
The Companies: G–M
Haynes / Haynes-Apperson (1894–1925) — Kokomo, IN Elwood Haynes built one of the first American gasoline cars in 1894 in Kokomo, Indiana. The Haynes-Apperson partnership eventually split; Haynes continued alone until 1925. A pioneer who didn’t outlast the era he helped create. Grokipedia: Haynes Automobile Company
Hupmobile / Hupp Motor Car (1909–1940) — Detroit, MI A solid mid-priced Detroit car that lasted three decades before economic pressures and the Depression ended it. The Hupmobile was a real competitor in its day — well-engineered, attractively styled, simply outgunned by the majors. Grokipedia: Hupmobile
Jackson (1902–1923) — Jackson, MI One of many Michigan cities that hosted automotive manufacturing. Jackson produced cars for 21 years — an above-average run for the era.
Jordan (1916–1931) — Cleveland, OH Ned Jordan was a brilliant advertiser more than an engineer — he bought components and assembled them into attractive cars. His 1923 ad “Somewhere West of Laramie” is considered one of the greatest automobile advertisements ever written. Pure poetry selling a car. Grokipedia: Jordan Motor Car Company
Kissel (1906–1930) — Hartford, WI The Kissel Gold Bug speedster was a genuine sporting car from a small Wisconsin manufacturer. Quality craftsmanship, famous clients (Al Jolson owned one), not enough volume to survive. Grokipedia: Kissel Motor Car Company
Knox (1900–1914) — Springfield, MA Air-cooled engines and three-wheeled early designs. Knox experimented boldly; the market was less forgiving. Grokipedia: Knox Automobile Company
Maxwell (1904–1925) — Tarrytown, NY / Detroit, MI Benjamin Briscoe and Jonathan Maxwell produced popular, affordable cars for two decades. Maxwell was so associated with automotive trouble that Jack Benny’s radio persona drove one as a running joke for years. Maxwell was reorganized by Walter Chrysler into what became the Chrysler Corporation in 1925. Grokipedia: Maxwell Motor Company
Mercer (1910–1925) — Trenton, NJ The Mercer Raceabout was one of the great early American sporting cars — a pure, driver’s machine with no windshield and an exposed engine. Raced at the Indianapolis 500. Beloved by enthusiasts then and now. Grokipedia: Mercer automobile
Moon (1905–1930) — St. Louis, MO Joseph Moon had been a buggy manufacturer. His automobile company produced quality cars in St. Louis for 25 years. Moon’s final cars were badge-engineered as Windsor and Diana — rebadging to chase the market, the last move of a company running out of options. Grokipedia: Moon Motor Car Company
The Companies: N–Z
National Motor Vehicle Company (1900–1924) — Indianapolis, IN Started with electric cars, pivoted to gasoline, won at Indianapolis, struggled in the competitive 1920s market. Grokipedia: National automobile
Oakland (1907–1931) — Pontiac, MI General Motors acquired Oakland in 1909. In 1926, GM launched the Pontiac brand as a lower-priced companion to Oakland — and Pontiac’s success made Oakland redundant. It was discontinued in 1931, replaced entirely by the brand it had spawned. Grokipedia: Oakland Motor Car
Packard (1899–1958) — Warren, OH / Detroit, MI “Ask the man who owns one” — Packard’s tagline was the epitome of understated luxury confidence. One of America’s finest automobiles for five decades. Packard survived longer than almost any other luxury marque, finally succumbing when it merged with Studebaker in 1954 and was phased out by 1958. Grokipedia: Packard | Packard Club
Peerless (1900–1931) — Cleveland, OH One of the Three Ps of American luxury cars in the early twentieth century — Packard, Pierce-Arrow, and Peerless. All three began around 1900; Peerless was the first to fail, converting its factory to a brewery during Prohibition and pivoting permanently. Grokipedia: Peerless Motor Company
Pierce-Arrow (1901–1938) — Buffalo, NY The second of the Three Ps. Pierce-Arrow built America’s most prestigious automobiles for the Gilded Age and beyond. President Taft’s official fleet included Pierce-Arrows. The Depression devastated the luxury market, and Pierce-Arrow couldn’t survive. Grokipedia: Pierce-Arrow | Pierce-Arrow Society
REO Motor Car Company (1905–1936) — Lansing, MI Ransom Eli Olds — the man who designed the Oldsmobile — named his second company after his own initials when he left Olds Motor Works. REO produced quality cars and trucks; the car line ended in 1936 but the truck business continued for decades. Grokipedia: REO Motor Car Company
Saxon (1913–1923) — Detroit, MI A light, economical car targeted at buyers priced out of Ford but unwilling to pay more. Found a market briefly in the mid-1910s before being squeezed out. Grokipedia: Saxon automobile
Stearns-Knight (1898–1929) — Cleveland, OH Frank Stearns built Cleveland’s premier luxury automobile, featuring the Knight sleeve-valve engine — a smooth, quiet alternative to conventional poppet valves. The engine was genuinely superior in some respects; the economics were not. Grokipedia: F.B. Stearns Company
Stevens-Duryea (1901–1927) — Chicopee Falls, MA Charles Duryea’s second automotive chapter after the original Duryea company faded. Stevens-Duryea built quality six-cylinder cars in Massachusetts for more than two decades. Grokipedia: Stevens-Duryea
Thomas (1900–1913) — Buffalo, NY E.R. Thomas built motorcycles and then automobiles. His Thomas Flyer won the 1908 New York to Paris Race — one of the great automotive adventures of the early century. The company closed shortly after. Grokipedia: E.R. Thomas Motor Company
Winton (1897–1924) — Cleveland, OH Alexander Winton was a Scottish bicycle maker who became one of America’s pioneer automakers. Winton made the first long-distance American automobile trip (Cleveland to New York, 1899), set early speed records, and sold the first American car to a paying customer. His company lasted until 1924. Grokipedia: Winton Motor Carriage Company
The most famous Winton of all is the one that made history in 1903. Dr. Horatio Nelson Jackson — on a fifty-dollar bet at the University Club in San Francisco — purchased a 1903 Winton touring car, named it Vermont, and drove it 4,500 miles to New York City in 64 days. It was the first automobile crossing of the United States. His mechanic Sewall Crocker rode with him; a bulldog named Bud, fitted with goggles against the dust, completed the crew. The Vermont now lives in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.
The 1903 Winton “Vermont” — the car that made the first American cross-country drive, now on display at the Smithsonian.
Ken Burns made a documentary about the journey — Horatio’s Drive: America’s First Road Trip — narrated by Keith David with Tom Hanks voicing Jackson. It is one of Burns’s finest short films and an extraordinary window into what early automobile travel was actually like. The Smithsonian’s object page for the Vermont includes photographs and the full history of the car’s journey from San Francisco to the museum floor.
The Advertisements That Sold the Dream
Before television, before radio advertising matured, the automobile industry built itself on print. Magazines like The Saturday Evening Post, Life, Country Life in America, and The Literary Digest were the mass media of the early twentieth century — and car companies poured enormous sums into them. The ads that survive tell us as much about what America wanted as they do about the cars themselves.
The premier resource for period advertising research is the Library of Congress Automotive History guide , which catalogs trade periodicals, manufacturer records, and newspaper archives. The Horseless Age — founded in 1895, the first American automobile trade magazine — published 73 automobile manufacturers in its first issue. Browsing its digitized pages at LOC Chronicling America is a direct window into the industry’s breathless early years.
Jordan Motor Car — “Somewhere West of Laramie” (1923)
The most celebrated automobile advertisement in American history was not for a car anyone remembers. Jordan Motor Car Company of Cleveland placed a single-page ad in the Saturday Evening Post in 1923. Written by company founder Ned Jordan himself, it read in part:
“Somewhere west of Laramie there’s a broncho-busting, steer-roping girl who knows what I’m talking about. She can tell what a sassy pony, that’s a cross between greased lightning and the place where it hits, can do with eleven hundred pounds of steel and action when he’s going high, wide and handsome…”
It didn’t describe horsepower or wheelbase. It sold a feeling. Advertising historians call it the moment car marketing stopped being mechanical specification and became aspiration. The Henry Ford Museum’s digital collections preserve the original Jordan Playboy advertisement.
Stutz — The Bearcat and the Need for Speed
Stutz Motor Company built its identity on racing. The original Stutz Bearcat — a stripped-down, wire-wheeled, goggle-and-wind machine — was the American sports car of its era. A Stutz competed in the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911, finishing 11th in its first race out of the factory. The ads played this up relentlessly: “The Car That Made Good in a Day.”
A 1930 Pierce-Arrow — one of the Three Ps of American luxury, alongside Packard and Peerless.
The Three Ps: Packard, Pierce-Arrow, Peerless
Luxury advertising in the early twentieth century was an exercise in dignified restraint. Packard’s famous line — “Ask the man who owns one” — was used continuously from 1902 to 1956 and became one of the most recognized slogans in American advertising. It implied that the car was too good to need explanation; let the owner speak.
Pierce-Arrow took a different approach: their ads emphasized innovation (they were the first to mount headlamps in the fenders rather than on the radiator, a distinctive feature from 1913 onward) and their presidential connection. When William Howard Taft’s White House fleet included Pierce-Arrows, the company was not shy about saying so.
A 1934 Pierce-Arrow 840A — by this point the company had less than four years left.
Detroit Electric — Marketing to Women
As covered in our Detroit Electric post , that company’s advertising was explicitly directed at women drivers. The ads showed women at the wheel, emphasized ease of operation, and positioned the car as a vehicle of independence and refinement. In an era when gasoline cars required dangerous hand-cranking to start, this was not just good marketing — it was accurate.
The LOC’s Early Electric Cars guide (1891–1922) collects newspaper advertising and coverage from across the electric car era, with search strategies for finding specific marques in the Chronicling America database.
Car Clubs: Keeping the History Alive
The cars that survived are still on the road — maintained, restored, and shown by enthusiasts who understand that a running automobile is a living piece of history. If you want to see these machines in person, or connect with the people who know them best, these organizations are where to start.
Major Umbrella Organizations
Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA) Founded 1935 in Philadelphia, the AACA is the largest organization dedicated to the history of the automobile in America. They host the premier antique car shows in the country, maintain a library and research center, and publish Antique Automobile magazine. Member chapters exist in every state. Their annual show at Hershey, Pennsylvania is one of the largest automotive flea markets and shows in the world.
Horseless Carriage Club of America (HCCA) Dedicated specifically to pre-1916 vehicles — the earliest era of American automobiles. If you have a Duryea, a Winton, an early Packard, or any brass-era machine, this is the organization. Their Horseless Carriage Gazette is a publication unlike any other in American automotive history.
Veteran Motor Car Club of America (VMCCA) Another early-car focused organization with a strong library and research program. Particularly strong on the 1900–1930 era.
Marque-Specific Clubs
Packard Club The Packard Automobile Classics, Inc. — dedicated to the preservation of Packard Motor Car Company history and vehicles. They maintain an extensive technical library and publish The Packard Cormorant.
Pierce-Arrow Society One of the most active single-marque clubs in America. Pierce-Arrow’s distinctive styling — especially the fender-mounted headlamps — makes these cars immediately recognizable at shows. The Society maintains records on surviving cars and offers technical support for restoration.
Stutz Club Dedicated to Stutz Motor Company vehicles including the Bearcat, Blackhawk, and DV-32. The club maintains a registry of surviving cars and publishes The Stutz News.
The Marmon Club Howard Marmon’s engineering legacy — including the first 16-cylinder automobile engine and the 1911 Indianapolis 500 winner, the Marmon Wasp — is preserved by this organization. See our Marion Motor Car post for the Indianapolis connection.
Cole Motor Car Registry The Cole Motor Car Company (1909–1925) produced sophisticated automobiles in Indianapolis for sixteen years before voluntarily closing rather than compromising quality. This registry tracks surviving cars and preserves factory records.
AACA Electric Cars Forum The dedicated forum for early electric car owners within the AACA — Baker, Milburn, Detroit Electric, and others. An active community for an unusual niche.
Museums
The best place to see many of these cars under one roof:
Gilmore Car Museum — Hickory Corners, Michigan. One of the largest automotive museum campuses in the world, with over 400 vehicles. Multiple marque clubs hold their annual gatherings here. If you can visit one museum to see early American automobiles in depth, this is it.
The Henry Ford Museum — Dearborn, Michigan. The original Duryea, the 1896 Quadricycle that Henry Ford built in his shed, and an extraordinary collection of early American automotive history.
MotorCities National Heritage Area — A network of historic sites across Michigan and Indiana documenting the birthplace of the American auto industry.
Conclusion: What the Failure of 2,000 Companies Built
By 1929, fewer than 44 automobile manufacturers remained in the United States. By 1950, a handful. By 1970, effectively three.
The consolidation looks brutal in retrospect. Thousands of companies, millions of dollars invested, countless engineers and machinists and salesmen — most of it gone. The Apperson Brothers who first built a car in 1898 in Kokomo are forgotten. The Jordan Motor Car Company, which wrote the most celebrated ad in automotive history, lasted less than two decades. Peerless — one of the Three Ps, peer of Packard and Pierce-Arrow — became a brewery.
But this framing misses something important.
The two thousand companies that failed were not wasted effort. They were the R&D budget of an entire industry. Every failed experiment in engine cooling, in transmission design, in carburetion and steering geometry and body construction — every one of those failures taught the survivors something. The men who worked at Apperson went on to work at other companies. The toolmakers from Kissel went somewhere. The engineers from Mercer and Moon and Elcar didn’t stop being engineers.
Henry Ford didn’t invent the moving assembly line from nothing. He had a continent full of machinists, foundry men, carriage builders, and bicycle mechanics who already knew how to make things precisely and quickly. The knowledge infrastructure that made Ford’s River Rouge plant possible was built, piece by piece, by a thousand small companies that most people have never heard of.
The electric self-starter that killed the EV advantage was invented by Charles Kettering — who had worked in the electrical industry that the early electric car manufacturers helped develop. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which became the proving ground for American automotive technology, was built in 1909 precisely because there were enough Indiana car companies that someone thought to do it.
The automobile industry that consolidated into General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler was not built despite the great car rush. It was built from it.
The blacksmiths and bicycle mechanics and carriage makers who launched companies between 1895 and 1915 were not wrong to try. They were right that anyone who could cast an engine block could build a car. They were right that America wanted automobiles. They were right that the country had the industrial capacity to make them.
They were simply, most of them, a few years too early, or a few dollars too short, or a few steps behind a man named Ford who figured out how to make the same car for less money every year until no one else could compete.
The 2,000 companies that failed taught the three that survived. That’s not tragedy — that’s how industries are built.
Further Research
- Library of Congress — Automotive History Research Guide — the starting point for serious research
- LOC Chronicling America — search historic newspapers by marque name for period coverage
- LOC Early Electric Cars guide (1891–1922) — focused newspaper archive for the EV era
- Grokipedia — List of Defunct Automobile Manufacturers of the United States — the most complete catalog available
- MotorCities National Heritage Area — history of the Michigan/Indiana auto industry
- Gilmore Car Museum — see surviving examples in person
- AACA Library and Research Center — for deep archival research on specific marques
- Auto History Preservation Society — innovations from defunct brands
See also our related posts: Detroit Electric | Marion Motor Car | Overland | Cord and Duesenberg | Cyclecar History | Studebaker