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 that ensued, Auburn's expensive automobiles, along with its also very expensive sister marques Duesenberg and Cord, saw inevitable sales downturns, and all vehicle business halted in 1937.
After a 1940 bankruptcy reorganization, the former Auburn Automobile Co. merged with the Central Manufacturing Company into Auburn Central Manufacturing (ACM) Corporation, which received large amounts of World War II production work, so much so, that in 1943, they rebranded ACM as American Central Manufacturing. One of their most notable WW II contributions involved manufacturing the bodies of at least three quarters, or about half a million, of the World War II Willys and Ford 1/4‑ton jeeps.
Corporate history
The Auburn Automobile Company grew out of the Eckhart Carriage Company, founded in Auburn, Indiana, in 1874 by Charles Eckhart (1841–1915).[1] Eckhart's sons, Frank and Morris, experimented making automobiles before entering the business in earnest, absorbing two other local carmakers and moving into a larger plant in 1909. The enterprise was modestly successful until materials shortages during World War I forced the plant to close.
In 1919, the Eckhart brothers sold the company to a group of Chicago investors headed by Ralph Austin Bard, who later served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy for President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and as Undersecretary of the Navy for President Roosevelt and President Harry S. Truman. The new owners revived the business, but it proved unprofitable. In 1924 they approached Errett Lobban Cord (1894–1974), a highly successful automobile salesman, with an offer to run the company. Cord countered with an offer to take over completely in what amounted to a leveraged buyout, which the Chicago group accepted. Cord aggressively marketed the company's unsold inventory and completed his buyout before the end of 1925.
Auburn 8-88 Roadster advertisement in 1926
But after the 1929 stock market crash, despite advanced engineering and aggressive styling, Auburn's upscale vehicles were too expensive for the Depression-era market, and around 1935, Auburn started to produce a line of kitchen cabinets and sinks, to keep the company afloat.[2] Cord's illegal stock manipulations would force him to give up control of his automobile holding company, which included the even more expensive Cord, and Rolls-Royce-priced high-performance Duesenberg brands, as well as Central Manufacturing Co., an 1896 coach-building company that built metal bodies for a number of different car companies, including Auburn.[2] Under injunction from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to refrain from further violations, Cord sold his shares in his automobile holding company. In 1937, automotive production of all three marques ended.
Nevertheless, after a 1940 bankruptcy reorganization, the former Auburn Automobile and Central Manufacturing Companies merged into Auburn Central Manufacturing / (ACM) Corporation.
During World War II, and up to 1948, ACM (Auburn / American Central) Manufacturing made over half a million 1/4‑ton Jeep bodies.
In March 1941, Auburn Central Manufacturing (ACM) landed an important contract with Willys-Overland, initially for 1,600 Willys MA jeep bodies. The first bodies were shipped in April 1941, but more, very large, jeep body manufacturing contracts were gained from both Willys-Overland and Ford Motor Company during World War II. In addition to jeep bodies, ACM also made trailer bodies and aircraft components.
In March 1942, ACM changed its name from Auburn Central to American Central Manufacturing.
ACM then went on receiving orders from Willys-Overland for all body-tubs of their roughly 360,000 World War II 1/4‑ton, WillysMB jeeps, through 1945; plus roughly midway of their 280,000 or so 1/4‑ton GPW jeep production, Ford also ordered the remainder of their jeep body tubs from ACM as well! [2] By mid 1943, during peak wartime production, and having built their 150,000th jeep body, the Connersville, Indiana company, and ACM's large buildings complex, together with many more automotive industries there had formed a veritable industrial park, that earned the town the nickname "Little Detroit". Eventually, Jeep body production for Willys continued through 1948.[2]
Post-war, in 1945, kitchen sinks, appliances, and cabinets were chosen as having the largest market potential for ACM's manufacturing capabilities. This indeed became ACM's core product after the war.[2]
Models
Auburn's Speedsters (shown a 1935 model 851), became one of Auburn's most legendary contributions to automotive history.1936 Auburn 654 Cabriolet.
The 1904 Auburn was a touring car model. Equipped with a tonneau, it could seat two or four passengers and sold for US$1,000, ($32,570 in 2022 dollars [3]). The flat-mounted single-cylinder engine, situated at the center of the car, produced 10hp (7.5kW). A two-speed planetary transmission was fitted. The angle-steel-framed car weighed 1,500lb (680kg) and used half-elliptic springs.[4]
In 1926, Errett Cord, now the owner of Auburn, partnered with Duesenberg Corporation, famous for its racing cars, and used it as the launching platform for a line of high-priced luxury vehicles, the Duesenberg Model J. He also put his own name on one of the first front-wheel-drive cars, Cord, known as the Cord L-29.
The company employed imaginative designers such as Alan Leamy, chief designer of the 1933 Auburn Speedster, and Gordon Buehrig, designer of the 810/812 Cords. Buehrig joined the company in Indianapolis in 1926 with Duesenberg Motors, and is credited with styling roughly half of the Model Js produced. Duesenberg built the chassis while the bodies were built either to Duesenberg's own specifications, or to the special order of the buyer, by selected independent body companies.
In 1934, Buehrig was transferred to Auburn Auto where he designed the 1935 Auburn 851 Speedster. The Speedster was styled or modified to use leftover speedster bodies. Buehrig and a design team were then assigned to E.L. Cord's so-called "Baby Duesenberg" to build a smaller, more affordable car. Designed by Buehrig in 1933, it became the acclaimed 1936/37 Cord 810/ 812 Cords, a hit at the November 1935 annual New York Automobile Show—acclaimed for advanced engineering as well as revolutionary styling. His design work completed, he left the company in 1937. [source, daughter Barbara Buehrig Orlando plus the ACDA Museum] and modified the four-door,[5] Cord built cars such as the Duesenberg Model J (1928–37), the Auburn Speedster (1935–37), and the Cord 810/812 (1936–37) that became famous for their advanced engineering as well as their striking appearance. The Auburn Boattail Speedster was powered by a 4.6L straight eight that, with the popular supercharger option (150hp), could top 100mph (160km/h) making it a popular model in the Hollywood market.[6]
Auburn is a city in DeKalb County, Indiana, United States. The population was 13,820 at the 2020 census. Founded in 1836 by Wesley Park (1811–1868), the city is the county seat of DeKalb County. Auburn is also known as Home of the Classics.
The straight-eight engine or inline-eight engine is an eight-cylinder internal combustion engine with all eight cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase. The type has been produced in side-valve, IOE, overhead-valve, sleeve-valve, and overhead-cam configurations.
The American Bantam Car Company was an American automobile manufacturing company incorporated in the state of Pennsylvania. American Bantam is credited with inventing the original World War II 1⁄4‑ton jeep in 1940. The company's founders, Roy Evans and William A. Ward Jr., combined resources to purchase the assets of the bankrupt American Austin Car Company in August of 1935 during liquidation.
Errett Lobban "E. L." Cord was an American business executive. He was considered a leader in United States transport during the early and middle 20th century.
Gordon Miller Buehrig (B-yur-rig) was an American automobile designer.
The Kaiser-Frazer Corporation was the result of a partnership between industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and automobile executive Joseph W. Frazer. In 1947, the company acquired the automotive assets of Graham-Paige, of which Frazer had become president near the end of World War II. Kaiser-Frazer was one of a few US automakers to achieve success after World War II, if only for a few years. Joseph W. Frazer left the company in 1949, replaced as president by Henry's son Edgar F. Kaiser.
McFarlan was a luxury American automobile manufactured in Connersville, Indiana, from 1909 to 1928, by the McFarlan Carriage Company and the McFarlan Motor Car Company.
Frederick Samuel Duesenberg was a German-born American automobile and engine designer, manufacturer and sportsman who was internationally known as a designer of racecars and racing engines. Duesenberg's engineering expertise influenced the development of the automobile, especially during the 1910s and 1920s. He is credited with introducing an eight-cylinder engine, also known as the Duesenberg Straight-8 engine, and four-wheel hydraulic brakes, a first for American cars, in addition to other mechanical innovations. Duesenberg was also patentholder of his designs for a four-wheel hydraulic brake, an early automatic transmission, and a cooling system, among others. Fred and his younger brother, August "Augie" Duesenberg, shared the patents, filed in 1913 and renewed in 1918, for their "walking beam" four-cylinder engine and the Duesenberg Straight 8.
August Samuel Duesenberg was a German- born American automobile and engine manufacturer who built American racing and racing engines that set speed records at Daytona Beach, Florida, in 1920; won the French Grand Prix in 1921; and won Indianapolis 500-mile races, as well as setting one-hour and 24-hour speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah in 1935. He also shared with his older brother, Frederick S. "Fred" Duesenberg, patents filed in 1913 and renewed in 1918 for a four-cylinder engine design and the Duesenberg Straight 8.
The Packard Custom Super Eight One-Eighty was introduced for the 1940 model year by the Packard Motor Car Company to replace the discontinued Packard Twelve as their top-of-the-line luxury model. The car was derived from the Packard Super Eight One-Sixty with which it shared the complete running gear including the in-line eight-cylinder, 356-cubic-inch (5,830 cc) engine that developed 160 horsepower. It was advertised as the most powerful eight-cylinder engine offered by any automobile manufacturer in 1940.. It was complemented and gradually replaced by the more modern looking and mid-level Packard Clipper in 1941 and integrated into the Super Eight after the war.
Alexander Sarantos Tremulis was a Greek-American industrial designer in the North American automotive industry. Tremulis held automotive design positions at Cord Automobile, Duesenberg, General Motors, Tucker Car Corporation and Ford Motor Company before establishing a consulting firm.
Willys was a brand name used by Willys–Overland Motors, an American automobile company, founded by John North Willys. It was best known for its design and production of World War II era military jeeps (MBs), Willys M38 and M38A1 military jeeps as well as civilian versions, and branding the 'jeep' military slang-word into the '(Universal)Jeep' marque.
The Auburn Speedster was an American car, manufactured by the Auburn Automobile Company of Auburn, Indiana and manufactured in Union City, Indiana. A total of 887 cars were manufactured between 1928 and 1936, across 3 series. The first two series were designed by stylist Alan Leamy. The Auburn 851 Speedster of 1935 was styled by designer Gordon Buehrig, who also was responsible for the Cord Model 810. Al Jenkins broke 70 America speed records in the 1935 car.
The Cord 810, and later Cord 812, was a luxury automobile produced by the Cord Automobile division of the Auburn Automobile Company in 1936 and 1937. It was the first American-designed and built front wheel drive car with independent front suspension. It was preceded by Cord's own 1929 Cord L-29, and the French 1934 Citroën Traction Avant front wheel drive cars, but the 810 / 812 was commercially less successful than these.
The Duesenberg Model J is a luxury automobile made by Duesenberg. Intended to compete with the most luxurious and powerful cars in the world, it was introduced in 1928, the year before the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression. The Model J, available with a supercharger after 1932, was sold until Duesenberg Motors Company went bankrupt in 1937.
The Duesenberg Model A was the first automobile in series production to have hydraulic brakes and the first automobile in series production in the United States with a straight-eight engine. Officially known as the Duesenberg Straight Eight, the Model A was first shown in late 1920 in New York City. Production was delayed by substantial changes to the design of the car, including a change in the engine valvetrain from horizontal overhead valves to an overhead camshaft; also during this time, the company had moved its headquarters and factory from New Jersey to Indiana. The Model A was manufactured in Indianapolis, Indiana, from 1921 to 1925 by the Duesenberg Automobiles and Motors Company and from 1925 to 1926 at the same factory by the restructured Duesenberg Motor Company. The successors to the company began referring to the car as the Model A when the Model J was introduced. With a top speed of 71mph.
The Pak-Age-Car Corporation was a Chicago-based company building a small walk-in delivery van from 1926 until 1941. The truck was designed to replicate what a horse-drawn delivery carriage could do, and looked a little like a horse-drawn wagon without the animal. The company belonged to the Mechanical Manufacturing Company of Chicago, and from 1927 on they were distributed through the Stutz dealer network.
↑ Buehrig, Gordon M.; Jackson, William S. (1975). Rolling Sculpture: A Designer and his Work. Newfoundland, NJ: Haessner Publishing Inc. pp.66–72. ISBN978-0877990451.
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