1923 Climber Model 6-50 | |
| Industry | Vehicle manufacture |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1919 |
| Founder | William Drake, Clarence Roth, and David Hopson |
| Defunct | 1924 |
| Headquarters | Little Rock, Arkansas, USA |
| Products | Automobiles |
The Climber Motor Company was a short lived automobile manufacturer based in Little Rock, Arkansas. Sales were targeted towards the Southern United States such as Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, as well as Arkansas. [1] It is the only car ever produced in the state of Arkansas.
Little Rock is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. It is also the county seat of Pulaski County. It was incorporated on November 7, 1831, on the south bank of the Arkansas River close to the state's geographic center. The city derives its name from a rock formation along the river, named the "Little Rock" by the French explorer Jean-Baptiste Bénard de la Harpe in the 1720s. The capital of the Arkansas Territory was moved to Little Rock from Arkansas Post in 1821. The city's population was 198,541 in 2016 according to the United States Census Bureau. The six-county Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) is ranked 78th in terms of population in the United States with 738,344 residents according to the 2017 estimate by the United States Census Bureau.
The southern United States, also known as the American South, Dixie, Dixieland, or simply the South, is a region of the United States of America. It is located between the Atlantic Ocean and the western United States, with the midwestern United States and northeastern United States to its north and the Gulf of Mexico and Mexico to its south.
Mississippi is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. Mississippi is the 32nd most extensive and 34th most populous of the 50 United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico and Louisiana to the south, and Arkansas and Louisiana to the west. The state's western boundary is largely defined by the Mississippi River. Jackson, with a population of approximately 167,000 people, is both the state's capital and largest city.
The Climber Motor Corporation hired George Schoeneck as their Chief Engineer. Schoeneck had previously been involved with the Owen-Schoeneck and Geneva automobiles. [1]
Production started in 1919 with two models - the 4-cylinder Model K and the 6-cylinder Model S. Tourer, roadster and coupe body styles were offered for both models. Prices ranged from $1385 to $2400 for the Model K, and from $2250 to $3250 for the Model S. [2]
Lack of parts and finance led to the company being sold in mid-1924. [2] The New Climber Company built approximately 200 cars from parts that were available, and then the business was wound up. [2]
Part of the Climber Motor Car Factory was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. [3]
Unit A of the Climber Motor Car Factory is a historic industrial building at 1823 East 17th Street in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is a large wood frame structure, topped by a gabled monitor roof. Its walls are concrete block for the bottom 2 feet (0.61 m), and wood frame between concrete pillars above. The building was constructed in 1919 for the Climber Motor Company, the only automobile manufacturer founded in the state, and was the only part actually built of a planned multi-building complex. The company manufactured automobiles here until 1924, after which it was used by Command-Aire to build small aircraft, and by the Great Northern Paper Company to manufacture toilet paper.
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.
