In the Beginning – Automotive Pioneers

(By Jim Hinckley)

The dawn of the American automotive industry is a fascinating tale woven with threads of ingenuity, ambition, misfortune, and a relentless pursuit of innovation. For many individuals who poured their lives into crafting these revolutionary machines, a peculiar type of recognition awaited: their surnames became synonymous with the very vehicles they helped create. Yet, their full stories – their first names, their individual triumphs, and the breadth of their contributions – often fade into the background, relegated to little more than footnotes in history.

How many drivers of a Chevrolet pause to reflect on the life and work of Louis Chevrolet, a Swiss-born racer and engineer whose expertise was instrumental in the formation of General Motors? Similarly, how many Ford owners are aware that Henry Ford’s initial automotive endeavors laid the groundwork for what would later become Cadillac? Or that the Dodge brothers, Horace and John, were pivotal in ensuring Ford’s early success? Even fewer likely know that Henry Ford championed the integration of synthetic materials into automobile production.

The history of the American auto industry’s formative years is a complex tapestry, a mixture of entrepreneurial dreams, personal tragedies, sheer brilliance, and, in some cases, outright schemes to strike it rich. This era, however, is above all a testament to vision, innovation, and the colorful personalities who dared to challenge the status quo. The story of In the Beginning – Automotive Pioneers is a reminder of the individuals behind these iconic brands.

One such figure is David Buick, a name instantly recognized, but perhaps less associated with his initial invention: the cast-iron bathtub finished with a gleaming white porcelain coating. Alongside Walter Marr and Eugene Richard, Buick developed a groundbreaking gasoline engine featuring a valve-in-head design. Originally intended for marine and agricultural applications, this innovative engine served as the cornerstone for the establishment of the Buick Motor Company in 1903. The tale of In the Beginning – Automotive Pioneers often involves inventions that were initially intended for something else.

The Buick Motor Company’s subsequent acquisition became the foundation upon which William Crapo Durant built his vast automotive empire, General Motors. While Durant’s career ascended to remarkable heights, David Buick’s fortune took a dramatic turn for the worse. After a series of unsuccessful ventures, he spent his final days working as an information desk clerk at the Detroit School of Trades. This is the unfortunate reality for many featured in the story of In the Beginning – Automotive Pioneers.

Durant, too, would eventually follow a similar trajectory of financial ruin, but not before transforming General Motors into an industrial behemoth. He initially lost control of the company, only to regain it through the creation of Chevrolet. Later, he attempted to challenge Ford’s market dominance with another venture named Durant Motors. In February 1936, however, Durant declared personal bankruptcy and ended his career as a partner in a bowling alley, complete with a lunchroom and grocery store. The narrative of In the Beginning – Automotive Pioneers highlights the cyclical nature of fortune in the early automotive industry.

Durant and Buick were not alone in their brushes with fame and fortune during the frenetic period when the American auto industry resembled a chaotic gold rush, combined with the spectacle of a traveling carnival. Nor were they the only pioneering figures to be ultimately remembered more for the brand names they helped establish than for their individual achievements. The legacy of In the Beginning – Automotive Pioneers is often a bittersweet one.

Louis Joseph Chevrolet, a Swiss-born mechanic, first arrived in New York as an agent for the French automobile manufacturer De Dion-Bouton. His expertise as a mechanic for Fiat and as a driver for a racing team, which included his brothers Arthur and Gaston, quickly garnered him considerable attention.

William Durant recognized Chevrolet’s talent and recruited Louis and Arthur for the Buick race team, using racing as a promotional platform. After losing control of General Motors for the first time, Durant once again enlisted Louis, this time as an engineer, to design an engine that would power a new automobile – one that would bear the Chevrolet name.

This venture proved to be relatively short-lived for Chevrolet, as Durant envisioned the company as a means to regain control of General Motors. In 1914, Louis Chevrolet left the company, relinquishing his trademarked name. He resumed his racing career and designed several race cars, including the one driven by his brother Gaston to victory at the Indianapolis 500 in 1920.

While some pioneers achieved the limited immortality of having their names transformed into iconic brands, others, such as Henry Leland, were relegated to relative obscurity, their contributions often overlooked.

Henry Leland, a champion of precision engineering, began his career as an apprentice under Samuel Colt. He established his financial foundation by inventing an improved clipper designed for barbers. As the owner of a precision machine shop in Detroit, one of his initial forays into the automotive industry involved designing a new engine for Ransom Olds of the Olds Motor Vehicle Company.

However, before Leland’s engine could be implemented in what was intended to be a new and improved Olds, a devastating fire at the Olds factory made it financially unfeasible for the company to adopt the new design. As a result, Olds continued production of the highly successful 1902 model. In retrospect, this proved to be a fortunate twist of fate for the American auto industry, as the directors of the Henry Ford Company, who had hired Leland as a consulting engineer, were in need of an engine.

The Henry Ford Company represented Henry Ford’s second attempt at automobile manufacturing. However, as with his first venture, investors saw little return on their investment. Consequently, they retained Leland to assess the feasibility of injecting further capital into the enterprise.

Ford, reportedly incensed by what he perceived as an insult, stormed out of the company. Undeterred, the directors reorganized the company under a new name, one that honored Detroit’s founder, Le Sieur de la Mothe Cadillac, and utilized the engine designed by Leland.

Leland guided Cadillac through its formative years and assisted in its integration into the General Motors conglomerate. However, in 1917, a disagreement with William Durant led to his departure. He subsequently established a new company to manufacture Liberty aircraft engines. As a historical footnote, Leland named this company after Abraham Lincoln, the first president for whom he had voted in 1864.

Production had barely commenced when the Armistice brought an end to his government contract. Burdened with mounting debts, the seventy-four-year-old Leland swiftly transformed his factory and reorganized the company to produce automobiles.

Leland’s reputation for quality workmanship, meticulous attention to detail, and unwavering honesty was so strong that $6.5 million of common stock in the new company was subscribed within just three hours of being offered for sale. However, Leland’s tenure with the company proved to be relatively short.

An unwavering commitment to mechanical perfection, outdated styling, and post-war material shortages hindered development and production. On February 4, 1922, the board of directors overruled Leland’s objections and placed the company in receivership.

The company was subsequently sold to Henry Ford for $8 million. His son, Edsel, assumed the presidency of the Lincoln Motor Company before the end of the year.

Over time, Henry Leland joined the ranks of forgotten automotive pioneers. He was, however, in esteemed company, as this is the final resting place for many of the giants from the infancy of the American auto industry, including figures such as Ralph Teetor, Childe Harold Wills, H.J. Hipple, and Howard E. Coffin, to name just a few. These men, like Leland, played crucial roles in shaping the industry we know today.