A Brief History Of The Studebaker Corporation

Members of the Stutenbecker family left Solingen, Germany in 1736. Upon arrival to Philadelphia, their name was 'anglicized' to Studebaker. They brought with them extensive blacksmithing experience and their metal working skills would prove crucial in the development of horse drawn wagon construction. It is believed that Clement Studebaker built his first wagon in 1750.

Two of his grandchildren, Henry and Clement set up shop in South Bend, Indiana in 1852, opening the H & C Studebaker blacksmith shop. It was good timing. Their younger brother John made a small fortunate making wheel barrows and other tools used for gold mining in Hangtown (Placerville) and upon returning, invested his money in the company.

Brothers Jacob and Peter would also eventually join the company and by centennial year 1876, the Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing Company was the largest producer of horse drawn carriages in the world. In 1902, would enter the newly emerging automobile market, rolling out its first electric car that was available with three different bodies. Their first gas powered automobile was rolled out two years later, a 2 horsepower, 16 cylinder vehicle.

In 1911, Studebaker Brothers bought out Everitt-Metzger-Flanders Company of Detroit, Michigan. This is when the Studebaker Corporation was formed. Two years later, the company was manufacturing 4 and 6 cylinder automobiles and were simply known as Studebakers and their success propelled the company to third largest producer in America, behind Ford and Overland.

By 1920, the company had stopped manufacturing horse drawn wagons and moved their car production from Detroit to South Bend. Names like Big Six, Special Six, Light Six and Standard Six became 'nicknames' for their cars throughout the late 1910s and through the 1920s. In 1927, Studebaker finally introduced a model with an actual name, including President, Commander, Dictator and Erskine. The company then bought Pierce-Arrow Motor Co. of Buffalo, New York in 1928.

The great stock market crash that followed a year later hit the company's interests hard. in 1933, at the beginning of the depression, the company fell into receivership but was rescued by Paul Hoffman and Harold Vance who would guide the company back to profitability. In 1936, the company introduced a line of cab-over-engine trucks and continued to build quality trucks up until December, 1963 including the Champ pickup, Zip-Van postal truck, medium-duty diesels and bus and fire engine chassis. Studebaker would also be involved in manufacturing trucks, aircraft engines and cargo carriers during the second world war.

Studebaker continued making cars throughout the 40's and 50s and in 1951, were the first independent automaker to introduce a modern overhead-valve V8 engine. in 1952, the company celebrated its 100th anniversary and in 1953, launched the low-slung Loewy coupe and another in 1956 called the Hawk.

In 1954, the company was sold to the Packard Motor Car Company which then became the Studebaker Packard Corporation. The next four years would not turn a profit for the company but in 1959, the company rolled out the Lark, an all-new compact line. The Lark became so successful that it would prove to be the company's most profitable year ever.

In 1960, the other big car companies followed with their own lines of compact cars and soon the company would find itself struggling again. By 1964, the South Bend facility was shut down and production had moved to Hamilton, Ontario. Sales continued to drop and by March 1966, the company shut down the Hamilton facility and their days of making cars was over.

In early 1967, they merged with Wagner Electric and later in November of the same year, again merged with the Worthington Corporation to become Studebaker-Worthington. Finally, in 1979 the Studebaker name disappeared into history after being bought out by McGraw-Edison.

Other tidbits:

In 1874, a fire ripped through and destroyed two-thirds of the Studebaker plant. Rebuilt with solid brick over 20 acres it became "the largest vehicle house in the world".

The first Studebaker electric automobile was sold to F. W. Blees of Macon, Missouri.

1930s - the Studebaker Special #22 comes in third place at the Indy 500.

The Packard line was discontinued when the Lark was introduced in 1959.

The 1962 Studebaker Avanti was the world's fastest production model car with a top speed of 178.5 mph

The last Studebaker manufactured rolled off the line on St. Patrick's day, March 17, 1966 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

The South Bend facilities were bought by Kaiser Jeep, now also famous for the Jeep CJ and the Jeep Wagoneer. Presently owned by Stellantis.

In 1889, President Harrison ordered a full set of carriages for the White House.

When you see the Budweiser Clydesdales pulling that wagon, they're pulling a Studebaker.

I've placed several reference links below. Check them out when you have a chance. There are some great pictures of Studebaker cars, trucks, buses among others.

Cover photo - original vintage Studebaker stock certificate once owned by brokerage house 'Edwards & Hanly'.

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