Glenister 1936
1912 Packard Victoria 04
Packard was an American luxury automobile marque built by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, and later by the Studebaker-Packard Corporation of South Bend, Indiana. The first Packard automobiles were produced in 1899 and the last in 1958.
Packard was founded by James Ward Packard (Lehigh University Class of 1884), William Doud Packard and their partner, George Lewis Weiss, in the city of Warren, Ohio. James Ward believed that they could build a better horseless carriage than the Winton cars owned by Weiss (an important Winton stockholder) and, being himself a mechanical engineer, had some ideas for improvement on the designs of current automobiles. The story goes:
From the very beginning, Packard automobiles introduced a number of innovations in its designs, including the modern steering wheel and, years later, the first production 12-cylinder engine.
Henry Bourne Joy, a member of one of Detroit's oldest and wealthiest families, bought a Packard. Impressed by its reliability, he visited the Packards and soon enlisted a group of investors—including Truman Handy Newberry and Russell A. Alger Jr. On October 2, 1902, this group refinanced and renamed the New York and Ohio Automobile Company as "Packard Motor Car Company", with James as president. Alger later served as vice-president.[6] Packard moved its automobile operation to Detroit soon after, and Joy became general manager, later to be chairman of the board. An original Packard, reputedly the first manufactured, was donated by a grateful James Packard to his alma mater, Lehigh University, and is preserved there in the Packard Laboratory. Another is on display at the Packard Museum in Warren, Ohio.
The 3,500,000-square-foot (325,000 m2) Packard plant on East Grand Boulevard in Detroit was located on over 35 acres (0.142 km2) of land. It was designed by Albert Kahn, and included the first use of reinforced concrete for industrial construction in Detroit. When opened in 1903, it was considered the most modern automobile manufacturing facility in the world, and its skilled craftsmen practised over eighty trades. The dilapidated plant still stands,despite repeated fires. Architect Kahn also designed the Packard Proving Grounds at Utica, Michigan.
1906-1930dPackard Twin-Six Touring, 1916
Packard Fourth Series 426 Roadster, 1927
From this beginning, through and beyond the 1930s, Packard-built vehicles were perceived as very competitive in the class of high-priced luxury American automobiles. The company was commonly referred to as being one of the "Three P's" of American motordom royalty, along with Pierce-Arrow of Buffalo, New York and Peerless of Cleveland, Ohio.[citation needed]For most of its history Packard was guided by its President and General Manager Alvan Macauley who also served as President of the National Automobile Manufactures Association.Inducted into the Automobile Hall of Fame, Macauley took Packard to the number one designer and producer of luxury automobiles in the United States and was highly competitive abroad, with markets in sixty-one countries and gross income of $21,889,000 in 1928. Macauley was responsible for the iconic Packard slogan, "Ask the Man Who Owns One."
Packard built trucks as well as excellent luxury cars. In 1912, a Packard truck, carrying a three-ton load, drove from New York City to San Francisco between 8 July and 24 August.[ The same year, Packard had Service Depots in 104 cities.[12] The Packard Motor Car Showroom and Storage Facility at Buffalo, New York and designed by Albert Kahn in about 1926, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.
1912 Packard Victoria 04
Packard was an American luxury automobile marque built by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, and later by the Studebaker-Packard Corporation of South Bend, Indiana. The first Packard automobiles were produced in 1899 and the last in 1958.
Packard was founded by James Ward Packard (Lehigh University Class of 1884), William Doud Packard and their partner, George Lewis Weiss, in the city of Warren, Ohio. James Ward believed that they could build a better horseless carriage than the Winton cars owned by Weiss (an important Winton stockholder) and, being himself a mechanical engineer, had some ideas for improvement on the designs of current automobiles. The story goes:
From the very beginning, Packard automobiles introduced a number of innovations in its designs, including the modern steering wheel and, years later, the first production 12-cylinder engine.
Henry Bourne Joy, a member of one of Detroit's oldest and wealthiest families, bought a Packard. Impressed by its reliability, he visited the Packards and soon enlisted a group of investors—including Truman Handy Newberry and Russell A. Alger Jr. On October 2, 1902, this group refinanced and renamed the New York and Ohio Automobile Company as "Packard Motor Car Company", with James as president. Alger later served as vice-president.[6] Packard moved its automobile operation to Detroit soon after, and Joy became general manager, later to be chairman of the board. An original Packard, reputedly the first manufactured, was donated by a grateful James Packard to his alma mater, Lehigh University, and is preserved there in the Packard Laboratory. Another is on display at the Packard Museum in Warren, Ohio.
The 3,500,000-square-foot (325,000 m2) Packard plant on East Grand Boulevard in Detroit was located on over 35 acres (0.142 km2) of land. It was designed by Albert Kahn, and included the first use of reinforced concrete for industrial construction in Detroit. When opened in 1903, it was considered the most modern automobile manufacturing facility in the world, and its skilled craftsmen practised over eighty trades. The dilapidated plant still stands,despite repeated fires. Architect Kahn also designed the Packard Proving Grounds at Utica, Michigan.
1906-1930dPackard Twin-Six Touring, 1916
Packard Fourth Series 426 Roadster, 1927
From this beginning, through and beyond the 1930s, Packard-built vehicles were perceived as very competitive in the class of high-priced luxury American automobiles. The company was commonly referred to as being one of the "Three P's" of American motordom royalty, along with Pierce-Arrow of Buffalo, New York and Peerless of Cleveland, Ohio.[citation needed]For most of its history Packard was guided by its President and General Manager Alvan Macauley who also served as President of the National Automobile Manufactures Association.Inducted into the Automobile Hall of Fame, Macauley took Packard to the number one designer and producer of luxury automobiles in the United States and was highly competitive abroad, with markets in sixty-one countries and gross income of $21,889,000 in 1928. Macauley was responsible for the iconic Packard slogan, "Ask the Man Who Owns One."
Packard built trucks as well as excellent luxury cars. In 1912, a Packard truck, carrying a three-ton load, drove from New York City to San Francisco between 8 July and 24 August.[ The same year, Packard had Service Depots in 104 cities.[12] The Packard Motor Car Showroom and Storage Facility at Buffalo, New York and designed by Albert Kahn in about 1926, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.