More Early Trucks

The early history of companies that are still in business today provide interesting stories. The International Harvester's first truck was built in 1907. It looked like a farm wagon in search of a horse. With it's high hard rubber wheels, it was designed for dirt rutted roads in the rural areas to serve the farmers. It was widely said that farmers bought them and displayed them in their yards as a warning to horses that they could be replaced.

The company had been formed by two farm machinery manufacturers, McCormick and Deering, to serve the farmers of that era. It was named the Auto Wagon and sold well in the market place.

The GMC nameplate first emerged on the highways in 1912. It was the result of a joint venture between the Rapid Motor Co. and the Reliance Motor Co., both of central Michigan. They both staged endurance runs with trucks between Detroit and Chicago with two or three ton loads. These trips took as long as thirty three hours and were very hard on truck drivers of the day. After all, teamsters driving horses braved all kinds of weather so why should truck drivers have it different.

Another early entry into trucking is FWD, the Four Wheel Drive Auto Co. A blacksmith named Otto Zachow first built a passenger car that drove through both front and rear wheels. It performed well on Wisconsin's unpaved muddy roads. He persuaded his well-to-do brother-in-law to back him in building a three ton four wheel drive truck, powered by a four cylinder fifty six horse power gasoline engine.

This rugged truck quickly caught the eye of the U. S. Army. Based on their own tests, they ordered thirty eight Model Bs for General John J. "Blackjack" Pershing's Mexican campaign against Poncho Villa, permanently establishing FWD as a builder of tough, special-purpose vehicles.

It is well known that the advent of the trucking industry, with it's rugged drivers, who were in the truck, in front of the truck cranking the engine, along side of the truck repairing tires, chain drives or anything else that went wrong, changed the eating habits of Americans. Food distribution by trucks changed everything.
Truck Safely out There.