With the end of WWI, trucks had convincingly proved that they were not an alternative to the horse, but invaluable in the distribution of material during the conflict. In fact, many attributed the final victory resulted from the use of trucks, more than any other single factor. Clearly, trucks were here to stay.
Trucks became mainstays in many vocations such as logging, where their power--even with unsophisticated four and six-cylinder engines and lack of braking or chassis refinement, could out perform horses and offered much greater flexibility.
Trucks also made major inroads in municipal and utility fleets for hauling and service tasks. Aiding their acceptance was the transfer of 20,000 military trucks to the states for road maintenance purposes. Also their relative speed and pumping power made them popular with fire fighting applications.
Returning servicemen who had seen duty with the army engineers were quick to apply trucks to the construction industry during the building boom of the 20's.
Trucks also made significant inroads into the distribution of goods, mostly in straight trucks of up to eleven tons nominal capacity, though many were severely overloaded with such cargo as sacked goods and paper rolls.
Long distance trucking was not getting the same start even with the demonstration trips by truck manufacturers to promote their product. Some effort was made to promote the possibility of coast-to-coast trucking. One of the most notable was the War Department First Transcontinental Army Convoy that departed Washington, DC, July 7, 1919, to determine weather a truck convoy could make it as far as the west coast.
The convoy comprised of 300 enlisted men and officers, and 65 trucks and other vehicles. And because of the primitive roads of the time, five 7 1/2 ton AC Macks were loaded with timber to shore up bridges and make road repairs on the way.
The convoy followed the route of the Lincoln Highway, whish had been planned prior to the war as part od the 1916 Federal Road Act. In command was Col. Charles W. McClure, assisted by a young Lt. Col. Dwight D. Eisenhower---who decades later as president, signed legislation that would create the Interstate Highway System.
It took two months not without many ordeals, to complete the trip, ending with a celebration in San Francisco. This did help to kick off the population to insist on the federal funding of a highway system throughout the country. It would be easier to ask for and very difficult to accomplish. Many hurdles would have to be surmounted, with highway marking, funding problems, states rights and so on. Truck Safely out There.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Retired Truckers Remember
All retired truck drivers remember the hard rubber tires of the good old days. It was widely believed that they were necessary to handle the weight carried by trucks. That made it difficult for tire manufacturing companies to have their products excepted by the trucking industry.
The Good Year Co. designed the rubber pneumatic cord tire in 1912, but didn't introduce it until 1916 to the truck manufacturers. To prove their tire to the general public and to the trucking industry and truck drivers, they formed Wingfoot Express. They fitted a 5 ton Packard truck with Good Year 38-by-7 steering axle tires and 44-by-10 drive axle tires for a trip from Akron, Ohio to Boston.
The first trip took 19 days, due to very bad weather and terrible roads. The return trip was much better, taking only 5 days, much faster than the trains of the time. After much marketing fanfare, the Wingfoot Express was making the round trip on a regular 5 day schedule. They were hauling their own products therefore marking the beginning of interstate transport of merchandise by a private carrier.
Truck drivers will tell you, one of the great needs of trucking at the time, was a highway system. The roads were bad or did not exist depending on which state you were trying to travel through. Many roads, if paved, would suddenly end at county or state lines because on territorial rights and funding.
President Woodrow Wilson signed a Congressional created Federal Aid Road Act in 1916. This gave the Federal Government power to establish Post Offices and Post Roads. The aim was to create an interstate highway system and allowed Federal funding of 50 % of the cost. This aided the states and counties but fell short, because of tax base population.
Even earlier, however, a group of visionaries, led by automotive pioneer Carl G. Fisher, began talking about a coast-to-coast highway. In 1911 he had built the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and created one of the world's most famous auto races.
It didn't take him long to promote and raise $4 million from his fellow automobile manufacturers, toward construction of a new road. On July 1, 1913, The Lincoln Highway Assn. was officially begun. This was intended to spur public interest and pressure public officials to continue building the the highway. The first seedling one mile strip of concrete road was built in Malta, IL. In 1914.
Few others were built and after the 1916 Federal Aid Road Act, the assn. turned over three years of extensive studies and recommendations to the federal and state road builders. It had charted the beat route from New York to San Francisco and laid the groundwork for construction of US30. Truck Safely out There.
The Good Year Co. designed the rubber pneumatic cord tire in 1912, but didn't introduce it until 1916 to the truck manufacturers. To prove their tire to the general public and to the trucking industry and truck drivers, they formed Wingfoot Express. They fitted a 5 ton Packard truck with Good Year 38-by-7 steering axle tires and 44-by-10 drive axle tires for a trip from Akron, Ohio to Boston.
The first trip took 19 days, due to very bad weather and terrible roads. The return trip was much better, taking only 5 days, much faster than the trains of the time. After much marketing fanfare, the Wingfoot Express was making the round trip on a regular 5 day schedule. They were hauling their own products therefore marking the beginning of interstate transport of merchandise by a private carrier.
Truck drivers will tell you, one of the great needs of trucking at the time, was a highway system. The roads were bad or did not exist depending on which state you were trying to travel through. Many roads, if paved, would suddenly end at county or state lines because on territorial rights and funding.
President Woodrow Wilson signed a Congressional created Federal Aid Road Act in 1916. This gave the Federal Government power to establish Post Offices and Post Roads. The aim was to create an interstate highway system and allowed Federal funding of 50 % of the cost. This aided the states and counties but fell short, because of tax base population.
Even earlier, however, a group of visionaries, led by automotive pioneer Carl G. Fisher, began talking about a coast-to-coast highway. In 1911 he had built the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and created one of the world's most famous auto races.
It didn't take him long to promote and raise $4 million from his fellow automobile manufacturers, toward construction of a new road. On July 1, 1913, The Lincoln Highway Assn. was officially begun. This was intended to spur public interest and pressure public officials to continue building the the highway. The first seedling one mile strip of concrete road was built in Malta, IL. In 1914.
Few others were built and after the 1916 Federal Aid Road Act, the assn. turned over three years of extensive studies and recommendations to the federal and state road builders. It had charted the beat route from New York to San Francisco and laid the groundwork for construction of US30. Truck Safely out There.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Early 20th Century Truck Testing
The pace of truck design and the fierce competition in the second decade of the century did not allow design testing before model release as we know it today. New ideas were literally tested on the road.
Truck driving called for nerves of steel and blood that could run hot or cold, depending on the season. Not much protection with only a roof for a cab. If the weather became too severe, the driver would many times get out and get under the truck for protection. It was common to have a driver suffer from frost bite in the winter, drenching rain in the spring, sunburn in the summer and wind blown in the fall.
The elements were not the only thing truck drivers had to put up with. Creature comforts were not designed into early trucks. Most had a bench seat without padding, suspensions were very stiff and unyielding if they existed at all. Truck drivers would bounce around like a cork in the fish pond most of the trip. The only padded seat they encountered would be in the local tavern after a hard day.
Truck builders of the time, increasingly turned to public demonstrations of their truck's rugged dependability in the rush to better their chances to gain new customers. Instead of race track , as car builders did, they used freight runs between cities to show there superiority. With the lack of a highway system, the winner at best depended on a lot of good luck.
The first transcontinental trip recorded, was a Saurer Motor Co. (import from Switzerland built in their American factory). Part of their sales campaign was to drive west to San Francisco and return. It took more than a year. The cargo was a load of timbers, not for delivery, but to build bridges and use to cross soft terrain. As an example, the trek across New Mexico took more than a month. After reaching the West Coast, they shipped the truck back to Colorado and drove it to New York via Chicago. It had logged over 5000 miles.
In 1916 GMC set out to cross the country in both directions in a truck loaded with 1 and 1/2 tons of Carnation evaporated milk. Driver William Warwick and his wife were under solemn oath to except no help along the way. They would do the needed repairs and free the truck when mired down without assistance of any kind. The truck was washed off the roadway in Colorado by a sudden rain storm, fell through the deck of a ferry boat in Illinois and mired to the axles in about every other state along the way.
In spite of the many problems along the way, the trip was completed in 68 days. Of that, 31 days of actual travel on the road and the rest were making repairs and resting. In trucker language, those days were called layovers because the driver was not at home.
Many of these trips were going on all over the country at the time, with the industry struggling to find it's way to acceptance by the economy of the time. Their competition being government subsidized railroads, and stubborn business men who did not believe the "horseless carriage" would ever replace the horse. Truck Safely out There.
Truck driving called for nerves of steel and blood that could run hot or cold, depending on the season. Not much protection with only a roof for a cab. If the weather became too severe, the driver would many times get out and get under the truck for protection. It was common to have a driver suffer from frost bite in the winter, drenching rain in the spring, sunburn in the summer and wind blown in the fall.
The elements were not the only thing truck drivers had to put up with. Creature comforts were not designed into early trucks. Most had a bench seat without padding, suspensions were very stiff and unyielding if they existed at all. Truck drivers would bounce around like a cork in the fish pond most of the trip. The only padded seat they encountered would be in the local tavern after a hard day.
Truck builders of the time, increasingly turned to public demonstrations of their truck's rugged dependability in the rush to better their chances to gain new customers. Instead of race track , as car builders did, they used freight runs between cities to show there superiority. With the lack of a highway system, the winner at best depended on a lot of good luck.
The first transcontinental trip recorded, was a Saurer Motor Co. (import from Switzerland built in their American factory). Part of their sales campaign was to drive west to San Francisco and return. It took more than a year. The cargo was a load of timbers, not for delivery, but to build bridges and use to cross soft terrain. As an example, the trek across New Mexico took more than a month. After reaching the West Coast, they shipped the truck back to Colorado and drove it to New York via Chicago. It had logged over 5000 miles.
In 1916 GMC set out to cross the country in both directions in a truck loaded with 1 and 1/2 tons of Carnation evaporated milk. Driver William Warwick and his wife were under solemn oath to except no help along the way. They would do the needed repairs and free the truck when mired down without assistance of any kind. The truck was washed off the roadway in Colorado by a sudden rain storm, fell through the deck of a ferry boat in Illinois and mired to the axles in about every other state along the way.
In spite of the many problems along the way, the trip was completed in 68 days. Of that, 31 days of actual travel on the road and the rest were making repairs and resting. In trucker language, those days were called layovers because the driver was not at home.
Many of these trips were going on all over the country at the time, with the industry struggling to find it's way to acceptance by the economy of the time. Their competition being government subsidized railroads, and stubborn business men who did not believe the "horseless carriage" would ever replace the horse. Truck Safely out There.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
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.
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.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
The First Commercial Truck
America's first commercial vehicle was built by the Winton Bicycle Co. The first model was powered by a two-cylinder, 10 horse power automobile engine which had set a 33 mile per hour speed record around a horse race track in Cleveland. Alexander Winton then reincorporated his Wnton Bicycle Co. into the Winton Motor Carriage Co.
About the same time, he is reported to have passed up a chance to hire a young Detroit mechanic -- a fellow by the name of Henry Ford.
The first truck looked like a horse drawn delivery wagon -- without a horse. It was based on Winton's two cylinder auto chassis and came with wire spoke wheels, pneumatic tires and tiller steering. A Buffalo, NY medical supply company reportedly ordered 100 of the Winton wagons to give the company a good start in the business. It is not recorded how many were built or delivered.
By 1905 Winton developed a four cylinder engine and offered a truck considerably ahead of it's time, with a compressed air starter, shaft drive, wheel steering and planetary transmission.
Winton is also credited with creating the first automobile transport trailer, hitched to a car and loaded another car on the trailer.
The 5th wheel principle emerged as early as 1909 in Springfield, MA, where a Knox truck was fitted with a turntable. It was mounted on semi elliptic springs attached to the tractor's rear axle.
Despite these early innovations, the gasoline powered trucks were no an instant success. At the turn of the century, gasoline temporarily took a back seat to steam power, thanks to Clevelanders Windsor, Walter and Rollin White.
To put it bluntly, the gasoline powered truck had to earn it's place in the industry. Truck Safely out There.
About the same time, he is reported to have passed up a chance to hire a young Detroit mechanic -- a fellow by the name of Henry Ford.
The first truck looked like a horse drawn delivery wagon -- without a horse. It was based on Winton's two cylinder auto chassis and came with wire spoke wheels, pneumatic tires and tiller steering. A Buffalo, NY medical supply company reportedly ordered 100 of the Winton wagons to give the company a good start in the business. It is not recorded how many were built or delivered.
By 1905 Winton developed a four cylinder engine and offered a truck considerably ahead of it's time, with a compressed air starter, shaft drive, wheel steering and planetary transmission.
Winton is also credited with creating the first automobile transport trailer, hitched to a car and loaded another car on the trailer.
The 5th wheel principle emerged as early as 1909 in Springfield, MA, where a Knox truck was fitted with a turntable. It was mounted on semi elliptic springs attached to the tractor's rear axle.
Despite these early innovations, the gasoline powered trucks were no an instant success. At the turn of the century, gasoline temporarily took a back seat to steam power, thanks to Clevelanders Windsor, Walter and Rollin White.
To put it bluntly, the gasoline powered truck had to earn it's place in the industry. Truck Safely out There.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Trucking--The Very Beginning
How many truckers today remember names such as Hays, Autocar, Winton, Knox and White. These early gasoline powered trucks had a lot of competition from then popular electric powered Windsor, Walter and Rollin White. The electrics were good for pickup and delivery in the bustling cities of that time because of their quiet operating, but were limited by the time between battery charges. Steam power for trucks was never a viable source of energy. The White Brothers developed a flash boiler that could build a head of steam in seconds and became famous powering their "Whistling Billy" race car. It set an early record for a mile at 74 miles per hour in 48.3 seconds. They dropped steam for gasoline in 1910.
Just think about hard rubber tired wheels, chain drives, mechanical brakes and the evolution of all the equipment needed to make trucks dependable and economically acceptable. One of the biggest challenges turned out to be a highway system. Roads were mainly wagon trails anywhere away from a city and delivery between cities became a real challenge. Whistle stop trains were the order of the day and the trucking industry would have to prove themselves.
Looking back to the good old days makes a person wonder how they did it. Of course good old American ingenuity and strong backed workers would find a way. In the early 1900's, there were 461 truck builders who filled the roads with over 100,000 commercial vehicles. Some of the imaginative names were Meserve, Pak-age-car, Gasmobile and Famous.
With numbers like this, the horseless carriage put dobbin to pasture. Business owners were slow to replace their hay burners, but once they did the never looked back. Trucks and the trucking industry were here to stay. Truck Safely out There.
Just think about hard rubber tired wheels, chain drives, mechanical brakes and the evolution of all the equipment needed to make trucks dependable and economically acceptable. One of the biggest challenges turned out to be a highway system. Roads were mainly wagon trails anywhere away from a city and delivery between cities became a real challenge. Whistle stop trains were the order of the day and the trucking industry would have to prove themselves.
Looking back to the good old days makes a person wonder how they did it. Of course good old American ingenuity and strong backed workers would find a way. In the early 1900's, there were 461 truck builders who filled the roads with over 100,000 commercial vehicles. Some of the imaginative names were Meserve, Pak-age-car, Gasmobile and Famous.
With numbers like this, the horseless carriage put dobbin to pasture. Business owners were slow to replace their hay burners, but once they did the never looked back. Trucks and the trucking industry were here to stay. Truck Safely out There.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Cabbage Hill
Most truckers have a memory of the first time I did this or that. I'm sure most of those experiences include the first time they went down a famous mountain grade. There are many out in the truckers world.
I will never forget my own encounter with "Cabbage Hill", formerly known as "Dead Man's Pass". In fact the rest area at the summit is still called Dead Man's Pass. The original roadway is still there and was used as a detour during the construction of the present freeway hill. It is a narrow two lane road with some tight twenty mile per hour turns and six to seven per cent grades. A road that demands respect.
Getting back to my memorable ride down Cabbage Hill. The road back then was a two and three lane highway with no run out ramps. My rig was a single drive gas burner International, pulling a double trailer set. That is a straight trailer with a pull trailer, no converter dolly. I was loaded with wheat to 80,000 pounds. The rule with a rig like that was slow upgrade and slow, slow down grade.
Being a safety minded driver, I stopped at the brake safety check area to check the brake adjustment, (no self adjusters back then), before starting off the mountain. I left the transmission in second and under gear and started off the hill. Everything went well until just before the last sharp switchback when all hell broke loose.
The low air warning bell went off, the red flag dropped into my windshield and panic set in. With the load I was pulling, the emergency brake system lasted about half a mile. With smoke belching from all the wheels, I began to roll very fast and was busy picking up gears to keep the engine from over speeding and destroying itself.
I made the last turn and looked on down the hill for traffic. Luck was with me, the road was clear and I had to pull the transmission out of gear to save the engine. The next obstacle was the weigh station at bottom of the hill. There was no way for me to pull into it and stop with the speed and no brakes. Then I saw the weighmaster out next to the road flagging me on by. He wanted no part of my problem.
Now all I had to do was let it roll until it stopped which was clear to the Pendleton drive in theater. I climbed out of the cab, shaking all over and giving thanks for the safe ride. The belt had broken on the air compressor causing the brake failure. You can bet I really inspected that belt from that day on. In fact, pretrip inspections became a really good habit.
A rule I learned early on with trucks, "If you see something that needs attention, stop what you are doing and take care of now!", or it will be back to bite you. Truck Safely out There.
I will never forget my own encounter with "Cabbage Hill", formerly known as "Dead Man's Pass". In fact the rest area at the summit is still called Dead Man's Pass. The original roadway is still there and was used as a detour during the construction of the present freeway hill. It is a narrow two lane road with some tight twenty mile per hour turns and six to seven per cent grades. A road that demands respect.
Getting back to my memorable ride down Cabbage Hill. The road back then was a two and three lane highway with no run out ramps. My rig was a single drive gas burner International, pulling a double trailer set. That is a straight trailer with a pull trailer, no converter dolly. I was loaded with wheat to 80,000 pounds. The rule with a rig like that was slow upgrade and slow, slow down grade.
Being a safety minded driver, I stopped at the brake safety check area to check the brake adjustment, (no self adjusters back then), before starting off the mountain. I left the transmission in second and under gear and started off the hill. Everything went well until just before the last sharp switchback when all hell broke loose.
The low air warning bell went off, the red flag dropped into my windshield and panic set in. With the load I was pulling, the emergency brake system lasted about half a mile. With smoke belching from all the wheels, I began to roll very fast and was busy picking up gears to keep the engine from over speeding and destroying itself.
I made the last turn and looked on down the hill for traffic. Luck was with me, the road was clear and I had to pull the transmission out of gear to save the engine. The next obstacle was the weigh station at bottom of the hill. There was no way for me to pull into it and stop with the speed and no brakes. Then I saw the weighmaster out next to the road flagging me on by. He wanted no part of my problem.
Now all I had to do was let it roll until it stopped which was clear to the Pendleton drive in theater. I climbed out of the cab, shaking all over and giving thanks for the safe ride. The belt had broken on the air compressor causing the brake failure. You can bet I really inspected that belt from that day on. In fact, pretrip inspections became a really good habit.
A rule I learned early on with trucks, "If you see something that needs attention, stop what you are doing and take care of now!", or it will be back to bite you. Truck Safely out There.
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