Studebaker History

Studebaker:
an American success story By Leigh Morris

Long before the Duryea brothers, Ransom Olds and Henry Ford, the Studebaker boys were building wagons, carriages and other horse-drawn vehicles and, along with them, an empire in the bustling Indiana city of South Bend.

The Studebaker saga is the quintessential American success story. With $68 and two sets of blacksmith tools, brothers Henry and Clement Studebaker launched their little enterprise, H&C Studebaker, 150 years ago on Feb. 16, 1852. Their receipts totaled 25 cents that day, the price of shoeing a horse. By the end of their first year, they had built two wagons. At the end of the 19th Century, Studebaker was

the world’s largest vehicle

manufacturer. The first Studebaker blacksmith shop, South Bend,

Indiana circa 1852.

In all likelihood, H&C Studebaker would

not have amounted to much had it not been for a twist of fate. John Mohler (J.M. as he was called by family and friends) Studebaker didn’t have much interest in the fledgling business.

He dreamed of earning his fortune in the California gold fields. In a journey that was marked by Indian attacks in Utah and the loss of the wagon Studebaker "Prarie Schooner" Conestoga Wagon circa 1870 trains leader to a scorpion’s bite, J.M. finally arrived in Placerville, Calif. in August 1853.

J.M. never did prospect for gold. Instead, he built wheelbarrows for the miners. He would become a partner in the business. Within five years, he had amassed $8,000, a very substantial amount of money at a time when a

worker back East earned about $550 a year. In 1858, J.M. decided to return to South Bend

for what he thought would be a short visit, but he never did return to the West.

In addition to the three brothers mentioned, there were two others Peter and Jacob. All five had been raised in the Dunkard faith a stern religion that taught pacifism. Shortly before J.M.’s return, H&C Studebaker built a large order of wagons for the U.S. Army. These were to be used

in the so called Mormon War. This decision weighed heavily on Henry, a man who took his faith very seriously. In Gold rush and farm homesteaders late 1800's lots of studebaker wagons here addition to Henry’s dilemma, the military contract

had left the young company in a precarious financial situation. To meet the order, the brothers had to devise a new method of drying wood and then purchase equipment and supplies.

Seeing the plight of his brothers and the company, J.M. had no choice but to remain in South Bend. He acquired Henry’s interest in

the company and invested additional funds. It was enough to put H&C Studebaker on a solid footing - just in time to meet the demand of a nation entering the Civil War and the needs of settlers moving West.

Henry returned to farming, remaining true to his Dunkard beliefs, while the others built the company. Clement soon became a Methodist, J.M. a Presbyterian, Jacob a Baptist, and Henry joined the Episcopalians.

Nonetheless, the brothers were deeply religious and proclaimed themselves to be

"Christian industrialists". Upon the death of Jacob in 1888, the brothers reaffirmed their determination to "do our duty to each other, toward our fellow men and toward our heavenly Father, so that when we too shall hear our summons...the call will find us ready and waiting." It was a belief that guided their business and personal lives.

Clement, J.M., Peter and Jacob all were active Republicans, tireless industrial leaders, optimistic in the nation’s future, exceptionally progressive, and genuinely philanthropic. It was not surprising that they also were Freemasons.

The company reorganized as the Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing

Company in 1868. By 1870, Studebaker horse-drawn vehicles were the most coveted in the nation and, in another decade, around the world.

It was in 1870 that Studebaker dealerships began to spring up in such west central Illinois communities as Jacksonville, Beardstown, Mt. Sterling and Pittsfield. More would follow. Farmers, merchants and freight haulers clamored for the "celebrated Studebaker wagon."

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