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Studebaker once got enticed to relocate to Kalamazoo

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  • #1

    Studebaker once got enticed to relocate to Kalamazoo

    I've been reading a book on the history of my town, Kalamazoo MI. It was written in the 80's by 2 local historians / college professors.
    I happened across a mention of Studebaker, and was surprised to see it was in regards to luring them out of South Bend!
    This would have been in the 1870's. It's in a section of the book regarding the growth of the town, and how it compared to growth of the rest of Michigan. Apparently the 2 local newspapers at the time (the Gazette and the Telegraph) felt Kalamazoo was lagging behind.

    From the book:
    "The Telegraph editor said that "if we would make this a good business point, we must encourage MANUFACTORIES. This will bring in men and enhance the value of our property." Yet the Michigan Central repair shops went to Jackson with 1,000 workmen, and the Singer Company located in South Bend with hundreds more. Grand rapids won a rail-road-car factory and the Studebaker Wagon Works failed to move to Kalamazoo, even after a $100,000 stock offer. The Telegraph took to calling the village "Sleepy Hollow" and complained that local people coldshouldered visiting businessmen."

    in all my Studebaker reading I don't think I'd ever heard of this.
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  • #2
    Interesting comments on Studebaker. From what my son tells me, it worked out for the best as Pfizer is expanding and Stryker is also increasing their presence which should help the local economy.

    Bob

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    • #3
      Is that from The Kalamazoo Automobilist by David O. Lyons?

      The Kalamazoo Automobilist
      https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/books/477/
      The year is 1891 and Kalamazoo inventor J. B. Rhodes is tinkering with his most impressive creation yet––an operable steam wagon that could be propelled down the streets of Kalamazoo, Michigan without the aid of horses. Steam-powered vehicles had traveled the roads in other towns as early as 1805, but Rhodes‚ wagon holds a special place in history as Kalamazoo's first "horseless carriage," marking the very beginning of a frenzy that some called "horseless-carriageitis." By the turn of the century, new vehicles began arriving in the city that could carry citizens about with the proclaimed "speed of Pegasus." Soon to follow would be the autos of the Blood brothers, the Fuller family, Frank Burtt, and the brothers-in-law, Frank Lay and Henry Lane. The initial success of these men was followed by despair of those that tried and failed in the business and the inevitable fraudulent schemes that spring up in any arena where the stakes are high and there is money to be made. Car Histories Included: Barley, Blood, Cannon, Checker, Cornelian, Dort, Greyhound, Handley, Handley-Knight, Kalamazoo trucks, Kalamazoo-Rail, Lane trucks, Michigan, Pennant cab, Reed tractor, Roamer, States, and Wolverine. The Kalamazoo Automobilist describes the town's role in this unfolding drama––from Michigan Buggy's rise and fall to the birth and subsequent death of the city‚s reputation as home of the beloved Checker taxi cab––demonstrating that at one time, Kalamazoo was a formidable contender as a hub of automotive power. This is the story of one hundred years in the history of a small Midwestern town, and the part it played in an invention that changed the world: the automobile.


      Craig

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      • #4
        Craig - just a thot. l wonder if there is a family connection between David Lyons and Former SDC prez Terry Judd. He is related, as you likely remember, to the Lyons family that supplied hub caps and wheel discs to much of the auto industry, including Studebaker.

        Just a thot that would be an interesting connection if it were true.
        Roger Hill


        60 Lark Vlll, hardtop, black/red, Power Kit, 3 spd. - "Juliette"
        61 Champ Deluxe, 6, black/red, o/d, long box. - "Jeri"
        Junior Wagon - "Junior"

        "In the end, dear undertaker,
        Ride me in a Studebaker"

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        • #5
          I can remember over 50 years ago there was a thought of Studebaker opening a plant in Tucson. I have never been able to find anything about it other than it was mentioned in our Phoenix paper either the Arizona Republic or Phoenix Gazette. My dad mentioned it as we had a new Lark at the time.

          Bob Miles
          Pacific Southwest Zone Coordinator

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          • #6
            One of the major reasons Studebaker would have decided to stay in South Bend in the 1870's was being on the main line of the New York Central railroad. Be it materials in or finished goods out, the railroads were the primary means of shipping everything in the 19th century.

            Steve

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            • #7
              Originally posted by 8E45E View Post
              Is that from The Kalamazoo Automobilist by David O. Lyons?

              The Kalamazoo Automobilist
              https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/books/477/
              The year is 1891 and Kalamazoo inventor J. B. Rhodes is tinkering with his most impressive creation yet––an operable steam wagon that could be propelled down the streets of Kalamazoo, Michigan without the aid of horses. Steam-powered vehicles had traveled the roads in other towns as early as 1805, but Rhodes‚ wagon holds a special place in history as Kalamazoo's first "horseless carriage," marking the very beginning of a frenzy that some called "horseless-carriageitis." By the turn of the century, new vehicles began arriving in the city that could carry citizens about with the proclaimed "speed of Pegasus." Soon to follow would be the autos of the Blood brothers, the Fuller family, Frank Burtt, and the brothers-in-law, Frank Lay and Henry Lane. The initial success of these men was followed by despair of those that tried and failed in the business and the inevitable fraudulent schemes that spring up in any arena where the stakes are high and there is money to be made. Car Histories Included: Barley, Blood, Cannon, Checker, Cornelian, Dort, Greyhound, Handley, Handley-Knight, Kalamazoo trucks, Kalamazoo-Rail, Lane trucks, Michigan, Pennant cab, Reed tractor, Roamer, States, and Wolverine. The Kalamazoo Automobilist describes the town's role in this unfolding drama––from Michigan Buggy's rise and fall to the birth and subsequent death of the city‚s reputation as home of the beloved Checker taxi cab––demonstrating that at one time, Kalamazoo was a formidable contender as a hub of automotive power. This is the story of one hundred years in the history of a small Midwestern town, and the part it played in an invention that changed the world: the automobile.


              Craig
              Nope, this book is called "Kalamazoo, the place behind the products"
              Larry B Massie and Peter J Schmitt
              Attached Files

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              • #8
                Originally posted by sweetolbob View Post
                Interesting comments on Studebaker. From what my son tells me, it worked out for the best as Pfizer is expanding and Stryker is also increasing their presence which should help the local economy.
                Bob
                Yeah, we are indeed Ok and those 2 companies have meant the world to this city. Although we never lured in Studebaker, we did have Checker! Gotta love em.

                Comment

                • #9
                  Originally posted by Michidan View Post
                  Nope, this book is called "Kalamazoo, the place behind the products"
                  Larry B Massie and Peter J Schmitt
                  You are no doubt correct. I checked my copy of The Kalamazoo Automobilist later when I got home from work, and their history only covers motorized vehicles from 1891. There is no reference to horse-drawn vehicles of any kind.

                  Craig

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                  • #10
                    David Lyons restored an "Economy Motor buggy that was built in the automobile factory my son owns in Joliet Ill.
                    Dshbrd SPRING2018 Complete.pdf

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by Michidan View Post
                      Yeah, we are indeed Ok and those 2 companies have meant the world to this city. Although we never lured in Studebaker, we did have Checker! Gotta love em.
                      Checker sure but you also had Blood, Cannon, Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo Truck, Kalamazoo Motors, Lane Truck, Mighty Michigan, Pennant Club, States and Wolverine plus Roamer and Dort. You folks were the veritable auto manufacturing power of the state.

                      Bob

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