Don H. Berf^ebile 



THE 1 893 DURYEA AUTOMOBILE 



In the Museum of History and Technology 



During the last decade of the nineteenth century a number of 

 American engineers and mechanics were working diligently to 

 develop a practical self-propelled vehicle employing an internal- 

 combustion engine as the motive force. Among these men were 

 Charles and Frank Duryea, who began ivork on this type of 

 vehicle about 1892. This carriage ivas operated on the streets 

 of Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1893, where its trials ivere 

 noted in the newspapers. Notv preserved in the Museum of 

 History and Technology, it is a priced exhibit in the collection 

 of early automobiles . 



It is the purpose of this paper to present some of the facts 

 discovered during the restoration of the vehicle, to show the 

 problems that faced its builders, and to describe their solutions. 

 An attempt also has been made to correlate all this information 

 with reports of the now almost legendary day-to-day experiences 

 of the Duryeas, as published by the brothers in various booklets, 

 and as related by Frank Duryea during two interviews, recorded 

 on tape in 1956 and 1957, while he teas visiting the Smithsonian. 



The Author: Don H. Berkebile is on the staff of the 

 Museum of History and Technology, in the Smithsonian Insti- 

 tution's United States National Museum 



OF the numerous American automotive pioneers, 

 perhaps among the best known are Charles and 

 Frank Duryea. Beginning their work of automobile 

 building in Springfield, Massachusetts, and after much 

 rebuilding, they constructed their first successful vehi- 

 cle in 1892 and 1893. No sooner was this finished than 

 Frank, working alone, began work on a second vehicle 

 having a two-cylinder engine. With this automobile, 

 sufficient capital was attracted in 1895 to form the 

 Duryea Motor Wagon Company in which both 

 brothers were among the stockholders and directors. 

 A short time after the formation of the company this 

 second automobile was entered by the company in 

 the Chicago Times-Herald automobile race on Thanks- 



giving Day, November 28, 1895, where Frank Duryea 

 won a victory over the other five contestants — two 

 electric automobiles and three Benz machines im- 

 ported from Germany. 



In the year following this victory Frank, as en- 

 gineer in charge of design and construction, com- 

 pleted the plans begun earlier for a more powerful 

 automobile. During 1896 the company turned out 

 thirteen identical automobiles, the first example of 

 mass production in American automotive history. 1 



i S. H. Oliver, Automobiles and Motorcycles in the U.S. National 

 Museum (U.S. National Museum Bulletin 213, Washington: 

 Smithsonian Institution, 1957), p. 24. 



PAPER 34: THE 1893 DURYEA AUTOMOBILE 



INSTITUTION 



