1910 Duryea

edited by David Barth, 30 January 2009.
Courtesy The Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. Photos were taken in January 2009.

The first Duryea automobile built by brothers Charles E. and J. Frank Duryea is often credited as being the first American automobile, making its public appearance in 1893 in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA. Frank went on the produce automobiles with the Stevens-Duryea Company while Charles built experimental models. Because he never achieved the financial success or renown that he felt was due him, Charles, creator of this car, the Electa, died an unhappy man in 1938.

This car was purchased by Frederick C. Crawford at the Great Lakes Exposition in 1937, the first of about 130 vehicles in the original collection. The car was in an "antique car" display at the Expo, and at the end of the Expo, the display was dismantled. The cars were to be either sold or discarded. Mr. Crawford felt that these early cars should be preserved, so he purchased this car and within a few years had collected sufficient automobiles to open the Thompson Auto Album.

Model: Electa
Body Style: 2-seat phaeton
Original Factory Price: $625
Brake Horsepower: 12
Displacement: 82.8 cubic inches
Bore: 3 3/4 inches
Stroke: 3 3/4 inches
Cylinders: 2
Wheelbase: 80 inches
Manufacturer: Duryea Motor Company
Location: Saginaw, Michigan, USA

From the TRW Collection, formerly the Thompson Auto Album and Aviation Museum.