Atlas (automobile)
There were numerous cars, makes and models, named Atlas.
An Atlas car was built in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1906–1907; another came from Springfield, Massachusetts from 1907-1911 (and became the Atlas-Knight for 1912–1913); and an Atlas Motor Buggy was built in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1909.
No production of an actual vehicle is proven for the Atlas Automobile Company of Newark, New Jersey (mentioned as having been established in 1902), for the Atlas Motor Company of New York City, New York (organized in 1906 with $1,200 stock capital), and the Atlas Taxi Company of Brooklyn, New York (organized in 1911 with $10,000 stock capital).[1]
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[edit] Pittsburgh car
| Industry | Automobile |
|---|---|
| Fate | closed |
| Successor(s) | none |
| Founded | 1906 |
| Defunct | 1907 |
| Headquarters | College Ave., East End, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Key people | W.H. La Fountain; William G. Hughes; Alfred F. Bennett |
| Products | automobiles trucks Taxicabs |
| Parent | none |
| Subsidiaries | none |
The Atlas Automobile Company was established on College Avenue in the East End of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in late 1906 in a "fireproof garage."[2] It was a four cylinder car rated at 25/30 hp with shaft drive and a 3-speed sliding gear transmission.[3] It was offered as a touring car or runabout. The firm was out of business by the next year.
[edit] Springfield car
 |
|
| Industry | Taxicab |
|---|---|
| Fate | bankruptcy |
| Successor(s) | none |
| Founded | 1907 |
| Defunct | 1913 |
| Headquarters | Springfield, Massachusetts, United States |
| Key people | Harry A. Knox |
| Products | automobiles trucks Taxicabs |
| Parent | none |
| Subsidiaries | none |
After Harry Knox left the company that had been building Knox cars in Springfield, he established the Knox Motor Truck Company in 1905 to produce Atlas commercial vehicles. His former partners at his previous firm took him to court over the name. After he was forbidden from using the Knox name, he formed the Atlas Motor Car Company in late 1907.
[edit] History
Harry Knox had proposed to the people producing the Sunset in California that he produce the car under license. At first they refused, but changed their mind after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. The Atlas of Springfield was thus based on the Sunset, even using the same two-stroke engine. This same 2-cylinder 22 hp engine was used in the Atlas delivery vans and taxicab, starting in 1908. Harry Knox refined the engine and developed a 3-cylinder 34 hp version of it. Later, a 60 hp 4-cylinder version was offered. The firm entered an Atlas in the 1909 Vanderbilt Cup, being the first two-stroke car to enter a major long-distance road race. This fact was promoted in subsequent promotional materials. Not long after, the two-stroke engine fell out of favor in the marketplace, and Knox added a Knight sleeve-valved engine in 1912. These cars were called Atlas-Knights, and were bigger, five- or seven-passenger touring cars that cost approximately $3500.[4] The company was bankrupt by early 1913, supposedly due to problems acquiring engines. Harry Knox then moved to Indianapolis to assist the Lyons brothers in producing the Lyons-Knight.
[edit] Atlas Motor Buggy
This was a prototype highwheeler produced by the Atlas Motor Buggy firm of Indianapolis in 1909. After the sole prototype was built, the firm returned to its two-stroke gasoline and diesel stationary engine production. Later, the Atlas factory was used for the Lyons-Knight, after the Lyons brothers bought the company.[5]
[edit] Paris (France) car
Produced by the Société Industrielle de Livry, this Atlas was launched at the 1949 Paris Auto Show. The show car was a minicar that seated two and had a 125 cc AMC engine. Production cars featured a 175 cc 8.5 hp unit and a top speed of 43 mph.[6] The car was also referred to as the Coccinelle (Ladybird). The Sofravel French minicar of the same era was also referred to as the Atlas, which must have been confusing to consumers. The Livry parent company also produced the Kover and Le Piaf minicars.
[edit] Greece
- Atlas (light trucks)
- Atlas Car and Manufacturing Company, a manufacturer of small railroad locomotives
[edit] Notes
- ^ Kimes, Beverly Rae (editor) and Clark, Henry Austin, jr., ; The Standard Catalogue of American Cars, 2nd Edition, Krause Publications, Iola WI 54990 (1985) ISBN 0-87341-111-068, p. 64/65.
- ^ Kimes, Beverly Rae. Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805–1942 (Iola, WI: Krause, 1996), p. 68.
- ^ Kimes (1985), p. 64
- ^ Kimes (1996), p. 68.
- ^ Kimes (1996), p. 69.
- ^ Georgano, Nick. The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile (Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2000), p. 92.
[edit] References
- Georgano, Nick (Ed.). The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2000. ISBN 1-57958-293-1
- Kimes, Beverly Rae and Clark Jr, Henry Austin. Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805–1942 (Third Edition). Iola, WI: Krause. 1996. ISBN 0-87341-428-4
