Waltham Manufacturing Company: Difference between revisions

Waltham Manufacturing Company
Company type	Automobile Manufacturing
Industry	Automotive
Founded	1893
Founder	Charles Herman Metz, Prof. Herbert L. Thompson, Elmer G. Howe, Frank L. Howe, William Parrot
Defunct	1910
Fate	1908 take-over, 1910 absorbed
Headquarters	Waltham, Massachusetts, United States
Area served	United States
Key people	Charles Herman Metz, Leonard B. Gaylor, Charles A. Coffin, John Robbins, Albert Champion, Leo Melanowsky, William H. Little
Products	Vehicles; Automotive parts
Number of employees	ca. 200 in 1909

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1905 Orient 20 HP De Luxe Touring priced at $2250

Waltham Manufacturing Company was a manufacturer of bicycles, motorcycles, motorized tricycles and quadricycles, Buckboards, and automobiles under the brand names of Orient, Waltham, and Waltham-Orient in Waltham, Massachusetts. The company was founded in 1893, moving to self-powered vehicles after 1898.

History

Waltham Manufacturing Company (WMC) was founded by Waltham businessmen around engineer Charles Herman Metz (1863-1937), who was the 1885 New York State champion on the high wheel bicycle. Metz encouraged two employees to build a steam car of their own in the WMC premises, which led to the Waltham Steam. Metz imported French Aster engines, and secured the US distributorship for De Dion-Bouton engines. Further, he imported this maker's tricycles and quadricycles. Using De Dion-Bouton patents, WMC started building their own Orient Autogo and Orient Autogo Quad in 1899.

An early investor in WMC, Charles A. Coffin (1844-1926), first president of General Electric, ordered an electric prototype in 1898, which went not in production. Metz' experimented with engines mounted on bicycles. The evolving Orient Aster was one of the very first, U.S. built motorcycles. He was assisted by famed French bicycle racer Albert Champion (1878—1927) who arrived in the U.S. around 1899, becoming one of the first professional motorbike racers. Metz is even claimed to have found the expression "motor cycle" for his new vehicle, first used in a 1899 ad. Further, engines of Metz' design were developed and produced.

WMC's first car was a motor buggy called the Orient Victoriette, followed by two runabouts in 1902 and 1903. About 400 of the earlier model were sold; the younger Orient Runabout No. 9 was not a success with about 50 examples built.

In 1902, Metz left the company, founding Metz Motorcycle Company and C.H. Metz Company in town soon after. Engineer Leonard B. Gaylor succeded him at WMC. Still in 1902, Gaylor introduced a very light model with friction drive, sold as the Orient Buckboard. It seated 2 passengers and sold for just US$425, making it the lowest-priced automobile available. The vertically mounted air-cooled single-cylinder engine, situated at the rear of the car, produced 4 hp (3 kW). The car had tiller steering, weighed 500 lb (227 kg) and had a 100 mi (161 km) range, though minimal springing and the complete lack of any bodywork made it less than practical for a long journey. In the next years, it was offered in several models (including a diminutive delivery car), got an improved suspension, steering wheel, two chains instead of one belt to transmit the power to the rear wheels, and an optional 8 hp (6 kW) two cylinder engine. It remained in production until 1907.

Plant superintendent John Robbins left in 1904. He was replaced by Leo Melanowski who had apprenticed at Otto Gasmotoren Gesellschaft in Vienna, and then worked for Panhard & Levassor, Clément-Bayard, and Winton (co-working on their Bullett racecars). At WMC, he also had the position of a chief engineer.

More conventional cars came in 1905 with front-mounted, water cooled inline 4-cylinder engines of 16 or 20 hp (12 or 15 kW) and chain drive. They were made until 1908. These powerplants were of own design and consisted of four singles mounted on a common crank. Although of good quality, the cars were too expensive to become a success.

Meantime, Metz formed a joint-venture with the Marsh brothers from Brockton, Massachusetts, effective from 1905. He brought in his Metz Motorcycle Company, and the Marshes their Marsh Motorcycle Company. The new company was located in Brockton and organized as the American Motorcycle Company. Their products were sold as Marsh-Metz or just MM. The other Marsh venture, the less than successfull Marsh Motor Carriage Company founded in 1899, was set up with the machines brought to Metz in Waltham, who might have sold them as Walthams. Not many were built, anyway.

Melanowski stayed for less than two years. He left in 1906, to help racecar driver Joe Tracy starting the Dragon Automobile Company in Detroit. After that failed in 1908, he worked for the Aerocar Company which very soon folded, too. His position at WMC took William H. Little, but also onl for a short time. William C. Durant hired him as Buick's general manager, and then partnered with him in founding the Little Motor Car Company.

Little developed for WMC a nice small runabout with a 10 hp (8 kW) V-twin engine, and friction drive. Alas, shortly before production started in 1908, WMC got into financial troubles. To avoid bankruptcy, their credit bank negotiated with Charles Metz. In July 1908, the C.H. Metz Company bought WMC, making him the single person with the largest automobile manufacture in the U.S. reorganisations followed in 1909 and 1910, when the C.H. Metz Co. and WMC together were reorganized as the Metz Company.^[1]

The small car that Little left became the Metz Two, sold by a completely new marketing in 14 part deliveries that were put together by the customer himself, who thus got a car for a really unbeatable low price. It worked, and the company was not only out of debts in less than a year but also sold her huge stock of parts.

References

^ Kimes, Beverly Rae (1996). Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805–1942. Iola, WI: Krause Publications. p. 1511. ISBN 978-0-87341-428-9. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)

Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly (January, 1904)
The Great Orient Buckboard Race by Martha Treichler

Weblinks

Bicycles, motorcycles, and Autogos

Automobile

oldcarbrochures.com: Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly; "Automobiles of 1904" (January, 1904) (see p. 11)
earlyamericanautomobiles.com: 1910 Metz ad (Englisch (abgerufen am 13. Juni 2013)
Metz Bicycle Museum and Treasures of Years Gone By, Freehold (New Jersey)
veterancarrun.com: 2005 London-Brighton Run 2005; Orient Buckboard (1904); Start No.321

}

This article about a brass-era automobile produced between 1905 and 1915 is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This article about a veteran automobile produced before 1905 is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[Kimes-1] Kimes, Beverly Rae (1996). Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805–1942. Iola, WI: Krause Publications. p. 1511. ISBN 978-0-87341-428-9. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)

[1]

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 |company_type     = Automobile Manufacturing
 |genre            =
-|foundation       = 1902
+|foundation       = 1893
+|founder          = [[Charles Herman Metz]], Prof. Herbert L. Thompson, Elmer G. Howe, Frank L. Howe, William Parrot
-|founder          =
-|fate             =
+|fate             = 1908 take-over, 1910 absorbed
 |location_city    = [[Waltham, Massachusetts]]
 |location_country = [[United States]]
+|key_people       = [[Charles Herman Metz]], Leonard B. Gaylor, [[Charles A. Coffin]], John Robbins, [[Albert Champion (cyclist)|Albert Champion]], Leo Melanowsky, William H. [[Little (automobile)|Little]]
-|key_people       =
 |area_served      = [[United States]]
 |industry         = [[Automotive industry|Automotive]]
@@ Line 20: / Line 20: @@
 |assets           =
 |equity           =
-|num_employees    =
+|num_employees    = ca. 200 in 1909
 |title            =
 |parent           =
@@ Line 27: / Line 27: @@
 |owner            =
 |homepage         =
-|defunct          = 1908
+|defunct          = 1910
 |footnotes        =
 }}
-[[Image:1905Orient.jpg|thumb|250px|1905 Orient]]
+[[Image:Waltham Orient 1906.JPG|thumb|250px|Late Waltham Orient Buckboard (1906)]]
+[[Image:1905Orient.jpg|thumb|250px|1905 Orient 20 HP De Luxe Touring priced at $2250]]
-'''Waltham Manufacturing Company''' was a manufacturer of  [[automobile]]s in [[Waltham, Massachusetts]] between 1902 and 1908.
+'''Waltham Manufacturing Company''' was a manufacturer of [[bicycle]]s, [[motorcycle]]s, motorized [[tricycle]]s and [[quadricycle]]s, [[Buckboard]]s, and [[automobile]]s under the brand names of ''Orient'', ''Waltham'', and ''Waltham-Orient'' in [[Waltham, Massachusetts]]. The company was founded in 1893, moving to self-powered vehicles after 1898.
 ==History==
+''Waltham Manufacturing Company'' (WMC) was founded by Waltham businessmen around engineer [[Charles Herman Metz]] (1863-1937), who was the 1885 [[New York State]] champion on the [[Penny-farthing|high wheel bicycle]]. Metz encouraged two employees to build a [[steam car]] of their own in the WMC premises, which led to the [[Waltham Steam]]. Metz imported French
-Although the company was founded in 1902, in 1899 the Orient Autogo motorcar was made, but it was a motorized quadricycle (made from two bicycle frames) and was not purpose built.
+''Aster'' engines, and secured the US distributorship for [[De Dion-Bouton]] engines. Further, he imported this maker's tricycles and quadricycles. Using De Dion-Bouton patents, WMC started building their own ''Orient Autogo'' and ''Orient Autogo Quad'' in 1899.
+An early investor in WMC, [[Charles A. Coffin]] (1844-1926), first president of [[General Electric]], ordered an electric prototype in 1898, which went not in production. Metz' experimented with engines mounted on bicycles. The evolving ''Orient Aster'' was one of the very first, U.S. built motorcycles. He was assisted by famed French bicycle racer [[Albert Champion (cyclist)|Albert Champion]] (1878—1927) who arrived in the U.S. around 1899, becoming one of the first professional motorbike racers. Metz is even claimed to have found the expression "motor cycle" for his new vehicle, first used in a 1899 ad. Further, engines of Metz' design were developed and produced.
-Their first car was a light model sold as the ''Orient Buckboard''.  It seated 2 passengers and sold for just [[USD|US$]]425, making it the lowest-priced automobile available.  The vertically mounted air-cooled single-cylinder engine, situated at the rear of the car, produced 4&nbsp;hp (3&nbsp;kW).  A 2-speed transmission was fitted.  The car weighed 500&nbsp;lb (227&nbsp;kg) and had a 100&nbsp;mi (161&nbsp;km) range, though the complete lack of any bodywork made it less than practical for a long journey.
+WMC's first car was a motor buggy called the ''Orient Victoriette'', followed by two [[Runabout (car)|runabouts]] in 1902 and 1903. About 400 of the earlier model were sold; the younger ''Orient Runabout No. 9'' was not a success with about 50 examples built.
-A more conventional car came in 1905 with front-mounted 4-cylinder engine and chain drive. It was made until 1908.  In 1909, the company was reorganized as the [[Metz Company]].<ref name="Kimes">{{cite book | last = Kimes | first = Beverly Rae | authorlink = | coauthors = Clark Jr, Henry Austin | title = ''Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805–1942'' | publisher = Krause Publications  | year = 1996 | location = Iola, WI | pages = 1511 | url = | doi = | isbn = 978-0-87341-428-9 }}</ref>
+In 1902, Metz left the company, founding [[Metz Motorcycle Company]] and [[C.H. Metz Company]] in town soon after. Engineer ''Leonard B. Gaylor'' succeded him at WMC. Still in 1902, Gaylor introduced a very light model with [[friction drive]], sold as the ''Orient Buckboard''.  It seated 2 passengers and sold for just [[USD|US$]]425, making it the lowest-priced automobile available.  The vertically mounted air-cooled single-cylinder engine, situated at the rear of the car, produced 4&nbsp;hp (3&nbsp;kW). The car had tiller steering, weighed 500&nbsp;lb (227&nbsp;kg) and had a 100&nbsp;mi (161&nbsp;km) range, though minimal springing and the complete lack of any bodywork made it less than practical for a long journey. In the next years, it was offered in several models (including a diminutive delivery car), got an improved suspension, steering wheel, two chains instead of one belt to transmit the power to the rear wheels, and an optional 8&nbsp;hp (6&nbsp;kW) two cylinder engine. It remained in production until 1907.
+Plant superintendent ''John Robbins'' left in 1904. He was replaced by ''Leo Melanowski'' who had apprenticed at ''Otto Gasmotoren Gesellschaft'' in [[Vienna]], and then worked for [[Panhard & Levassor]], [[Clément-Bayard]], and [[Winton automobile|Winton]] (co-working on their ''Bullett'' [[racecar]]s). At WMC, he also had the position of a chief engineer.
+More conventional cars came in 1905 with front-mounted, water cooled inline 4-cylinder engines of 16 or 20&nbsp;hp (12 or 15&nbsp;kW) and chain drive. They were made until 1908. These powerplants were of own design and consisted of four singles mounted on a common [[Crank (mechanism)|crank]]. Although of good quality, the cars were too expensive to become a success.
+Meantime, Metz formed a [[joint-venture]] with the Marsh brothers from [[Brockton, Massachusetts]], effective from 1905. He brought in his ''Metz Motorcycle Company'', and the Marshes their [[Marsh Motorcycle Company]]. The new company was located in Brockton and organized as the [[American Motorcycle Company]]. Their products were sold as ''Marsh-Metz'' or just ''MM''. The other Marsh venture, the less than successfull [[Marsh (automobile company)|Marsh Motor Carriage Company]] founded in 1899, was set up with the machines brought to Metz in Waltham, who might have sold them as ''Walthams''. Not many were built, anyway.
+Melanowski stayed for less than two years. He left in 1906, to help racecar driver [[Joe Tracy]] starting the [[Dragon Automobile Company]] in [[Detroit]]. After that failed in 1908, he worked for the [[Aerocar (1905 automobile)|Aerocar Company]] which very soon folded, too. His position at WMC took William H. Little, but also onl for a short time. [[William C. Durant]] hired him as [[Buick]]'s general manager, and then partnered with him in founding the [[Little (automobile)|Little Motor Car Company]].
+Little developed for WMC a nice small runabout with a 10&nbsp;hp (8&nbsp;kW) [[V-twin]] engine, and friction drive. Alas, shortly before production started in 1908, WMC got into financial troubles. To avoid bankruptcy, their credit bank negotiated with Charles Metz. In July 1908, the C.H. Metz Company bought WMC, making him the single person with the largest automobile manufacture in the U.S. reorganisations followed in 1909 and 1910, when the C.H. Metz Co. and WMC together were reorganized as the [[Metz Company]].<ref name="Kimes">{{cite book | last = Kimes | first = Beverly Rae | authorlink = | coauthors = Clark Jr, Henry Austin | title = ''Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805–1942'' | publisher = Krause Publications  | year = 1996 | location = Iola, WI | pages = 1511 | url = | doi = | isbn = 978-0-87341-428-9 }}</ref>
+The small car that Little left became the ''Metz Two'', sold by a completely new marketing in 14 part deliveries that were put together by the customer himself, who thus got a car for a really unbeatable low price. It worked, and the company was not only out of debts in less than a year but also sold her huge stock of parts.
 ==See also==
@@ Line 53: / Line 70: @@
 ==Further reading==
 * {{Citation |publisher = N. W. Henley & co. |publication-place = New York |author = Hiscox, Gardner Dexter |url = http://openlibrary.org/books/OL7244186M/Horseless_vehicles |title = Horseless vehicles |publication-date = 1900 |chapterurl=http://archive.org/stream/horselessvehicle00hiscrich#page/208/mode/2up |chapter=Waltham Manufacturing Co. }}
+* G. N. Georgano (editor): ''Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars, 1885 to the Present''; Dutton Press, New York, 2nd edition (Hardcover) 1973, ISBN 0-525-08351-0
+* Beverly Rae Kimes: ''Pioneers, Engineers, and Scoundrels: The Dawn of the Automobile in America.'' editor SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) Permissions, Warrendale PA 2005, ISBN 0-7680-1431-X (Hardcover)
+* Madsen, Axel: ''The Deal Maker: How William C. Durant made General Motors'', John Wiley & Sons, Inc., ISBN 0-4713-9523-4 (pbck)
+* Mirco de Cet: ''Illustrated Directory of Motorcycles'', Motorbooks International (Dec., 2002), ISBN 978-0-76031-417-3 ISBN: 0-76031-417-9 (soft cover)
+==Weblinks==
+* [http://www.academia.edu/1059405/The_Metz_Company_of_Waltham academia.edu: ''The Metz Company of Waltham by Daniel U. Holbrook'' (1986)] (Englisch) (abgerufen am 20. Januar 2014)
+* [http://www.historicwaltham.org/essays/perruzzi_essay.php historicwaltham.org: ''Essays / Isabella Perruzzi / Charles Metz'']
+* [http://www.walthammuseum.com/metzco.htm Waltham Museum: ''Metz Company''] (
+* [http://www.walthammuseum.com/dindust.htm Waltham Museum: ''Industrial Donations'']
+* [http://www.walthammuseum.com/MetzCollectionInventory.pdf Waltham Museum: ''Metz Collection: Inventory'']
+* [http://www.walthammuseum.com/hof.htm Waltham Museum: ''Waltham Hall of Fame / Inventors'']
+* [http://www.walthammuseum.com/autos.htm Waltham Museum: ''The Waltham Steam Cars of Piper and Tinker'']
+* [http://www.walthammuseum.com/autos.htm Waltham Museum: ''Automobiles'']
+* [http://www.earlyamericanautomobiles.com/massautos.htm earlyamericanautomobiles.com: Early American Automobiles; Massachusetts Manufactured (Automobiles), Chapter 33]
+* [http://www.trombinoscar.com/veterans/waltham0701.html trombinoscar.com: ''Waltham Orient Buckboard Model B.R.'' and history''] (French)
+* [http://www.waltham-community.org/history.html waltham-community.org: ''History'' (timetable)]
+===Bicycles, motorcycles, and Autogos===
+* [http://www.proteanpaper.com//scart_results.cgi?comp=howiebik&framed=0&part=CatAntqBike-W-042&scat=1&scatord=desc&scatall=yes&skey=norm&srkeyall=&srkeywords=&srcateg=000000000000000253 proteanpaper.com: ''Union Cycle Company catalogue (1894)]
+* [http://www.barthworks.com/cars/forneycycles/1899quadpacingbikeexh117.htm barthworks.com: ''1881 Ordinary Otto Bicycle'']
+* [http://www.bicyclemuseum.com/alpha.htm Picture of a ''Orient Chainless bicycle'' (1898); Bycicle Museum of America'']
+* [http://www.statnekov.com/motorcycles/lives1.html statnekov.com: ''Motorcycles Chapter 1'' with a picture of the ''Orient Tandem Pacer'' motorcycle]
+* [http://www.theworldofmotorcycles.com/_orient-light-roadster-motorcycle.html theworldofmotorcycles.com: ''1900 Orient Light Roadster Motor Cycle'']
+* [http://www.theworldofmotorcycles.com/vintage_motorcycle_marsh-metz.html theworldofmotorcycles.com: ''Antique Motorcycles: Charles Metz & Waltham Mfg.'']
+* [http://www.theworldofmotorcycles.com/vintage_motorcycle_marsh-metz.html theworldofmotorcycles.com: ''theworldofmotorcycles.com: ''Vintage Motorcycle Marsh-Metz'']
+* [http://www.motorcycle.com/how-to/motorcycle-history-part-2-90381.html motorcycle.com: ''Motorcycle history Part 2'']
+* [http://oldbike.wordpress.com/motorized-tandems/ oldbike.wordpress.com: ''Motorized Tandems'']
+* [http://pazhayathu.blogspot.ch/2010/10/early-motor-cycles.html pazhayathu.blogspot.ch: ''Early Motor-cycles'']
+* [http://www.conceptcarz.com/z21754/Orient-Autogo.aspx aspx conceptcarz.com: ''Orient Autogo (1900)'']
+===Automobile===
+* [http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/?car=195030 carfolio.com: ''1906 Waltham Orient Buckboard specifications'']
+* [http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z7393/Waltham-Orient.aspx conceptcarz.com: ''1903 Waltham Orient Runabout Buckboard'']
+* [http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z7476/Waltham-Orient.aspx conceptcarz.com: ''1906 Waltham Orient Runabout Buckboard'']
+* [http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z15773/Metz-Two.aspx conceptcarz.com: ''1909 Metz Two / 12 HP'']
+* [http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/?car=260546 carfolio.com: ''1910 Metz Two / 12 HP specifications'']
+* [http://www.oldcarbrochures.com/static/Misc%20Brochures/Autos%20of%201904%20Booklet/dirindex.html oldcarbrochures.com: ''Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly; "Automobiles of 1904" (January, 1904)''] (see p. 11)
+* [http://www.earlyamericanautomobiles.com/advertising.htm earlyamericanautomobiles.com: ''1910 Metz ad''] (Englisch (abgerufen am 13. Juni 2013)
+* [http://www.metzbicyclemuseum.com/ Metz Bicycle Museum and Treasures of Years Gone By, [[Freehold (New Jersey)]]]
+* [http://www.veterancarrun.com/entries/2005.html?Page=18&order=make veterancarrun.com: ''2005 London-Brighton Run 2005; Orient Buckboard (1904); Start No.321'']
 [[Category:Brass Era vehicles]]
@@ Line 58: / Line 118: @@
 [[Category:Waltham, Massachusetts]]
+{{commons category|Waltham Manufacturing Company}}}
 {{brass-auto-stub}}