American Classic 2 (And the men behind ten of the marques)

In this volume another selection of ‘American Classic’ marques focuses on the men behind them. Our chapter headings are mostly names of the visionary entrepreneurs, engineers and salesmen who dived into the shark-infested waters of the American car market in the early years of the 20th century. They include Colonel Albert Pope, who tried to corner the market in bicycle and motor vehicle patents, then to make other manufacturers pay him for the use of them. Henry Lozier made his fortune with bicycles, then sold his factories to Pope and switched to making luxury cars. Frank Stearns was an exacting inventor and engineer who was the first in America to take out Knight sleeve-valve license for his cars. Benjamin Briscoe was another of the empire-builders; his United States Motor Co embraced a number of marques, but when it collapsed it took most of them down with it, to name just a few.