Duryea

US, 1895 – 1913

(1) Duryea Motor Wagon Co, Springfield, Mass., 1895 – 1898

(2) Duryea Mfg Co, Peoria, Ill., 1896 – 1898

(3) Duryea Power Co, Reading, Pa., 1899 – 1908

(4) Duryea Motor Co, Saginaw, Mich., 1908 – 1913

These four firms represented the commercial endeavours of Charles E. Duryea, who with his brother Frank Duryea constructed one of America’s very first cars in 1892 – 1893. The Duyea was a powered horse buggy, with single-cylinder 4hp engine and friction drive. A second Duryea prototype was the work of Frank, who won America’s first motor race, from Chicago to Evanston on Thanksgiving Day, 1895. There was only one other finisher, a Benz, and Frank Duryea took nine hours to cover the 50 miles. Charles Duryea had set up the first company formed in America expressly for the purpose of making petrol motor cars, and 13 Duyea vehicles were made with horizontal engine, 3-speed belt transmissions and low-tension ignition. Two of these Duyea cars took part in the original Emancipation Run from London to Brighton in November 1896. 3-wheelers Duyea were in production at Peoria in 1898, followed in 1900-1901 by Duryea cars with transverse front suspension and flat-twin engines. By this time Frank was engaged in the development of the Stevens-Duryea car for the Stevens Arms and Tool Co, and all subsequent Duryeas were entirely Charles’s work. In the 1902-1906 period he made 3- and 4-wheeled Duyea vehicles powered by rear-mounted transverse 3-cylinder engines of square dimensions with water-jacketed heads, a two-speed crypto gear mounted in a ‘power drum’ alongside the engine and tiller steering. Much was made of the single-lever control whereby the tiller also served as gear selector and throttle. A Duryea could be bought for £275 in England in 1902, and shortly afterwards Henry Sturmey organized a British Duryea Co which made the Duryea cars under licence in Coventry; their engines were the work of Willians and Robinson, and they had moiv and high-tension ignition. In 1906 Charles Duryea listed a three-wheeler at $1200, a 12/15hp 4-wheeler with similar mechanics at $1300 and a big 25hp car, still with three cylinders, at $2000. By this time the British Duryeas had faded out, the factory being used for the manufacture of the Lotis car but Charles Duryea made a 3-cylinder rotary-valve Duryea model in 1907, before turning his attention to the Duryea high-wheeler in 1908. His version, the Duryea Buggyaut, was powered by a 2-cylinder horizontally-opposed 2-stroke engine at the rear, drive being by twin grooved rollers on the crankshaft which engaged with the rims of the rear wheels. A centrally-mounted tiller enabled it to be controlled from either seat, and the Duryea was for sale at $750, pneumatic tyres being extra. This Duyea car survived most of its competitors, as it was still listed in 1913.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; MCS

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