What year was the Studebaker in the Lincoln Highway?

The Studebaker company, now known as a long-lasting and iconic automotive manufacturer, was founded in South Bend, Indiana in 1852. The Studebaker family had emigrated from Germany to Philadelphia in the 1730s. Peter Studebaker made wagons in colonial Pennsylvania and Maryland. It was his grandsons — the five brothers Henry, Clement, John, Peter and Jacob — who set up the Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing Company. It initially produced other types of vehicles, like buggies, carriages, coaches and covered wagons; in 1902, it began producing automobiles.

During World War I, Studebaker manufactured thousands of cars, ambulances and transport wagons for the Allied Powers. The business declared bankruptcy in 1933 following the impact of the Great Depression. The president of the company at the time, ...

The Studebaker company, now known as a long-lasting and iconic automotive manufacturer, was founded in South Bend, Indiana in 1852. The Studebaker family had emigrated from Germany to Philadelphia in the 1730s. Peter Studebaker made wagons in colonial Pennsylvania and Maryland. It was his grandsons — the five brothers Henry, Clement, John, Peter and Jacob — who set up the Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing Company. It initially produced other types of vehicles, like buggies, carriages, coaches and covered wagons; in 1902, it began producing automobiles.

During World War I, Studebaker manufactured thousands of cars, ambulances and transport wagons for the Allied Powers. The business declared bankruptcy in 1933 following the impact of the Great Depression. The president of the company at the time, Albert R. Erskine, was laid off and a few months later died by suicide.

By the end of that year, however, the company was reporting a profit. This was also the year that the Land Cruiser sedan, with its streamlined design and wraparound rear window, was introduced at the Chicago World's Fair. The Land Cruiser retailed for around $1,500 — about $30,000 in today's money — and Mickey Rooney featured in the early advertising campaigns. A radical redesign in 1947 offered a lot more legroom for backseat passengers, and featured rear "suicide doors," which hinged at the back and opened toward the center of the vehicle.

Studebaker again produced military vehicles during World War II, this time focusing on trucks and personnel carriers. The Land Cruiser continued to be produced in the postwar years, with 35,731 manufactured in 1948. Today, cars of that vintage are reasonably rare but still show up on classic car websites. (For some stunning photos of a 1948 Land Cruiser restoration project, see Brian Earnest's Old Cars Weekly article on Edward Philie's work.) The Land Cruiser was discontinued in 1954.

The Studebaker company celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1952. The 1950s designs, low to the ground and with a "bullet nose" at the front, were considered to be less clunky than previous models. In 1954 Studebaker was purchased by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit and the company was known as the Studebaker-Packard Corporation until 1962. In 1963, the South Bend operation was closed, but Studebaker cars continued to be made in their Hamilton, Ontario location until 1966.

The Studebaker National Museum, opened in South Bend in 2005, commemorates 114 years of Studebaker manufacturing history as well as the city's industrial heritage more generally. An Adopt-A-Car scheme allows the public to be involved in the museum's vehicle conservation efforts.

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Road trip

A novel about going west in a Studebaker

I loved the latest from the author of A Gentleman in Moscow.

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June 06, 2022

Whenever I choose a novel and put it in my canvas book bag, I optimize for great storytelling—almost regardless of the topic. One of my new favorite storytellers is the writer Amor Towles. In 2019, I reviewed his book A Gentleman in Moscow, which was fantastic. So it was a no-brainer to pick up his next novel, The Lincoln Highway, when it came out last October.

Once again, I was wowed by Towles’s writing—especially because The Lincoln Highway is so different from A Gentleman in Moscow in terms of setting, plot, and themes. Towles is not a one-trick pony. Like all the best storytellers, he has range.

The title of this latest book refers to America’s first cross-country roadway for automobiles, which stretched from New York City to San Francisco. The story takes place over ten days in 1954, when two young brothers, Emmett and Billy, intend to drive their Studebaker from Nebraska to California. (I could picture the car clearly—my dad had one too.) But fate, in the form of a sympathetic but volatile character named Duchess, forces them to travel in the opposite direction before they can have a chance to start fresh in the West.

Towles takes inspiration from famous hero’s journeys, including The Iliad, The Odyssey, Hamlet, Huckleberry Finn, and Of Mice and Men. He seems to be saying that our personal journeys are never as linear or predictable as an interstate highway. But, he suggests, when something (or someone) tries to steer us off course, it is possible to take the wheel.

My favorite character is Billy, an eight-year-old who has endured abandonment by his mother and the death of his father. At the beginning of the story, when Billy’s brother, Emmett, returns home after 15 months of juvenile detention, Billy comes across as a sweet but hapless dreamer who has survived by escaping into adventure stories. By the end of Billy and Emmett’s journey east, it’s clear that Billy is anything but a tragic figure. He is amazingly clever and resilient. In that way, he reminds me of Nina, the precocious nine-year-old from A Gentleman in Moscow.

Emmett also seems like a tragic character early on. He has the tragic flaw of anger: His juvenile detention was the result of punching (and inadvertently killing) a bully who was taunting him. But Emmett finds ways to overcome his temper.

Another hero is Sally, a young neighbor who cares deeply for both Billy and Emmett. I think she represents a type of kindness that’s been almost non-existent for Billy or Emmett. Sally turns out to be a bold and wise character—she bristles at the strictures placed on women in 1950s America and has what it takes to overcome them. We don’t know if she and Emmett fall in love; Towles doesn’t give his story such a tidy narrative. But I suspect most readers will hope they end up that way.

I definitely finished Lincoln Highway hoping that Towles is busy writing his next novel. It almost doesn’t matter what time or place he decides to write about. I just know I’ll want to read it.

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