C.R. Patterson and Sons
C.R. Patterson and Sons was an American automotive company headquartered in Greenfield, Ohio and for one year in Gallia, Ohio;[1] founded by Frederick Douglas Patterson and named after his father Charles "Rich" Richard Patterson.[1] The Pattersons were the first African Americans to manufacture automobiles, their company manufacturing and marketing the Patterson-Greenfield automobile for model years 1914-17 with overall production reaching 150[2] — none known to have survived.[3] As the only known black-owned automakers, founded by a former slave, operating during a period of cultural oppression, successful for three generations, Charles Richard Patterson and Frederick Patterson were inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2021.[2] HistoryPrecursorsCharles "Rich" Richard Patterson (1833–1910) founded precursor companies to C.R. Patterson and Sons.[4][5][6] Patterson was born — a slave[2] — in 1833 to Charles and Nancy Patterson of Virginia. The family moved to Ohio between 1841 and 1842. They were listed in the 1850 census in Greenfield, Ohio, which was a busy station on the underground railroad.[4][7] He initially worked at Dines and Simpson Carriage and Coach Makers Company, and learned blacksmithing.[1] Charles Patterson partnered with a local carriage builder, J.P. Lowe, a white man, and they created J.P. Lowe & Company in 1873.[4][6][3] By 1888, the business employed 10 people, which was considered successful for its time.[3] The United States was experiencing the Panic of 1893, a financial crisis and business was suffering.[3] Patterson bought Lowe's shares and to mark the inclusion of his son Samuel renamed thee company C.R. Patterson, Son in 1893.[4][6] Samuel Patterson became ill in 1897, and died in 1899.[6] The eldest son Frederick Douglas Patterson moved home to help with the business. By 1900, the company was producing 28 different horse-drawn carriage styles including buggies, backboards, phaetons, surreys, and the popular doctor's buggy.[8] They had 50 employees, and were able to manufacture approximately 500 horse-drawn carriages a year.[8] Automobile manufacturingAfter Charles Patterson's death in 1910, his son, Frederick Douglas Patterson, took over the carriage business aiming to manufacture their own "horseless carriage,"[4] initially offering local automotive service.[1] On September 23, 1915, the first C.R. Patterson and Sons automobile was assembled, a two-door coupe.[4] The first cars were sold for $685, with additional reports of the car selling for $850 (or $17,741 to $22,014 adjusted for inflation in 2021).[1][4][3] Bus and truck manufacturingIn 1918, C.R. Patterson & Sons halted their auto production and concentrated once again on the repair side of the business.[1] By the 1920s, they started focusing on building and designing truck and bus bodies, which were fitted to chassis made by other manufactures.[1] The company was renamed Greenfield Bus Body Company. Frederick Douglas Patterson died in 1932, and his son Postell Patterson (1906–1981) took over the business.[9] Most of the bus bodies were purchased by school boards in Southern Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky, as well as the Ohio Transit Company and used in Cincinnati and Cleveland.[3] In 1938, the company was reorganized under the name Gallia Body Company and the headquarters moved to Gallia, Ohio.[6] Unable to raise enough money, the company closed in 1939.[1][9] Further reading
References
External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Patterson-Greenfield vehicles.
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