|
Abresch was a well-known Milwaukee
manufacturer of brewery
wagons and from 1910 to 1912 produced small numbers of the heavy-duty
Abresch-Cramer
truck for the same group of clients. Automobile bodies were also
produced for
regional manufacturer such as the Fawick, Great Western, Kissel,
Mitchell and Rambler.
Abresch was Milwaukee’s Kissel Kar distributor and constructed a small
number
of custom bodies on early Kissel chassis. In addition to producing its
own
commercial bodies Abresch installed and distributed Hercules truck
bodies and
in later years survived as an automobile body repair facility.
Abresch’s main
claim to fame lies with the Harley Davidson and Goulding Mfg. Co. for
whom it
constructed sidecar and van bodies from the 1920s into the 1960s.
Charles Abresch, its founder, was born on
May 12, 1850, in
Dierdorf, Neuwied, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany to Louis and Elizabeth
Schneider. Charles mother Elizabeth died
when he was but
a few months old and he and his older brother William (b.1844 in
Dierdorf-d.
1879 in Milwaukee) were placed in the care of their aunt, Christine
Schneller.
Charles father Louis, a trained
carpenter-joiner, emigrated
to the Unites States in 1854 and found employment with one of the
city’s
builders. Charles and William remained in Germany in charge of their
aunt
Christine, who apprenticed Charles to a local blacksmith and William to
a
carpenter. After completing his training in 1868 Charles joined his
father in
Milwaukee, accepting a position with John Meinecke’s wagon and carriage
works -
William found a carpentry position nearby in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Coincidentally
their first cousins, Louis and William Schneller (Christine Schneller’s
sons)
emigrated to Milwaukee at about the same time, and may have travelled
together.
Charles’ father Louis re-married shortly after
his arrival in Milwaukee (to
Elizabeth Leibrecht – b. 1833 in Bavaria) and his second union was
blessed with
the birth of five children; Carolina (aka Lina b.1855), Henrietta
(b.1862),
Henry (b.1867), Jacob (b.1869) and Elizabeth (b.1871) Abresch, all of
whom were
either half-brothers or -sisters of William and Charles. Louis
Abresch’s
household appears in the 1860 (as Appresch) and 1870 (as Abresch) US
Census,
neither of which include Charles or William.
In 1871, only two years after his arrival in
America, Charles
Abresch started a small wagon works of his own in the style of Second
Ward
Carriage & Wagons Works, C. Abresh, proprietor.
In 1873 Abresch married Katherine (nee
Gerard, b.Dec. 25,
1847 in Jackson, Wis. – d.Jun. 8, 1926) and to the blessed union was
born a daughter
Amanda (b. 1876 m. Oscar Bach) Abresch.
In 1884 the firm was organized as a stock
company with
Abresch, president; Andrew Hofherr, vice president; Harry P. Ellis,
secretary
and treasurer; and his fist cousin, Louis Schneller Jr., plant manager.
Andrew
Hofherr was a well-known Milwaukee cigar maker (A. Hofherr, Cigars; 620
Fourth Street).
For the next half century the firm’s main
line of work was the
construction of heavy commercial wagons, two of which were mentioned in
the
April 26, 1890 issue of the Waukesha Journal:
“On Tuesday of this week two new delivery
wagons for the
Silurian Mineral Spring Co., passed through Waukesha, over the
Wisconsin
Central for the Chicago trade. They were the handsomest over seen here,
being
manufactured by Charles Abresch of Milwaukee, whose reputation in this
line is
world wide.”
The General City News column of the
September 19, 1891
edition of the Milwaukee Journal reported:
“Mr. Charles Abresch has received an order
for six beer
wagons for shipment of Australia.”
Brewery wagons were the firm’s specialty, a
list of its
customers circa 1895 was published in the Consolidated Illustrating
Co.’s ‘Milwaukee:
A Half Century's Progress, 1846-1896’:
“CHARLES ABRESCH COMPANY; Builders of
Fine Delivery,
Express and Truck Wagons; Nos. 407 to 415 Poplar Street, and
Nos. 392
to 398 Fourth Street.
“The leading manufacturers in the
United States of
special wagons, such as beer and oil wagons, fine delivery, express and
truck
wagons is the famous ‘Charles Abresch Company,’ of this city. Our
city is
to be greatly congratulated upon the possession of this extensive
industry,
which, under the skillful guidance of Mr. Charles Abresch has
had a
remark able growth from small beginnings to its present extensive
proportions.
This company has made a study of the above named special wagons, and
are better
prepared to give prompt and satisfactory service on orders of this kind
than
any factory in this vicinity. They are the patentees of the tubular
beer wagons
and sliding door bottlers' wagons which are the most improved vehicles
for the
brewers' keg and bottle trade. They do an extensive business in these
particular wagons all over the country, and below give a partial list
of the
parties they are dealing with in the East, besides furnishing all the
local
concerns here and in Chicago:
'Danville Beer & Ice Company, Danville,
Ill.; C. L.
Centlivre Brewing Company, Fort Wayne, Ind.; Indianapolis Brewing
Company,
Indianapolis, Ind.; Dubuque Malting Company, Dubuque, la.; E. C.
Peaslee,
Dubuque, la.; Koppitz-Melchers Brewing Company, Detroit, Mich. ; A.
Fitger,
Duluth, Minn.; Excelsior Brewery, St. Paul, Minn.; G. S. Fanning,
Auburn, N.
Y.; C. A. Koenig, Auburn, N. Y.; Iroquois Brewing Company, Buffalo, N.
Y.; H.
Zeltner Brewing Company, New York City; Rochester Brewing Company,
Rochester,
N. Y.; Ph. Liebinger Brewing Company, Brooklyn, NY.; Crystal Spring
Brewing
Company, Syracuse, N. Y.; Fitzgerald Brothers, Troy, N Y.; P.
McGuinness,
Utica, N. Y.; Foss-Schneider Brewing Company, Cincinnati, O.; L. Hosier
Brewing
Company, Columbus, O.; M. Mason, Hamilton, O.; New Philadelphia Brewing
Company, New Philadelphia, O.; Jackson Koehler, Erie Pa.; Weisbrod
& Hess,
Philadelphia, Pa.; Columbia Brewing Company, Shenandoah, Pa.;
Galland-Burke
Brewing Company, Spokane, Wash.; S. Kappler, Vancouver, British
Columbia.'
“The tubular beer wagons are built in seven
sizes, in
capacities ranging from one to five tons and are rapidly taking the
place of
other styles. The sliding door bottlers' wagons are built in six sizes
ranging
in capacity from one thousand five hundred lo four thousand pounds.
They are
far ahead of anything in the market for the delivery of bottle goods,
besides
affording a great advertising purpose when lettered nicely.
Mr. Charles
Abresch has been a resident of this city since 1868. He is a
practical
wagon builder. In 1871, he commenced business upon a small scale,
building
brewery wagons and vehicles for heavy trucking. In 1893 the concern was
changed
to a stock company, under the laws of this state, with paid-up capital
of
$150,000, Mr. Chas. Abresch, president; Mr. A. Hofherr, vice president;
Mr. H.
P. Ellis, secretary and treasurer; and Mr. L. Schneller, jr.,
superintendent.
The works occupy an extensive area on Fourth and Poplar Streets. The
main factory
is a modern brick building, five stories and basement in height, and
50x150
feet in dimensions. On the ground floor is the blacksmith and ironing
shop. On
the second floor is the wheelwright shop, while the other
floors are
devoted to painting, trimming, etc. Adjoining the main building is a
three-story brick structure, 30x150 feet in dimensions, known as the
repair
shop, and having all the facilities for promptly repairing all wagons,
and
rendering them as good as new. Throughout the entire establishment the
latest
improved machinery and appliances are in use, while power is supplied
by a one
hundred and seventy-five horse power engine. On the opposite side of
Fourth
Street is the company's repository and office; the corner building is a
very
handsome three-story brick structure, with tower front, 45x100 feet.
This was
built in 1888, while adjoining is another large building, and one
hundred
skilled hands are employed in the building of all sizes and styles of
vehicles.
Besides being the patentees of the two wagons named they have also
patented an
automatic steel odorless dumping wagon for garbage purposes, which is a
great
improvement over the old style formerly used. The company's exhibit at
the
World's Fair in 1893 received the highest award, medal and diploma, and
unquestionably they lead all competition.”
A devastating fire destroyed much of the
firm’s factory on
April 13, 1898 (the plant’s original address of 392-394-398 4th St. was
later renumbered
to 1242, 1246, 1254 N. 4th St.) The blaze was covered nationally, the
April 14,
1898 Fort Wayne News reporting:
“Abresch Furniture Factory in Flames –
Fierce Gale Adds to
Danger
“MILWAUKEE, Wis., April 14.— A fire which
started in the
Charles Abresch carriage factory, at the corner of Poplar and Fourth
streets,
at 10 o'clock yesterday, was still burning at midnight, and threatened
to
destroy the greater portion of the block in which the factory is
located. The
fire started in the engine room of the factory, which was a six-story
brick
building. The wind was blowing at the rate of thirty miles an hour at
the time.
“The fire spread like lightning, and it was
only a few
seconds before it leaped through the windows of the sixth story.
“The factory was in the midst of a
semi-residence district,
and over twenty families were, driven from their homes. The smoke was
so dense that they could not
stay to save anything, and it was with the greatest difficulty that the
insurance patrol could get into any of the neighboring buildings to
cover the
furniture.
“As it is, the water loss in the other
buildings will be
about $4,000, while the loss of the Abresch company will amount to
$140,000.
The loss on machinery is $30,000, on building, $50,000, and on stock
$60,000.”
The April 16, 1898 issue of the Milwaukee
Weekly Wisconsin
provided a few more details:
“BIG FACTORY BURNED
“The Abresch Wagon Works Almost Completely
Destroyed by
Fire.
“Milwaukee. Wis., April 14, 1898.— A few
minutes before 10
o'clock last night, the main factory building of the Charles Abresch
&
Co.’s carriage factory at the southwest corner of Fourth and Poplar
streets was
discovered to be on fire, and when two hours later the fire department
had
extinguished the flames, a loss of very nearly $100,000 had been
caused. Mr.
Abresch states that the building cost $35,000 when erected in 1892. It
is
completely gutted from basement to roof. He estimates the stock in the
factory
at the time as worth $60,000 and places the value of the machinery at
$20,000.
The stock is a total loss and but little of the machinery can ever be
used
again. The company carried an insurance of 80 per cent. One hundred men
are
thrown out of employment until the structure is rebuilt, which will
probably be
done at once.”
As predicted the Abresch factory was quickly
rebuilt and
within the year had become involved with the proposed manufacture of
the Davis
Automobile, a small runabout designed by W.F. Davis, the former
vice-president
of the Davis Gasoline Engine Co of Waterloo, Iowa, the September 9,
1899
edition of the Milwaukee Journal reporting:
“Horse Against the Automobile
“Race planned for State Fair That Will
Attract Much
Attention; Milwaukee-made Automobile travels Fast Enough to Stand A
Show; The
State Fairgrounds To Be Ready For Use Monday
“A sight that the people of Wisconsin have
never before
witnessed will be seen at the state fair next week. Among the
automobiles to be
exhibited will be a new one that has just been built by
the Charles
Abresch company and which is now being tried in Chicago. This
machine
makes thirty miles an hour and it is to be pitted against the big
trotter, King
Allar, in a series of races, the first race of the kind ever held in
this state
and one of the few of its kind ever held.
“The automobile is entirely a Milwaukee
machine, having been
designed and built here complete with the exception of the motors. Mr.
Abresch
has great faith in the machine and expects that it will defeat the
horse.”
A more detailed account of Abresch’s plans
to manufacture
the vehicle were announced in the November
8, 1899 issue of the Waterloo Daily Courier:
“DAVIS IN MILWAUKEE
“Waterloo Man Forms a Company With
$1,000,000 Capital.
“Company Will Manufacture a New Automobile
Motor.
“The Invention of W. F. Davis, Formerly of
This City.
“W. F. Davis, formerly vice president of the
Davis Gasoline
Engine Co., of this city, is now in Milwaukee where he was induced to
go by
some enterprising Milwaukee man, and has formed a company with
$1,000,000
capital stock for the manufacture of a new automobile motor which Is
said to be
the best thing of the kind yet offered to the public.
“Mr. Davis recently left this city, going to
Ottumwa where
he engaged with the Jaimey Mfg. Co., a new company manufacturing farm
implements. Later he severed his connection with this company to engage
in the
automobile business in the city that is ‘famous.’
“Concerning this deal the Milwaukee Journal
of yesterday
morning gives these details:
“Within the month it will be known in the
land that the
erstwhile modern automobile has brought Milwaukee again to the fore,
for this
city is soon to be the center of the automobile industry in the United
States.
“Some three weeks ago there came to this
city a man from
Iowa whose fertile brain had overcome the obstacles which have
heretofore
hindered the general use of the horseless carriage and at present one
of the
largest wagon concerns in the city is busy getting out the first
machine, which
will be put on exhibition some time in December.
“The automobiles now in use weigh 1,800 to
2,400 pounds,
while the invention of the Iowa man, W. F. Davis, weighs only 75 pounds
and can
be attached to any vehicle now drawn by a horse. More than that, it is
capable
of reaching a speed of fifty miles an hour, and its cost will be so
small that
it will be within the reach of everybody.
“CAPITAL TO BE $1,000,000.
“Owing to its extreme lightness, the cost of
propulsion will
also be greatly reduced, and the fact that a stock company backed by
$1,000,000
is soon to be formed in this city to manufacture the new machine and
put it on
the market indicates that it is all the inventor claims for it.
“W. F. Davis, formerly vice president of the
Davis Gasoline
Engine company of Waterloo, Ia.; inventor of the new auto, is very well
known
among machine men as the inventor of the Davis gasoline engine. Some
nine
months ago he sold out his interests in the Davis company and devoted
his time to
the perfection of the new machine, which has now been finished.
Capitalists in
Kansas City made him flattering offers to locate there to manufacture
his new
invention, but through the influence of J. A. Warnken, of Milwaukee who
was
employed by the company as a traveling salesman, he was induced to
locate here.
“ABRESCH COMPANY INTERESTED
“The Charles Abresch company, wagon
manufacturers, of 398
Fourth street, became interested in the plan and have since come into
possession of the right to manufacture the new vehicles, paying a
considerable
sum and a royalty besides.
“For three weeks Mr. Davis has been busy at
the Abresch
plant building the first machine, and within a month a public
exhibition will
be given at which makers of automobiles all over the world will be
challenged
to compete.
“CAPITALISTS ARE INTERESTED
“Although the plans of the inventor and the
Abresch company
have been carefully kept from the public, several prominent Milwaukee
capitalists have been approached with a view to forming a corporation
for the
exclusive manufacture of the motor, and the matter has so far
progressed that
backing to the amount of $1,000,000 is said to be in sight. The name of
the man
who will be at the head of the new corporation is known to The Journal,
but cannot
be made public at this time. However, he is so well known throughout
the United
States that his name in connection with the new manufacturing
enterprise
insures us stability at the outset.
“Mr. Davis has moved to this city with his
family and will
remain to take charge of the manufacture of his invention.
“A REVOLUTION PROMISED.
“The horseless carriages now in use are
cumbersome affairs
at best, and it is declared that the neat, light and speedy invention
of the
Milwaukee man will of a certainty revolutionize their manufacture and
mark
Milwaukee as the center of one of the greatest improvements of modern
times.”
The Davis-designed car debuted as the
Abresch, a 2,300 lb. 7-passenger
high-wheeled brake powered by a Davis-designed 10 h.p. 2-cylinder
water-cooled
engine that transmitted power to the rear wheels via chain drive. The
Abresch
used a belt-driven differential whose jackshaft turned bi-lateral
sprockets
connected by chains to larger sprockets attached to the inside of each
rear
wheel which revolved around a dead rear axle. A single prototype was
constructed before the plan was abandoned.
The General City News column of the January
10, 1900 edition
of the Milwaukee Journal reported on an overseas sale:
“Wagons For Manila
“Over $3,000 worth of rolling stock, the
manufacture of
the Charles Abresch company, left Milwaukee today for Manila.
The
shipment consists of three trucks, three top wagons, one dump cart and
one
express wagon. The contract was received by the Abresch company less
than five
weeks ago in competition with the largest firms in the country. The
Abresch
company supplied the government with the ambulances which were used in
Cuba and
the excellence of these articles determined the government in choosing
the
company for this contract.”
A proposed 10 per cent wage increase by the
Carriage and
Wagon Workers union caused a lockout of the Abresch plant in the Spring
of
1900, the April 11, 1900 issue of the Milwaukee Journal reporting:
“Lockout Scores of Workmen
“Disagreement of Wagon Workers With
Employers Makes Trouble;
May Tie Up All The Carriage Plants In The City; Men Had Prepared To
Walk Out
and Were Forestalled; Contest Begins at the Abresch and Habhegger
Plants
“As a result of a disagreement between the
Carriage and
Wagon Builder’s association of Milwaukee and the Carriage and Wagon
Workers’
union, the wagon works of Charles Abresch & Son and Theodore
Habhegger are
working with short help and there is prospect of a general strike among
the
carriage and wagon workers of the city.
“Supt. Schweller of the Abresch factory said:
“‘I learned Sunday that the men were going
to strike at 9
o’clock Monday morning, and so I locked them out at 7. We have
eighty-five men
at work, and very few of them are getting as low wages as the scale
allowed.
Some of our blacksmiths were getting as high as $2.60 a day, the wood
workers
$2.25, and only one man out of fourteen wood workers was getting the
minimum
wage of $1.75. We now have about twenty painters at work and five new
fires
going. We can handle all the work that comes along. We are paying as
good wages
as any shop in the country, and if we were to agree to the new scale,
and then
pay no one any more than the scale calls for, we would be money ahead.
I suppose
if the differences are not settles soon, that the strike or lockout
will extend
to the other shops in the association.’
“The shops in the association are the Chas.
Abresch company,
Theodore Habhegger, John Miller & Son, Stehling & Blommer,
Joseph Heinl
& Sons, Stumpf & Co., John Knoll and John Knapp. About 285 men
are
employed in the shops altogether.”
On December 31, 1902 anoterh devastating fired
struck the Abresch works, the December 31, 1902 issue of the Oshkosh
Daily
Northwestern reporting:
“SEVEN FIREMEN HURT.
“Wall Falls On Members of Milwaukee
Department.
“(By Associated Press.) - Milwaukee, Wis.,
Dec. 31.—The
entire plant of the Charles Abresch company, carriage manufacturers, at
392-398
Fourth street, was destroyed by fire at an early hour today, entailing
a loss
of upwards of $100,000. The fire was first seen in the repair shop in
the rear
of the main building and spread so rapidly that the firemen were unable
to save
a single carriage from the main building and t is on these goods that
the loss
will probably be the heaviest. The building and contents were partially
insured.
The Abresch plant was partially destroyed less than two years ago.
“After the fire was under control and the
firemen were
directing streams on the smoldering ruins, the south wall of the main
building
fell injuring seven firemen. The injured were taken to the emergency
hospital.
Captain Patrick Roddy of engine company No. 1 was the most seriously
injured.
The others are: Charles Heinz of engine company No. 2; Frank Tesensky,
acting
lieutenant truck company No. 23; Fred Banholzer, truck company No. 3;
Patrick
J. Coffey, engine company No. 23; Charles Fenske truck company No. 7.
The
condition of the injured men is not regarded as serious, the injuries
consisting
of cuts and bruises.”
A tour of the rebuilt Abresch factory was
included in the October 5, 1903 issue of National Bottlers
Gazette:
“Where to Buy Your Trade Supplies
“We take pleasure in exhibiting a cut of
perhaps the finest
wagon factory building in the country, that of the Charles Abresch Co.,
of
Milwaukee, Wis. The building is of brick, four stories high with
stone
foundation, 100 feet long and 150 feet deep. It is lighted
throughout
with electricity and is heated by the hot air fan system of heating and
ventilating. The stock room occupies the whole of the basement,
which,
with the cement floor and well-arranged racks, looks like a good sized
wagon
hardware store. The first floor is taken up with the engine, the
electric
tire welding and hydraulic tire setting machines, gas tire heater,
shearing and
punching machines, and 15 blacksmith fires, worked to their utmost
capacity.
“The wood shop occupies the whole of the
second floor the
south half containing the latest improved wood working machinery and
the north
half 24 wood workers benches. The Abresch wagons, known
throughout the
country as 'built to last,' owe this reputation to this same body shop
and the
company is receiving orders daily for automobile bodies, even in as
large
numbers as 500 lots.
“The entire third floor is where that most
important part
'painting' is done. The Abresch Company probably takes more pains
in the
striping, lettering and finishing of their wagons than does any maker,
using
but the highest priced colors and employing only skilled labor.
“Mr. Chas. Abresch, president of the
company, established
this business in 1871, and with the able assistance of Mr. Louis
Schneller,
superintendent and manager, has seen the business grow to its
well-earned
proportions.”
The August 1, 1908 issue of Cycle and
Automobile Trade
Journal announced that Abresch had become a Kissel Kar distributor:
“Charles Abresch Co. of Milwaukee, Wis., has
taken the
agency for the Kissel Kar.”
When then-President Theodore Roosevelt
visited Sioux Falls,
South Dakota in the autumn of 1910 he rode in a four-door Fawick Flyer
whose composite
aluminum body had been constructed by Abresch. In a December 24, 1967
interview
with the Milwaukee Journal, its designer, Thomas L. Fawick, set the
record
straight in regards to the confusion between the Fawick Flyer and
Silent Sioux
automobiles:
“Fawick first considered calling his new car
the Silent
Sioux. However, he changed his mind and named it the Fawick Flyer, a
name
retained for all later models. Nevertheless, a Silent Sioux Automobile
Manufacturing Co. was listed in the 1910 Milwaukee City directory. It
was
located at 726 National Av. (an address that would now be in the 1500
block of
N. National) and the company officers were listed as R.J. Wells,
president;
G.W. Burnside, vice-president; and B.S. Wells, secretary. Fawick
explained that
the corporation had been formed at the suggestion of Burnside, who
remained a
lifelong friend, and R.J. Wells, an attorney. He does not remember B.S.
Wells.
The procedure may have been suggested because of Fawick’s youth – he
could not
have been more than 21 at the time – but he adds: ‘I went along with
this for
only a short time when I realized that this was really not the correct
way for
my interests.’ And the company was dissolved.
“Most car bodies of the era were of pressed
steel. The
process of forming sheet aluminum into the proper shapes and curves for
the
Flyers was expensive, requiring expert workmanship. After producing a
number of
cars, young Fawick concluded that the auto business was going to
require more
capital than he could manage, and he dropped out of the industry.”
Fawick later found limited success as a
tractor designer after
which he made his fortune in the automotive parts business as a clutch
manufacturer
(Fawick Corp.) in Cleveland, Ohio.
The January 1910 issue of the Horseless Age
announced that
Abresch had received an order for automobile bodies from the Mitchell
Motor Car
Company of Racine, Wisconsin:
“The Charles Abresch Company,
of Milwaukee,
have secured a large order for bodies from the Mitchell Motor Car
Company.”
In 1909 Robert Cramer, a Milwaukee-based
engineer, proposed
that Abresch get into the truck manufacturing business using a
heavy-duty
assembled truck of his own design, the February 24, 1910 issue of The
Automobile reported on the formation of the Abresch-Cramer Auto Truck
Co.:
“The Abresch-Cramer Auto Truck Company has
been incorporated
in Milwaukee, Wis., with a capital stock of $20,000. The incorporators
are Charles Abresch, Robert Crawley and L. Schneller. Charles
Abresch
is at the head of the Charles Abresch Company, 398 Fourth street,
Milwaukee,
which has been manufacturing wagons and carriages and now devotes most
of its
time to building bodies and a line of commercial vehicles.”
Further details emerged in the March 1910 issue
of the Commercial Vehicle:
“The Abresch Cramer Auto Truck Company,
Milwaukee, Wis., has
been organized to continue the commercial vehicle business of the
Charles
Abresch Company of the same city, known as successful manufacturers of
business
wagons for forty years. The line of motor vehicles to be marketed
includes
trucks and wagons from 1 to 5 tons load capacity. Robert Cramer, the
active
manager of the new company, has been identified with Milwaukee
manufacturing
interests for a number of years and has had extensive experience in the
construction of business wagons. The future of the new company is
apparently
very promising.”
The truck was descirbed in great detail in the
August 1910 issue of the Commercial Vehicle:
“Abresch Gas Motor Truck Built In Milwaukee
“Long experience in heavy horsed vehicle
construction has
been turned to account in the production of the Abresch auto truck by
the
Abresch Cramer Auto Truck Company of Milwaukee, Wis. One of the
standard 4-ton
trucks of this company was delivered to a Wisconsin brewer is shown in
the
accompanying engraving.
“This machine is of the gas motor-in-front
type, but the builders
also put out similarity constructed trucks of the same capacity with
motor-under-seat so as to give increased loading space where the latter
is
required.
“The Abresch truck is built along
standard lines
of motor vehicle practice. The outstanding feature being the large rear
wheels,
42 inches in diameter and the flexible spring support; full elliptic in
front
and platform in the rear. In the 4-ton truck the motor is of the
four-cylinder
vertical. T-head, water-cooled type with cylinders 4 ¾ - inch bore and
5 ½
inches stroke. Rated at 36-40 horsepower. Details of the motor include:
Cylinders cast in pairs; four ring piston; I-section connecting rod;
drop-forged crank shaft, heat-treated and ground; nickel steel
interchangeable
valves; bearings fitted with Parson's bronze of bushings. Lubrication
of the
motor is insured by force feed, and water circulation is positive
by gear
pump driven from the cam shaft. Ignition is by gear-driven magneto with
non-vibrating coil and dry cells as auxiliary. Two sets of spark plugs
are
fitted. A Stromberg, water-jacketed, carbureter is used. The clutch is
of the
multiple disc type running in oil. Speed changes are affected by a
three-speed
gearset in which the gears are always in mesh, engagement for the
different
speeds being effected by dog clutches. The gearset gives three speeds
forward
and reverse. The differential and countershafts are mounted integrally
with the
change-speed mechanism, and final drive is by 1 3/4-inch pitch roller
side
chains.
“Service brakes are fitted to the
countershaft and
controlled from the driver's seat by pedal. Emergency brakes of the
internal
expanding type are fitted to the rear wheels and operated by the usual
side
lever. The steering gear is irreversible and controlled by 22-inch
handwheel,
levers for spark and throttle control being bracketed on the inclined
pillar.
Heavy forged steel axles are used and wood wheels of the artillery type
running
on ball bearings. The front wheels are 36 inches in diameter shod with
4-inch
solid tires, and the rear wheels 42 inches in diameter shod with either
6-inch
single or 3-inch double solid tires.”
The truck manufacturing facility was located a
couple of blocks away
from the Wagons works in a five-story reinforced concrete
strutcure
located on Third street, between Poplar and Vliet Streets, the same
issue (August
1910) of the
Commercial Vehicle reporting:
“The Abresch-Cramer Auto Truck
Co., of Milwaukee,
a corporation recently formed to take over and develop the motor truck
department of the Chas. Abresch Company, for forty years wagon and
carriage builders and now one of the largest manufacturers of
automobile
bodies, is making excellent progress. The company now occupies its new
home in
the five-story reinforced concrete Stehling Building at Third and
Poplar
streets, Milwaukee. The building has dimensions of 125 by 150 feet and
is one
block from the Abresch works at Fourth and Poplar streets.
The
capacity at this time is 100 trucks a year, but this will shortly be
doubled.
“Robert Cramer, general manager of the
company, is
responsible for the success of the enterprise and his plans are for the
development of one of the largest motor truck factories in the country.
He is a
well-known engineer with a European education and was formerly
connected with
the Allis-Chalmers Company, of Milwaukee, the largest machinery
manufacturer in
the United States.”
Strikes
became commonplace in the early Twentieth Century and the Abresch works
did not excape the turmoil, the September 28, 1910 Milwaukee Journal
reporting:
“More Join Strike
“Auto Painters Also Object to Piece Work Plan
“Seven Walk Out and General Tie-up of Plan
is likely Unless
Workers and Employers Reach Speedy Agreement.
“The Strike in the Abresch automobile
factory has reached a
stage when it is likely that more employees will walk out this week.
“Wednesday morning the strike leaders said
that seven
painters quit Tuesday because they had been put on a piece system basis
and
that it was likely all the painters would walk out within the next few
days.
They say the upholsterers will also strike if the body makers are not
given
their demands.
“The carriage and wagon makers will meet
Friday to discuss
the advisability of calling out the other workers to strike in sympathy
with
the carpenters.
“One striker said:
“‘There are about 150 of us out and we have
formed a union
which will be called Carpenters’ union No. 1053. We have asked the
company to
recognize our union, give us a nine-hour day and put us back on the
hour system
at our old pay, which was 24 3-4, 27 1-2, 30 and 32 1-2 cents an hour.’”
The
January 28, 1911 issue of Automobile Topics reported that Abresch could
now be numbered among the nation's producers of fire apparatus:
“Milwaukee's Chemical Truck
“Because of the strained condition of the
treasury at
Milwaukee, Wis., the request of Fire Chief T. A. Clancy for a motor
fire
steamer has been laid over until next year. The apparatus is desired
for use in
the residence districts, where stations are far between.
“Although the chief and the first assistant
chief have been
granted touring cars for official duty, the first real motor fire
apparatus in
Milwaukee has just been placed in service. It is an Abresch-Cramer
combination
hose and chemical truck, built by the Abresch-Cramer
Auto Truck Company, of Milwaukee, and cost about $5,000.”
Another strike hit the plant on June 8, 1911, the
Milwaukee Sentinel reporting:
“Strike of Short Duration
“A strike at the plant of the Charles
Abresch company, 398
Fourth street, which lasted for three hours Wednesday morning, was
settled
after a conference between the representatives of the unions and
members of the
firm when the unions were recognized.”
The March 1912 issue of the Automobile Trade
Journal revels that the Abresh truck would thereafter be marketed by
the Charles Abresch Co.:
“The Chas. Abresch Company will in the
future market the
truck which was developed by the Abresch Cramer Auto Truck Company of
Milwaukee,
Wis., for the Chas. Abresch Company.”
Charles Abresch passed away after a short
illness on April
27, 1912, his obituary appeared in the April 28, 1912 edition of the
Milwaukee
Journal:
“Charles Abresch, president and treasurer of
the Charles
Abresch company, manufacturers of wagons, automobiles and trucks, died
at his
home, 2124 Chestnut street, Saturday afternoon.
“The death was expected, his illness lasting
three months,
and his wife, daughter, Amanda (Mrs. Oscar Bach), and half sister, Mrs.
Charles
Arnold were at his bedside when he died.
“The funeral services will be held at the
home on Wednesday
at 2 o’clock. Interment will be in Forest Home Cemetery.
“About one month ago Mr. Abresch was removed
to the Battle
Creek sanitarium, Battle Creek, Mich. but he grew worse and was brought
to the
Sacred Heart sanitarium, Milwaukee. All of the best medical aid
possible was
given him, but he was removed to his home two weeks ago and death was
expected
at any moment. Dr. L. Daniels was his attending physician and was with
him at
the end.
“Charles Abresch was born on May 12, 1850,
in Dierdorf,
province of the Rhine, Germany. His mother died when he was but a few
months
old and his father soon after came to America. The infant was left in
charge of
his aunt, Mrs. Christine Schneller, mother of Louis and William
Schneller of
Milwaukee.
“When 18 years old, Mr. Abresch followed his
father to the
United States and met him in Milwaukee. He had learned the blacksmith
trade in
Germany and was given employment at the John Meinecke wagon and
carriage works
upon his arrival here.
“At the age of 20, and only two years after
his arrival in
America, he started a small wagon works of his own, and through steady
and
persistent work he built up one the largest plants of its kind in this
country.
“In 1894 the company was capitalized for
$220,000 and now
more than 800 persons are employed in the factory at Fourth and Poplar
streets.
The manufactured of automobiles and trucks was taken up five years ago
and the
output is now being sent all over the United States and Mexico.
“Eight years ago the entire factory was
destroyed by fire,
but was rebuilt at once on a much bigger scale.
“The other officers of the company are Louis
Schneller, vice
president and manager, and Edmund Paul, secretary.
“In 1870 Mr. Abresch married Miss Catherine
Gerard of
Jackson, Wis., and one daughter, Mrs. Oscar Bach, was born. Two
half-brothers,
Henry and Jacob Abresch and two half-sisters, Mrs. Charles Arnold and
Mrs. John
Andres Johnson, all of Milwaukee, are his other near relatives. His
father died
in 1887.
“Mr. Abresch spent hundreds of dollars
yearly to aid the
needy, but he never permitted his deeds to be made public. While not
active in
politics, he took a keen interest in public affairs.
“He has twice returned to his old home at
Dierdorf, in 1897
and 1906.
“He was a member of the Knights of Pythias,
Richard Wagner
lodge, Turn Verein, Milwaukee; West Side Old Settlers Club; Old
Settlers
Bowling Club. German Press Club, and the Blatz Outing Club.”
Abresch was also eulogized in the May 1912 issue
of Carriage Monthly:
“The Late Charles Abresch
“Charles Abresch, president of
the Charles
Abresch Co., Milwaukee, Wis., manufacturers of wagons, trucks and
motor
cars, passed away on Saturday, April 27th, at his residence, 2124
Chestnut
Street, Milwaukee. Mr. Abresch was one of the most progressive and
successful
manufacturers of vehicles in the Middle West, the extensive works of
which he
was the head having been in operation for about forty years. He located
in
Milwaukee in 1868, and in 1871 commenced business on a small scale. His
earliest specialties were brewery wagons and heavy trucks. In 1893 a
stock company
was formed, with Mr. Abresch as president. He was the guiding and
inventive
spirit of the business, and to his foresight and commercial ability are
due
much of the company's success. At the funeral, on May 1st, prominent
men of the
city acted as honorary pall-bearers, the active bearers being veteran
employes
of the Abresch Company, all of whom have been in service for more than
twenty
years.”
The death of Abresch coincided with the end
of the firm’s truck
production. Robert Cramer remained active in Milwaukee’s manufacturing
circles and
around 1920 formed the Cramer Mfg. Co., a manufacturer of oil and water
pumps
for the automobile industry.
Abresch also built the bodies (roadster, 3
touring cars,
sedan) for the Grand Central Palace exhibition of the Great Western
Automobile
Co. at the 1914 New York Auto Show. The Great Western was a short-lived
automobile
manufactured in Peru, Indiana by the officers and directors of the
Model Gas
Engine Works.
A 50 piece ambulance body order from Kissel
was mentioned in
the November 1, 1914 issue of the Automobile Trade Journal:
“Kissel Motor Car Company, Hartford, Wis.,
recently shipped
fifty chasses, and the Chas. Abresch Company of Milwaukee, fifty bodies
to the
Greek Government.”
The settlement of a nearly 3-month-long
strike by Abresch
mechanics was covered in the June 8, 1916 issue of Motor Age:
“Body Makers' Strike Settled—The strike of
more than 200
body builders in the plant of the Charles Abresch Co., Milwaukee. Wis.,
manufacturer of motor car and truck bodies, has been settled
by
arbitration and the men are back at work.
“On March 1 the Abresch company determined
to establish the
open shop policy and refused to renew the closed shop agreement. Under
the
terms of the settlement the shop is again closed and most of the work
will be
piecework.”
Although the firm continued to manufacture
their own line of
heavy truck bodies, they also stocked knocked-down bodies for light
trucks, and
were included on a list of authorized distributors in the 1920 Hercules
Body
Co. catalog:
Universal Motorcar, New Orleans, LA
Eastman & Russell, Dallas, TX
Wm. F. Habig & Son, Omaha, NE
Keystone State Motor & Auto Body Co. Philadelphia, PA
New England Commercial Body Co. Boston, MA
Charles Abresch & Co. Milwaukee, WI
Buffalo Commercial Body Co. Buffalo, NY
West Penn Body Co. Pittsburgh, PA
C.E. Hamlin Detroit, MI
Guy Cooper & Bro. Kansas City, MO
O.W. Dolph Los Angeles, CA
C.M. Barrett Chicago, IL
W.A. Haviland, Minneapolis, MN
Fred Linde, San Francisco, CA
H.N. Knight Supply, Oklahoma City, OK
Central Agency Seattle, WA
Blaney Motor Co, Tacoma, WA
Beaudry Motor Co, Atlanta, GA
W.C. Vedder Charlotte, NC
Richey-Coen Co. Columbus, OH
Adamson Motor Co. Birmingham, AL
R.A. Chapman Denver, CO
McCreery-Phelan Memphis, TN
Makemer Motor Co. Peoria, IL
Altare-Smith Co. Salt Lake City, UT
City Storage & Mfg. Sioux Falls, IA.
H.T. Pecor Troy, NY.
The onset of Prohibition put Milwaukee into
turmoil as the
city’s economy depended upon the Midwest’s
vigorous consumption of alcohol. Some smaller breweries went out of
business
while the major manufacturers - Blatz, Miller, Pabst and Schlitz
produced near
beer, soda, malt syrup, ice cream, yeast and cheese.
After six years of suffering in 1926
Wisconsin voters
approved a referendum amending the Volsted Act (Prohibition) that
allowed the
manufacture and sale of beer with 2.75 percent alcohol and in 1929 the
Severson
Act (Wisconsin's prohibition enforcement law), was repealed. In 1932,
Wisconsin senator John
J. Blaine drafted
the resolution to repeal prohibition, and on December 5, 1933, the
Twenty-first
Amendment was ratified and national prohibition ended.
Abresch survived the decade constructing
commercial bodies
which were supplemented by an occasional order from a regional
manufacturer for
automobile bodies. They also had the good fortune to get involved in
manufacturing sidecar and van bodies for Harley Davidson and the
Goulding Mfg.
Co., a third-party sidecar manufacturer.
In 1936 Abresch introduced an all-steel
sidecar body, and in
1942, Harley’s small and large cargo boxes were replaced with an
Abresch-built
all-steel intermediate-sized box. Their
relationship with Harley-Davidson continued until 1966 when the firm
commenced
the manufacture of its own fiberglass sidecar bodies in the former
Tomahawk boat
plant in Tomahawk, Wisconsin.
Abresch survived the Depression by greatly
reducing the size
of its operations and by the late Thirties auto body repair and
refinishing had
became its main source of income.
Abresch’s longtime president Louis Schneller
passed away in
1939, the September 8, 1939 issue of the Wisconsin State Journal
reporting:
“Louis Schneller, 65, Friend of Gov. Heil,
Dies in Milwaukee
“MILWAUKEE— (U.P.) — Louis Schneller, 65,
prominent Mason,
president of the Washington park Zoological society and close friend of
Gov.
Heil, died Thursday as a result of apoplexy. He was president of the
Charles
Abresch Co., an automobile body manufacturing and repairing firm, with
which he
had been affiliated nearly 50 years. Funeral services will be Saturday.”
A more detailed account of his life appeared
in the
September 9, issue of the Milwaukee Sentinel:
“Masonic Rites On Saturday For Schneller: Aid
in Heil
Campaign Was Head of Auto Body Concern
“Services are to be held at 2 p.m., Saturday
at the Scottish
Rite cathedral, 705 E. Wells St., for Louis Schneller, 65, prominent
Milwaukee
Mason, assistant to Governor Heil. And president for the past two years
of the
Washington Park Zoological Society.
“Mr. Schneller, stricken at his home by
apoplexy 10 days
before, died Thursday at 1720 N. Hi-Mount Blvd.
“He was born in Essen, Germany, and came to
Milwaukee at the
age of seven, studying at Milwaukee and New York Schools. He was
president of
the Charles Abresch co., automobile body manufacturing and repair
company with
which he had been associated for 50 years.
“Aided Governor
“Appointed an honorary colonel by Governor
Heil, Mr.
Schneller had been one of the most industrious workers for the chief
executive
dusting his campaign last year and afterward in the early months of the
administration.
“Surviving are his wife, Minnie: as sister,
Mrs. Paula Paul,
and five grandchildren.”
After the Second World War, the firm was
reorganized as Abresch
Auto Body Ltd., and it remained in business into 1965 when it lost the
Harley-Davidson
contract. The firm’s auto body facility remained in operation though
various
owners and is currently occupied by Bennett Coachworks a full service
auto body
repair and restoration facility - www.hotrodbuilders.com
© 2013 Mark
Theobald for Coachbuilt.com
|
