Alphabetical Index|A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M|N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

Geographical Index|AK|AL|AR|AZ|CA|CAN|CO|CT|DE|DC|FL|GA|HI|IA|ID
IL|IN|KS|KY|LA|MA|MD|ME|MI|MEX|MN|MO|MS|MT|NC|ND|NE|NH|NJ|NM
NV|NY|OH|OK|OR|PA|RI|SC|SD|TN|TX|UNK|UT|VA|VT|WA|WI|WV|WY
 

quicklinks|buses|cars|designers|fire apparatus|limos|pro-cars|taxis|trailers|trucks|woodies

 

 
Anheuser-Busch
Anheuser-Busch Vehicle Department - 1919-1933 - St. Louis, Missouri
 
Associated Builders
C.T. Silver
     

In 1903 the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Association of St. Louis, Missouri ordered two massive electric truck chassis from the General Vehicle Company of Long Island City, New York. Twenty four feet long and ten feet wide, they had a capacity of 30,000 pounds worth of brew, and proved to be too big. Subsequent experiments with significantly smaller 1 to 3½-ton electrics proved more successful and within 5 years, the St Louis brewer owned a fleet of 45-50 beer trucks as evidenced by the following article from the January 1909 issue of the Commercial Vehicle:

“The example of the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Association stands as one of the most favorable arguments for the machines to the advertising account in order to make the books balance. For a time Adolphus Busch was in a quandary. He might have abandoned the use of the cars entirely had he not at someone's suggestion employed the best electric expert that he could find to take charge of his immense garage. After this step was taken conditions immediately began to improve, until now there is no doubt that the use of power-driven vehicles is something more than economy to this particular concern.

“Forty-five to fifty machines are in daily service. Approximately there are twenty-five 1-ton General Vehicle trucks, five 3-ton vans of the same make, six 2 ½-ton machines of Anheuser-Busch make, seventeen 1½-ton Pope-Waverly machines, made from a special design by George Marian so as to be 20 per cent heavier than the stock vehicle, two Knox gasoline wagons of 1½-ton and 3½-ton capacity, one 3½-ton American motor truck, and one 1½-ton gasoline vehicle designed by Marian.”

1919 marked a number of changes for the St, Louis Brewer, the company was renamed Anheuser-Busch, and the post-war Depression and pending commencement of Prohibition resulted in the firm’s first loss. According to Anheuser-Busch historian, Ronald Jan Plavchan:

“Anheuser-Busch, which had never before failed to make a profit on its operations in any year for which records exist, showed substantial losses in 1919 ($2,478,985), 1920 ($1,572,255), 1921 ($1,329,072) and 1922 ($218,270).”

Anheuser-Busch was the nation’s largest brewery, and before the start of Prohibition the firm’s 3,000 employees produced over 1 million barrels of beer per year. Starting in 1919 the firm instituted massive layoffs, and introduced a number of new products such as ice cream, yeast and grape soda.

One outgrowth of Anheuser-Busch’s new ice cream business was the manufacture of products that could both store and transport the extremely temperature-sensitive product. The firm’s Vehicle Department quickly set about designing and building a whole series of ice cream cabinets and delivery truck bodies, which were all built using the same hardware and technology. A slightly less insulated version of the ice cream bodies was developed that proved popular with dairymen.

A third totally un-insulated line of truck bodies known as the 'Adolphus' was also developed using the same body shells that were marketed to dry goods vendors and transporters. They also built small numbers of architecturally-inspired horse-boxes as well as a complete line of city service buses and intercity motor coaches. The Body Works also built a luxurious private coach on a 1931 Yellow Coach chassis for Adolphus Busch III. The vehicle still exists and can be seen at the St. Louis Museum of Transportation.

Anheuser-Busch’s A.B.C. (Automatic Brine Circulation) refrigerated truck bodies were popular in the Midwest and the firm produced two separate catalogs, one for their standard refrigerated bodies that were marketed to dairymen, green grocers and butchers and a second catalog which featured heavily insulated bodies specifically designed for ice cream distributors. Clarence Birdseye’s frozen food technology had yet to be perfected and a need to transport non-dairy frozen foods didn’t develop until after the start of the Depression.

Originally developed for use in refrigerated rail cars, the A.B.C. system was also adaptable to delivery truck as show in the October 1920 issue of the Journal of the American Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers:

"The construction of the automatic brine circulation system is such that it is not limited to refrigerator-cars, but may be applied to any moving vehicle such as trucks, boats, etc. Already the system has been installed by a Chicago ice-cream manufacturing concern in a number of their large electric delivery-trucks. In these trucks there is but one tank with pipes, through which the brine circulates and then returns to the tank. The swaying and jolting of the trucks have the same effect of circulating the brine as in the case of railroad cars.”

By the late twenties solid carbon dioxide (dry ice) and electrical refrigeration units had replaced the messy A.B.C. refrigeration systems used on Anheuser-Busch’s insulated shipping, storage and delivery bodies.

Following the 1933 repeal of the Volstead Act, the firm’s Vehicle Department abandoned their body building activities for outside customers and concentrated on the manufacture of beer transport and delivery bodies for in-house use.

They also were put in charge of manufacturing the oversized beer wagons towed by the world-famous Clydesdale horses, which had been recently purchased by Adolphus Busch III to celebrate the firm’s resumption of beer manufacturing. The body works also built the giant horse boxes that were needed to transport the massive Clydesdales from appearance to appearance.

Although the main emphasis of Anheuser-Busch's Vehicle Department was the manufacture of commercial bodies, they produced a number of interesting specialty products for other markets. The most successful of these was the Lampsteed Kampkar, a recreational vehicle body designed for the Model T that debuted sometime around 1920.

The Kampkar was designed by Samuel B. Lambert (b.1894-d.1930), the son of Arthur W. Lambert, the treasurer of the Lambert Pharmacal Co., the St. Louis-based manufacturer of Listerine.

The Kampkar bodies were sold in a completely knocked-down (CKD) kit that was easily shipped across the country via rail and was distributed through authorized Ford dealers. Painted a distinctive forest green direct from the factory, both sides of the rear compartment folded down, Pullman style, creating two 42” wide double beds.

When placed upright, the center portion of the bed formed a pair of bench seats that ran parallel to the sides of the body. The driver and front cab passenger sat on the forward portions of the two benches, their backs supported by movable back rests.

A circa 1921 Kampkar brochure:

”Make this the kind of a vacation you've always dreamed about - enjoy the splendor of Yellowstone, the majesty of the Grand Canyon, visit balmy Palm Beach or the great North Woods.  Go anywhere you wish - on your own schedule, over your own railroad system in your own private car, stopping at your own hotel, eating your own cooking at your own table - all in great comfort and at a price you can easily afford.

“The Lampsteed Kampkar Body, complete with full equipment and ready to mount on a standard model "T" Ford Chassis costs only $535.00 including war tax.”

A Kampkar ad in the July 1923 issue of Field and Stream stated:

“Deep, restful sleep is made certain by two wide, comfortable beds four feet from the ground - high, dry and safe.”

Samuel B. Lambert held a number of transportation-related patents and when production of the Kampkar ended in the late Twenties he founded his own aviation firm, the Lambert Aircraft Engine Corp. Lambert was piloting one of his aircraft en route to the Detroit All-American Aircraft Show in April, 1930 when his propeller snapped and he plunged to his death.

Considering their low production numbers, a surprising number of Kampkars still exist in museums and private and collections. The Zagelmeyer Auto Camp Company of Bay City, Michigan offered a similarly-named Model T camper body called the Kamper-Kar.

The main advantage of the Zagelmeyer Kamper-Kar over the Lampsteed was that it featured an automatic pop-up top that allowed its owners to stand inside the vehicle once the side berths were lowered. Zagelmeyer’s $1000+ Kamper-Kar body was significantly more expensive than the Lampsteed Kampkar and as it was produced in far fewer numbers that may explain why there’s only one known survivor. Zagelmeyer also produced camping trailers and turn-key camper conversions on Reo and Chevrolet chassis.

Another product of the Anheuser-Busch Vehicle Department’s Body Shop that was marketed to consumers was the Rancher, a wood station wagon that was designed to compete with similar offerings from Babcock, Cantrell and others. As was the Kampkar, the Rancher was nationally distributed in completely knocked down (CKD) form and could easily be adapted to Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford and White chassis.

The Anheuser-Busch Vehicle Department also created the coachwork for the firm’s nautically-inspired advertising vehicles. The inspiration for the Bevo Boats, as they were popularly called, did not originate within Anheuser-Busch and came from legendary Manhattan automobile dealer Conover T. Silver.

Silver was the Manhattan distributor for Willys-Overland, Peerless, and went on to create the legendary Silver-Apperson and Kissel Silver-Special Speedsters. Headquartered in the upper floors of the 9-story Peerless Building was Silver’s custom body operation and just before the start of the First World War he created a nautically-inspired vehicle on an Overland chassis which was featured in the October 17, 1915 issue of the New York Times:

“Novel Automobile On the Lines of a River Launch.

“One of the most unusual bodies to make its appearance on “Automobile Row” is show above. It is a boat body on an Overland chassis, now on view in C.T. Silver's salesrooms. The body is built of alternate two-inch strips of mahogany and white holly, and the deck is in birds-eye maple. Mounted on the circular radiator is a ship’s bell, while a nickel propeller serves to keep the spare wheel in place. The front bumpers represent anchors and those at the rear, oars. The upholstery is pigskin.”

The December 1915 issue of The Rudder also featured the vehicle:

“A Land Runabout of Nautical Design

“Cruising down Broadway recently, the lookout man megaphoned that there was a peculiar-looking craft at anchor on the port bow, so we instanter put over the helm and drew alongside. She proved to be the Silver Bird, a neat little runabout of about 12 feet length, specially built for the С. Т. Silver Motor Company, on an Overland six-cylinder chassis. Seeing that her appearance, while not strictly shipshape, was of elegance and along nautical lines, we decided to give her a berth in the December Rudder.

“Her hull is planked, not painted, in alternate layers of white holly and mahogany, while she is decked forward for three parts of her length with the same wood, this also forming a housing for the engine, which is installed right forward. The cockpit and after deck is railed off. The spare wheel aft is held in position by a real bronze, 14-inch diameter propeller, and she carries an anchor on either bow. On the forward deck is a searchlight and electric signal bell.

“Putting all joking to one side, it occurred to us that an automobile along these lines would interest yachtsmen, particularly power owners. With the detachable wheels removed, she would not altogether look out of place in davits, in cases where the owner of a long-distance cruiser desired to tour the district when putting in to strange ports and thus combine automobiling with the pleasure of yachting. So, in future, we can expect one sport to help the other in this manner, instead of throttling each other.”

The vehicle was featured in the 1916 film "Gloria’s Romance" which starred Billie Burke after which it was acquired by Anheuser-Busch’s Advertising Department, which used it to launch their new Bevo malt beverage. Re-christened the Bevo Victory Boat, at the start of the War the Oakland-chassised advertising vehicle was sent around the country to help sell War Bonds.

Bevo was a near-beer concocted from barley malt, rice, hops, yeast, and water which took its name from the Bohemian pivo (beer) and contained less than one-half percent alcohol. It was developed in anticipation of a 1916 ban on the consumption of alcoholic beverages by the US Armed Forces. Bevo was by far the most popular of the many near beers of the time and at its peak of popularity sold more than five million cases annually.

The Bevo Victory Boat joined another Bevo related mascot, “Renard the Fox” (based on the protagonist of a medieval French folk-tale) who was created to help advertise the new beverage.

Sometime during 1917 Anheuser-Busch’s Vehicle Department face-lifted the C.T. Silver built Oakland chassised vehicle. Pictures of both vehicles survive and although in later years Anheuser Busch claims to have built the vehicle, it's clear their only contribution was to put a false bow over the front end of Silver's creation.

A second, all-new version of the Bevo Boat were constructed in Anheuser-Busch’s St. Louis body shops sometime between 1920 and 1923. Although the new vehicle was inspired by C.T. Silver's circa 1915 creation it featured all new coachwork, Disteel wheels and was reportedly built on a Pierce-Arrow chassis. The second vehicle featured the same alternating color wooden-planked hull design of the Silver Bird and was finished in a clear varnish.

Eagle-eyed Dorris owners suggest the vehicle’s chassis was not built in Buffalo, and was actually constructed in St Louis by the Dorris Motors Corporation. Although surviving pictures reveal a set of small Dorris hubcaps on the vehicle, it doesn't prove that the chassis was built by the same manufacturer. It's more likely that the caps were added by Anheuser-Busch's mechanics to hide the real identity of the chassis.

Internally referred to as Anheuser-Busch Land Cruisers, the Bevo Boats advertised other Anheuser-Busch products as evidenced in the picture to the left that was taken in 1924 in front of the US Treasury Building in Washington, D.C. The unhappy driver in the close-up is Adolphus Busch III, the son of the then-current president of Anheuser-Busch, August Anheuser Busch, Sr., and grandson and namesake of the firm’s founder, Adolphus Busch I.

A totally re-designed third series Land Cruiser (later renamed as the Budweiser II) appeared in 1929-1930 on a Pierce-Arrow chassis that utilized a flat rear end, similar to those found on the era’s inboard speedboats built by Gar Wood and others. Once again the vehicle's body/hull was constructed of alternating wooden planks and although it was originally coated in a clear varnish, it was repainted in horizontal red and white stripes following the repeal of the Volstead Act.

A fourth series Pierce-Arrow-chassised Land Cruiser (known as the Budweiser III) appeared sometime around 1933-34 and featured the front end of the 1929-1930 Land Cruiser with a new sculpted rear end treatment resembling that found on a similarly-sized sailboat of the era.

All remaining Land Cruisers / Bevo Boats were rechristened as Budweiser I’s, II’s and III’s when Prohibition ended in 1933. One of the circa 1933-34 vehicles was supposedly displayed at a mid-thirties Indianapolis 500.

Historians believe total production of all boat-shaped Anheuser-Busch advertising vehicles is thought to be eight, although confirmation is lacking. Pictures exist of four distinct vehicles and although it’s possible there were more, its interesting to note that no two Land Cruisers / Bevo Boats are ever pictured together.

Of the four variations there is only one extant, a circa 1929-1930 Budweiser II. Unfortunately sometime during its lifetime its original Pierce-Arrow chassis was discarded and replaced with one from a 1930 V-12 Cadillac Sport Phaeton.

The recently-restored survivor is finished in red with white stripes and includes a host of unusual features such as a red leather interior, Woodlite head and cowl lights, bi-lateral anchors and life preservers, anchor-tipped front bumpers, an ornamental propeller, Wig-Wag taillights, and three onboard Winchester cannons.

What follows is the text from a circa 1923 Anheuser-Busch Vehicle Department catalog advertising the division’s various products and body-building activities. The brochure included renderings of the first C.T. Silver-built Bevo Boat, photographs of the Lamsteed Kampkar and Rancher station wagon as well as images of the firm’s full line of commercial truck bodies:

“Anheuser-Busch Bodies

“The Development of Thirty-Five Year’s Experience

“Behind the Busch-built Motor Truck Body you buy is the experience gained from more than thirty-five years devoted to the manufacture of rolling stock and delivery equipment for or own agencies and branch offices.

“Each job is constructed in large, modernly equipped shops under the personal supervision of the most capable shop management that can be employed. Dependable service and long life are assured by skilled workmen and sound construction. The lumber used is air-dried for greatest tensile strength. Forged and hand-wrought bracings support points of strain. Under-frame sills and bars are arranged to fit any type of chassis.

“Building this way takes time. It adds to the cost of manufacture. But in no other way is it possible to get extra years of useful service and the low upkeep and operating costs for which Busch-built bodies are famous from Broadway to the Golden Gate.

“Spread throughout the following pages you will see Busch-built bus bodies that carry children across long stretches of open country to the school-house miles away - Rancher bodies that bring the comforts and conveniences of the city to suburban and country homes – Kampkar bodies for vacationists, hunters and fisherman – refrigerator truck bodies for ice cream, meat, milk and kindred delivery service – armored truck bodies which protect cashiers and bank messengers from the depredations of pay-roll bandits.

“Anheuser-Busch facilities are also available for automobile painting, enameling, varnishing, upholstering, complete wagon building and repairs, truck body repairs and truck wheel renewing.

“Your request for any special information you may desire will receive prompt and courteous attention.

“Bevo Ponies

“These six ponies were selected from among hundreds as the most perfect specimens of their type that could be found anywhere. For the greater part of three years they toured the country, appearing at various state fairs ad horse shows. The carriage to which they are hitched was built by Anheuser-Busch.

“Prairie Schooner

“Designed and built in the Anheuser-Busch shops, this picturesque prairie schooner has been exhibited at state fairs throughout the country, and has aroused much interest wherever shown.

“Bevo Victory Boat

“During the World War the Bevo Victory Boat pictured here was placed at the disposal of the United State government by Anheuser-Busch. For nearly two years it toured practically every exaction of the country, being used by the Army and Navy for recruiting purposes. The unique body, designed and built by Anheuser-Busch, shows how we can adapt our facilities to the production for special types to meet any requirement.

“The Largest Ox In The World

“This is Tom, owned by Anheuser-Busch and said to be the largest ox in the world. He is 6 feet 6 inches in height, 9 feet 8 inches from stem to stern and weighs 3,000 pounds. His keeper, Bill Farris, is also a giant, standing 6 feet 6 inches in height. The trekking cart is the type used throughout Mexico in primitive days. It is constructed entirely of wood – even wooden pegs being used in place of nuts and bolts. Built by Anheuser-Busch for advertising purposes.

“Refrigerator Bodies With One-Piece Seamless Tank Bottoms to Prevent Tank Leaks from Vibration

“A.B.C. Refrigerator Truck Bodies provide perfect refrigeration of perishable foods – ice cream, milk, meat and dairy products of all kinds.

“For the ice-cream manufacturers, they eliminate brine drip and rust non truck chassis, reduce annoyance and unnecessary expense. For the meat packer or distributor of similar perishable products, they provide proper refrigeration during the transportation interval between refrigerator car or warehouse refrigerator and the retail dealer’s store.

“A.B.C. Refrigerator Truck Bodies are rigid, composite units built by skilled workmen in the Anheuser-Busch shops at St. Louis. Sills and framing are of oak and maple. Pure corkboard insulation, set between two layers of heavy, water-proof insulating paper, is used. Inside they are finished with 5/8-inch and 7/8-inch cypress, thoroughly oiled.

“The refrigerator tank is built of heavy black iron with a one-piece seamless bottom – an exclusive Anheuser-Busch featured which prevents tank leaks from vibration. Circulating coils of heavy iron-pipe – 2½ inches inside diameter – assure rapid circulation of brine. Tank and pipes are heavily coated with iron primer. Bodies are built to hold any temperature desired for the commodity to be transported. Ice cream bodies are built with copper bottom and side lining in fresh ice compartment.

“A perfectly smooth, unbroken surface, excellently adapted to sign painting is assured by exterior paneling of three-ply Haskelite water-proof veneer. There are no moldings, cracks or tongue-and-groove joints to mare the continuity of the panel, or to form water pockets and start decay. All joints are thoroughly impregnated with white lead during construction.

“One of a fleet of seven trucks with A.B.C. Refrigerator Truck Bodies operated by the M-B Ice Kream Co. of Dallas, Texas. The body is a 3 ½ ton Ice Cream Delivery Body, mounted on a 3 ½ - ton White chassis, and has a capacity of 350 gallons of ice cream, 4,300 pounds of fresh ice and 1,000 pounds of salt. Over-all height of this truck, from ground to hatch cover, is ten feet.

“This A.B.C. Refrigerator Truck Body insures delivery of capacity loads in prefect condition for the City Dairies Company, of St. Louis. One hundred and fifty to 300 pounds of ice and 25% salt provide perfect refrigeration for 24 hours, maintaining temperatures lower than 10 degrees. The motion of the truck in transit causes an automatic brine circulation.

“Perfect refrigeration is as essential to meats as to ice cream. That’s why John J. Felin & Co. Inc, of Philadelphia, use this A.B.C. Refrigerator Tuck Body for delivery purposes. Inside, the body is 13 feet 5 inches long and 6 feet 10 ½ inches wide. Height under the tank is 4 feet – under pipes, 4 feet 1 9/16 inches.

“210 gallons of ice cream, 3,700 pounds of fresh ice and 600 pounds of salt is an ordinary load for this 2½- ton A.B.C. Ice Cream Refrigerator Truck Body in service for Burdan Bros. of Pottstown, Pa., Mounted on a 2 ½-ton chassis, the overall height of the complete truck is 9 feet 3 inches from ground to top of hatch cover.

“Freedom from brine drip and tank leaks from vibration is assured by this A.B.C. Refrigerator Truck Body in service for the Baker-Evans Ice Cream Company, of Cleveland, who are well and favorably known throughout the entire Ohio metropolis. Even in warmest weather, a cold, even temperature can be maintained for 24 hours.

“Busch-built armored truck bodies like this one provide protection for cashiers, bank messengers, etc., and assure safe transportation of large sums from one place to another, regardless of the depredation of pay-roll bandits.

“‘Budweiser Chief:’ Equipped with housetop rails and irons for tarpaulin protection. Cab fitted with adjustable glass windshield, side roller curtains and drop windows. Furnished with or without cab.

“The ‘Adophus’; A general utility truck body, especially adapted fro hauling light and bulky cargoes. Furnished with housetop rails and irons for tarpaulin protection and advertising purposes. Can be furnished with or without the cab.

“The Lamsteed Kampkar* - For Vacationists – For Campers – For Outdoor Honeymoon Tours

“The Lamsteed Kampkar - a special Busch-built body for campers, tourists, etc. - weighs less than a Ford sedan, yet can be quickly converted into a restful, convenient camp – anywhere. Provides ample seating room for six. Equipped with two wide, comfortable beds, six rain- and dust-proof lockers, compartments for water container, refrigerator, folding table, cooking and table utensils. Two people can mount this body, section by section, on a standard Model T Ford chassis in about two hours.

“Looks comfortable, doesn’t it? And it is! Four people can sleep in real comfort on these two beds, securely protected front, side and rear with water- and vapor-proof canvas. Just one of the many features which make touring in a Kampkar so enjoyable.

“All set for breakfast! Notice the convenient arrangements of beds, gasoline cooking outfit, table dishes, ice box, and sun shade. In five minutes two persons can make up the beds, put away the dishes and cooking utensils, and drive off across the country in the Kampkar.

“This is how the beds make up. The side partition folds down and provides space for the Marshall spring cushions which form the ‘mattress’. Notice the ample seating room provided on each side. The whole family can ride in comfort in the Kampkar without crowding.

“The Rancher - A Compact, Commodious Busch-built Body for Dodge, Chevrolet and Ford Chassis

“The Rancher Body is available in the straight utility and compact hunting and fishing types. The first is especially designed to meet the needs of country clubs, large estates and suburban and country homes; the latter for hunters and fisherman. Either can be driven through parks where commercial trucks can’t go.

“In both types eight passengers ride in real comfort. Removable seats provide plenty of leg-room, and added carrying capacity if desired.

“Deep, restful spring cushions provide downright comfort even over rough roads. Snugly fitted duck curtains with large, extra heavy celluloid lights afford cozy protection and good vision in bad weather.

“In the compact hunting and fishing types, disappearing compartments take duffel easily; galvanized containers carry furred or feathered game or iced fish in cleanliness and safety; a cork-line partitioned ice chest keeps foods fresh and inviting and beverages deliciously cold.

“Any Ford, Dodge or Chevrolet dealers will secure and mount a Rancher Body for you. Get in touch with the one nearest you.

“A.A.B. Horse Transport Bodies - An Indispensable Unit for Every Stable and Breeding Farm

“Months of careful training and conditioning are required to bring a thoroughbred to top form for an important race or show. Hours of patient grooming and constant exercising are necessary. But all the trainer’s efforts are wasted unless the horse reaches the show ring or race track without mishaps.

“A high-spirited horse needs protection even on a short haul to a local race track or horse show, or to a nearby railroad. A.A.B. Horse Transport Bodies, made in models for either one of two horses, provide that protection.

“They safeguard the nervous animal from the heavy traffic encountered on suburban roads and city streets – from the sudden cutting in of automobiles – from the crowding of curious and admiring passers-by. They eliminate the causes of sudden jumps and slips on hard pavements, which lead to splints, spavins, stocky legs and other serious ailments that render him unfit for showing or racing.

“Every convenience that will add to the horse’s comfort is provided. A ramp at the rear and the side assures easy entrance and exit. To enter, the horse is walked up the rear ramp; on arrival at the coliseum or track, he is walked down the side ramp. Ramp folds up out of the way inside the body when the transport is in motion.

“Standing between a front and rear bar, each covered with upholstered padding, and between pneumatic side pads, the horse is supported and protected against bad rubs and injury.

“There is a place for the groom to site where he can talk to his horse and quiet him while in transit. Ample space is provided for water tank, clothing, shelves, lockers and hay rack. Sufficient elasticity to absorb the jolts and jars of the road is assured by a floor of corkwood – a practical drainage system provides perfect sanitation.

“When not engage in transport work, these special Busch-built bodies can be used for general hauling on the farm, or as ambulances in an emergency. Thus, their three-fold usefulness makes them indispensable units for every stable and breeding farm.

“Busch-built Bus Bodies

“Used for short passenger hauls where train facilities are inadequate – for carrying children across long stretches of open country road to the school-house miles away – and to supplement the facilities of street cars, subways and elevated systems – buses with Busch-built bodies have added to human comfort, convenience and profit.

“Complete information and prices will be gladly furnished on request."

*Andy Dorris owns the prototype Lamsteed Kampkar which was constructed upon a Dorris chassis, a vehicle manufacturer founded by his grandfather George P. Dorris, Sr. The Lamsteed moniker was derived from the two St Louis businessmen who marketed the vehicle, Mssrs. Lambert and Steedman. The demonstrator was far too large to mount on a Model T so Anheuser-Busch utilized a 1919 Dorris chassis for that one vehicle, the significantly smaller production Kampkars utilized Ford Model T chassis.

© 2004 Mark Theobald - Coachbuilt.com with special thanks to Andy Dorris

<previous

 

 

 

 
   
 
Pictures
   
 
   
 
References

Ronald Jan Plavchan - A History of Anheuser-Busch, 1852-1933,‎ pub 1969, 1976

Time Magazine, Monday, Apr. 21, 1930 issue

Car Classics, June 1970 issue

www.anheuser-busch.com

G.N. Georgano & G. Marshall Naul - The Complete Encyclopedia of Commercial Vehicles

Albert Mroz - Illustrated Encyclopedia of American Trucks & Commercial Vehicles

George W. Green - Special-Use Vehicles: An Illustrated History of Unconventional Cars and Trucks

Daniel D. Hutchins - Wheels Across America: Carriage Art & Craftsmanship

Donald F. Wood - American Beer Trucks

Donald F. Wood - Beverage Trucks: Photo Archive

   
 
Extended Auto Warranties WarrantyDirect.com
Are you paying too much? Make sure your auto warranty covers your entire vehicle.

Car Shows CarShowNews.com
State by State directory of car shows; includes new car shows and classic auto events.

Auto Buying Guide SafeCarGuide.com
Paying too much? Use this step by step guide to help get the best deal on your next car.

Car Books, Models & Diecasts MotorLibrary.com
Your one stop shop for automotive books, models, die-casts & collectibles.

ADVERTISE 

   
 
Submit Pictures or Information

Original sources of information are given when available. Additional pictures, information and corrections are most welcome.

Click Here to submit pictures or information

   
 
 
 
Pictures Continued

<previous    
         


quicklinks|buses|cars|designers|fire apparatus|limos|pro-cars|taxis|trailers|trucks|woodies


© 2004-2012 Coachbuilt.com, Inc.|books|disclaimer|index|privacy