| Notes |
- Schmedlen's Carriage Works was located at 23 to 25 Hanchett Street, Coldwater, Michigan.
"The Dream Maker, William C. Durant, Founder of General Motors", by Bernard A. Weisberger:
Durant's destiny was at an intersection, too. It was disguised as his friend, John Alger, who worked at Jim Bussey's hardware store. Destiny, in this unlikely manifestation, was waving at him from the seat of a two-wheeled cart, offering him a lift.
Gratefully, he climbed in. The cart was simple, little more than a modified sulky. It's four-foot wheels held between them a simple seat, barely twenty-four inches wide, a tight fit for two adult bottoms, surrounded by a low iron bar for hanging on. The passenger's and driver's feet rested on a curved, slatted footboard. The whole thing resembled a ferris wheel's chair, brought down to earth. But when Durant squeezed himself in, and the horse was giddupped into a trot, he made a pleasant discovery. The seat swayed easily up and down and side to side, with none of the hard bouncing and shaking that usually went with a ride in a light vehicle.
When they dismounted, Durant made a quick examination, and discovered the secret in a beautifully simple idea. It was all in the mounting of the seat on the springs. They were half-elliptical, curving forward from the rear axle like old-fashioned pistols fastened by their butts. At the top of the "barrels" were horseshoe-shaped stirrups, through which the shafts ran. It rode up and down with the flexing steel, but the stirrups moved freely around the shafts, so
that none of their vibration was felt.
Durant was entranced. The cart was slight, graceful-looking, smooth-riding, and above all, so simple that it was clearly inexpensive to make. It would be an ideal form of individual transportation for short distances. In his mind was an idea that he had not yet put into words: the inspired salesman should look for a self-seller, and if he could not find one, make one. He saw himself selling the cart to young men of modest means, showing them at how little cost they could be borne swiftly, comfortably on necessary
errands, or on the pursuit of legitimate relaxation. And he knew at that moment that the demand he could create for the cart would be so great that no one of lesser clairvoyance than himself could be trusted to take the risks necessary to fill it. He would be manufacturer as well as salesman.
He found out from John Alger that the cart had been made in Coldwater, some seventy-five miles away. His other affairs pushed aside, he got on the local train the very next day, spent the night at Coldwater's hotel, and on the following morning poked his head inside the door pointed out to him as belonging to the cart "factory" of William Schmedlen and Thomas O'Brien. He was comforted at once by the familiar smell of shavings. He was in the carpenter shop. Around him were unfinished spokes, shafts, and seat boards. From another room in the back he could hear the clanking of hammers. That would be where the blacksmiths were working on bolts, springs, fittings. That was all. There was no office. The plant, he judged quickly, looked as if it might turn out two carts a day.
He found O'Brien, pleasant-faced and fiftyish, among the carpenters. To him, he explained softly, quickly, why he was there. He had ridden in their cart, liked it "immensely", thought it had a "wonderful future." He had very little money, but wanted to buy a small interest in the concern.
O'Brien listened thoughtfully, and answered. They did not need another partner, he was sure, but they might be willing to sell the whole outfit. But Schmedlen ought to be asked. He stepped back into the blacksmiths' room and returned with a young man whom Durant immediately found likable - alert and self-confident, like himself. Perched on a carpenter's bench, he chatted with them awhile, then asked: "If the business is for sale, what is the price?"
They were possibly surprised by the quickness of the question, but obviously required no elaborate accounting to come up with the answer. For $1,500 anyone could take away everything - finished and unfinished carts, lumber and parts on hand, dies and patterns. Schmedlen held the patent on the spring-and-stirrup combination, and wanted a royalty, but Durant said no to that, and got his way. Then he made his proposal, directly and without hesitation or bluff. He did not have the money. But he thought he could raise it, if they would give him some time. Let them all step over to the office of Schmedlen and O'Brien's attorney and draw up a bill of sale and an assignment of patent, and deposit them in the partnership's bank. He would leave for Flint immediately. If the funds were not in the Schmedlen and O'Brien account in five days, the deal was off. Durant-Dort Carriage Company 1886-1917 Originally known as the Flint Road Cart Company, the Durant-Dort Carriage Company became the largest producer of carriages in the country and most likely in the world. Soon after this, the co-founders, William Crapo Durant & Josiah Dallas Dort went on to
found General Motors.
Photo Credit: The Flint Journal
"Dort Went From Carts to Autos," Flint Journal, November 22, 1954. Gustin, Lawrence R. "Historical board urges national recognition of old Durant office," Flint Journal, September 18, 1974 B1. (1) Gustin, Lawrence R. " GM 'Birthplace' gets U.S. Honor," Flint Journal, January 8, 1976 B1 Lethbridge, Alice G. "Old Letters Recall Era of Carriage," Flint Journal, March 6, 1973 Sec.3 pg.29 Researched by: Clement 8/98
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1857 - 1944 (87 years)
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