Antique Trucks - Territorial Magazine

Photographs and Captions by Lee Young, Historian for ATHS.By Barbara OringderffOur fascinating antique trucks photographs andcaptions were provided by Lee Young, historian for theAmerican Truck Historical Society (ATHS). The ZoeJames Memorial Library, located at the ATHS headquartersbuilding in Kansas City, Missouri, boasts a collectionof over 100,000 photographs, 35,000 pieces of sales literature,45,000 books and periodicals, all about trucks!The society has a collection of scale model trucks.Incorporated in 1971, the ATHS was formed to preservethe history of trucks, the trucking industry, and itspioneers, and the association currently has 21,000 members.In 1980, the society added an antique truck show,which is open to the public. This show has grown from23 trucks in 1980 to over 1,000 trucks, fire apparatus,buses and RV’s, military and special interest vehicles.The ATHS show is held in a different city each year, andin 2008 was held at the Kansas State Fair grounds inHutchinson.Members of the Wheat State chapter of ATHS, whichmeets in Newton, KS, were hosts for the awesome ATHSShow that was held in Hutchinson, and they hope tobring the KTHS National show back to Kansas (hopefullyDodge City) in the next few years. The 2012 KTHS Nationalshow will be held in Yakima, WA, and the 2013 show inSpringfield, MO.Circa 1938 Fageol.Fageols were built in Oakland, CA from 1916to 1939. Always a progressive company, theypioneered the use of aluminum componentsin heavy trucks and would play a role in thelater Peterbilt and Freightliner trucks. Thedistinctive louvers down the center of thehood were used throughout their production.Model 260 Peterbilt, circa 1940.Peterbilt was created when Washingtonlumberman T. A. Peterman, bought theFageol Truck Co. in 1939. Although muchof the early production were tandem axletrucks built for the lumber industry, themodel pictured was built for highway use.In 1958 the company was bought by thePacific Car and Foundry Company.Freightliners being assembled, circa 1947.During the 1930s Consolidated Freightways President LelandJames began searching for a lightweight truck. The company firstmodified Fageol trucks before designing their own trucks from theground up in 1940. In 1941 the name Freightliner was created. Thetrucks were built exclusively for Consolidated until 1948.42 TERRITORIAL MAGAZINE42

Model 523 Kenworth, 1945.Kenworth was born when Edgar Worthington and HarryKent took control of the Gersix Manufacturing Co. of Seattle,WA. in 1923. Primarily a West Coast truck with strong ties tothe logging industry, they were bought by the Pacific Car andFoundry Co. in 1945. During the ‘50s and ‘60s the companymoved eastwards with plants in Missouri and Tennessee.Model WA26 White, 1941,in front of the Kansas City, MO dealership. .The White Motor Co., of Cleveland, OH began in 1900, producingsteam powered vehicles. They introduced their firstgasoline powered truck in 1910. The company would becomeone of America’s premiere truck builders until 1981, whenafter nearly three decades of questionable acquisitions andpoor cash flow the company slid into bankruptcy. Volvo Corp.bought the manufacturing assets.TERRITORIAL MAGAZINE43

L – 400 series International, circa 1951Introduced in 1950, this model was built at the Emeryville,CA plant. Like the previous W model, this was International’sattempt to compete with Peterbilt and Kenworth on the WestCoast. This particular truck has Cummins diesel power. The Lseries was replaced in 1954 by the R series.LT model Mack, 1954The LT model was Mack’s entry into the West Coastmarket. Built from 1947 to 1956, many Mack fansconsider it to be the finest looking Mack ever built.Model TX6 Moreland, circa 1925Based in Burbank, CA, Morelands were built from 1911 to1941. They may have produced the first truck in which bothrear axles were driven. From sales of 1000 units in 1929, productionwould dwindle to 30 – 40 trucks per year. By 1941 thecompany had stopped building trucks and became a parts andservice operation. In 1949 the company was bought by theCook Brothers.44 TERRITORIAL MAGAZINE44