The C.R. Patterson & Son Carriage Company of Greenfield, Ohio became the nation's, and the world's, first and only African-American founded and owned automobile manufacturing company. The company began as a manufacturer of horse drawn carriages and ended up as a manufacturer of buses for both urban transportation systems and rural school needs.
Last updated on Wednesday, February 10, 2010 (See bottom of page)
Article on Patterson's Car from AAOW, January, 2005
THE PATTERSON CAR
Mr. Charles Richard Patterson, founder of what was to become the world's first Black owned automobile manufacturing company.
The following brief history (and photos) of the Patterson Company appeared in the 1985 Greene Countrie Towne Festival program. Posted 1/26/2004 Click photos to enlarge. Greenfield holds a special place in the annals of automobile manufacturing, thanks to an ex-slave and his family. During the early part of this century, the Greene Countrie Towne was home to the only black-owned and operated automobile manufacturing enterprise known to have existed.
The head of this remarkable family was Charles (Rich) Patterson. He was born a slave on a West Virginia plantation and learned blacksmithing skills that would prove useful through-out his life.
In 1873 he went into partnership with a white man, J.P. Lowe. Patterson assumed sole ownership a decade later upon the death of his partner.
The C.R. Patterson Co. turned out 28 different types of horse-drawn vehicles. The product line included buggies, backboards, phaetons, rockaways and surreys — the era's most popular wagons.
Patterson and his wife, the former Josephine Qutz, were the parents of four children: Katherine, Dollie, Frederick Douglass, and Samuel. It was Fred who helped guide the company into the Automobile Age in the early 20th century.
Conflicting information has been published concerning the debut of the Patterson car, also known as the Greenfield touring car. One re-port states that the company was making cars in 1902, while another writer states that the Patterson-Greenfield made its debut on Sept. 23, 1915.
In any case, the touring cars and roadsters were said to be mechanically superior to the "Tin Lizzie" Model T produced by Henry Ford. Special features advertised by the firm included full floating rear axle, cantilever spring, de-mountable rims, left-hand drive, center control, electric starting and lighting system, one-man top, and ventilating windshield. "Our special motor has that surplus power and greatest pull," an ad boasted. "Try it on your test hill."
The autos were powered by four-cylinder Continental engines and were said to be capable of speeds of 50 mph. Both Patterson models were priced at about $850.
While entering the competitive world of auto manufacturing, the Patterson Co. continued to turn out wagons and advertise for farm repair work.
Few automobiles were manufactured. Production estimates range from 30 to about 150 cars.
Apparently there was a better market for custom-bodied vehicles, as Fred Patterson decided to cease production of the cars and concentrate his efforts on such products as buses, hearses, moving vans, and trucks for hauling ice, milk and baked goods.
For a time this strategy proved quite successful. Patterson buses were the first to travel the streets of Cincinnati, and other vehicles were shipped as far away as Haiti. The Patterson Co. was one of the first to manufacture two-wheeled trailers in the mid-1930's.
The combination of Detroit's mass production and the Depression dealt a fatal blow to the company in the 1930's. Unable to raise sufficient operating capital in Greenfield, the family accepted an offer to relocate in Gallipolis. The firm changed its name to the Gallia Body Co. and operated there for about a year before lack of financial support and a shortage of experienced workers caused the firm to cease operations.
Only in recent years has the Patterson family received much notice for its remarkable achievements in the manufacture of motorized vehicles. An exhibit in Philadelphia and a salute during Black History Month a few years ago have helped alert others to the remarkable accomplishments of former slave C.R. Patterson and his son, Fred.
Unfortunately, few examples of the company's craftsmanship have survived to the present day. Apparently none of the motorized vehicles survived locally, although in her book Hills of Highland, county historian Elsie J. Ayres reports that on a western vacation in 1962, "the Ayreses were surprised to find a Patterson car, made in Greenfield, Ohio, in a place of honor in the Pioneer Auto Museum at Murdo, South Dakota. It was sitting gracefully between a 1902 Schaact and a 1913 Spacke, a Cycle car." (Editor's Note: This report has proven to be inaccurate. The auto was a Peterson and not a Patterson.)
A few of the Patterson horse-drawn wagons still can be found in this part of the country, and many area residents still hold fond memories of the Pattersons and their unique vehicles. Click photos to enlarge.
This article about Greenfield's Frederick Douglas Patterson and the Patterson automobile appeared in a black history special edition published by African-Americans On Wheels in the winter of 1996. The author was Reginald Larrie, PhD., a Detroit-based automotive writer and historian.FORGOTTEN FACES; Black Automaker Among Early Trailblazers
By Reginald Larrie
“A customer can have a car any color he or she wants so long as it is black!” Henry Ford
Frederick Douglas Patterson would have certainly agreed with those words. For Patterson, one of the nation’s few black automobile manufacturers, realized that black was the only color he could count on.
Frederick’s story began years before he built his first car with his father Charles “Rich” Patterson. One of the wealthiest men in his hometown, Patterson senior was the owner of the C.R. Patterson and Sons Carriage Company of Greenfield, Ohio.
He was born into slavery to Charles and Nancy Patterson on a Virginia plantation in April 1833. He later became a blacksmith by trade. According to reports, just before the Civil War in 1861, he fled from slavery by crossing the Virginia Allegheny Mountains, hiking through West Virginia and crossing the chilling Ohio River waters. He eventually made it to the friendly town of Greenfield, apparently an important station along the Underground Railroad.
Because of his master craftsman skills, Patterson immediately got a job at the Dines and Simpson Carriage and Coach Makers Company. Within a few years he had been promoted to foreman and later formed a partnership with J.P. Lowe, creating a carriage building company that was noted for its expert craftsmanship and high quality.
He married the former Josephine Qutz and the couple had four children: Katherine, Dollie, Frederick Douglas and Samuel. By the time the youngest Samuel came along, Patterson was already successful. He had bought out his white partner and had started building the most popular carriages of the day.
Patterson gave his boys the best education possible. Frederick was the first African American to graduate from a local high school, and the following year he entered Ohio State University (OSU), where he was the first black to play on the school’s football team.
After three years, Frederick left OSU to teach in Kentucky, but only remained there for two years, before returning home to his first love – the family carriage business.
Soon after his arrival, however, his father died, leaving the young teacher and various relatives to operate the company.
In search of more business, Frederick decided to accompany his sales manager C.W. Napper, on his route one day. As they traveled, he began to notice more and more of those “funny-looking horseless” carriages on the road. He immediately reported his findings to the company’s board.
“In 1902, there was one car to 65,000 people and by 1909 there was one vehicle for every 800 people and with those kinds of figures … I believe it’s time for us to build a Patterson horseless carriage,” he said.
Frederick’s plan was bold. He wanted to build a vehicle that could compete against any car on the market by being more comfortable and easy to drive.
Within two weeks, the factory began the transition to build the Patterson-Greenfield
Motorcar. On September 23, 1915, young Patterson saw his dream roll off the line – an awkward looking two-door coupe.
Word about the new vehicle swept across the state like a brush fire. Some of those who saw the vehicle claimed it came with a 40 horsepower Continental 4-cylinder engine; reported top speed of nearly 50 mph and had better bodywork than the “Tin Lizzie” being made up in Detroit by some fellow named “Ford.” (Of course, by this time, Henry Ford was well on the way to becoming one of the largest automobile producers in the world.)
The Patterson-Greenfield was priced at $850.00. It came in two models; a roadster and a big four-door touring car.
However, the venture was short-lived because of a lack of capital and slow sales. Frederick turned his attention to producing school bus bodies for which there was a great demand.
In 1939, the company finally closed its big wooden doors. Most believe that Charles “Rich” Patterson would have been saddened, but very proud to know that his name on a product still meant the highest standard of quality possible.
Later, when grandson Postell Patterson was asked what happened to his grandfather’s company, he simply said, “Well, I guess Detroit got to be just too much for us.”
(Note:) Reports that a Patterson-Greenfield car is on display in the Pioneer Auto Museum in Murdo, South Dakota are not correct. The car on display is a “Peterson” which was made in Michigan. If you check the body, you will see the difference. The P-G has a rounded hood and smaller headlights, etc.
(Special thanks to Katherine Wilson Patterson, the late Postell Patterson and the many town’s people of Greenfield and Gallipolis, Ohio.)
Replies