Charles Duryea
Charles Duryea (left) with J.Frank Duryea
Personal information
Nationality	United States
Birth date	December 15, 1861
Birth place	Canton, Illinois
Date of death	September 28, 1938
Place of death	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Work

Charles Edgar Duryea (December 15, 1861 – September 28, 1938) was a manufacturer of motor vehicles. He was born near Canton, Illinois, the son of George Washington Duryea and Louisa Melvina Turner. He died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.^[1]

Charles Duryea and his brother Frank (1869 – 1967) were bicycle makers in Washington, D.C., and later in Chicopee, Massachusetts. In 1893, they tested their first gasoline-powered automobile model and in 1896 established a company, the Duryea Motor Wagon Company, to build the Duryea model automobile, the first auto ever commercially manufactured^[2]. Charles Duryea sought out investors and buyers while his brother, Frank Duryea, primarily handled the mechanical side of the business.^[3] The previous year, their vehicle, driven by brother Frank, had won a race in Evanston, Illinois, against cars mostly made in Germany.

One of their early cars was involved in the first known auto accident. Due to low production and sales, the company stopped manufacturing around 1914, but the name Duryea is associated with automobile pioneers.^[2]

[edit] References

1. ^ May, George W.Charles E. Duryea, Automaker, (1973).
2. ^ ^{a b} Berkbile, Don. The 1893 Duryea Automobile, (1964).
3. ^ "Duryeas First but It Didn't Last", Automotive News. News Pg. 3 February 26, 1996

“Duryeas First but It Didn’t Last”, Automotive News. News Pg. 3. February 26, 1996. May, George W. Charles E. Duryea, Automaker, (1973).

Berkbile, Don. The 1893 Duryea Automobile, (1964).

[edit] External links

• World's Greatest Cars - Duryea Motor Wagon
• Duryea: The Peoria Years
• Charles Duryea at Find a Grave

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