COMPANY

In 1913, August and Fred Duesenberg founded the Duesenberg Automobile & Motor Company Inc., in Des Moines, Iowa.

The Duesenberg brothers founded the company to produce sports cars. They were born in Kirchheide, Germany, later settling in America. Their engineering skills were self-taught and they built many cars that were experimental.

The company was considered a luxury car company, and was in active operation in the period 1913-1937.

The Duesenberg automobiles were built completely by hand and were of such high quality that they were considered the best cars of that era. The car was nicknamed "Duesy" by many. Jimmy Murphy was the first American driver to win the French Grand Prix when he drove to victory in Le Mans in a Duesenberg.

Eddie Rickenbacker drove a Duesenberg to a 10th place finish at the 1914 Indianapolis 500. The races in 1924 and 1925 were won by a Duesenberg, and this make of car won again in 1927. The company made a short-lived venture into the aviation industry with a commission from Colonel R.C. Bolling to manufacture aviation engines. The license required them to build the Bugatti U-16 for the United States military but the end of World War I put an end to the project before it got started.

The brothers sold their factories in New Jersey and Minnesota to John Willys, while they established a new base in Indianapolis. They were now established to start building passenger cars and their factory was located on a 17-acre property until 1937.

Their first model of car was the Duesenberg Model A. The Duesenberg brothers were engineers of world-class caliber, but they were not very good at business or administration. As a result they were not able to sell all the units of the Model A that were produced. The Model A was a very expensive car for the time and only the wealthy could afford it, with prices starting at $6,500. This car was the fastest car of the time and had many advanced features such as four-wheel hydraulic brakes. Celebrities of the time who purchased this car included Rudolph Valentino and Tom Mix.

There were various delays getting the car to market and it was not delivered until 1921. The sales were not very promising and the factory struggled to manufacture the cars. The plan called for the company to produce 100 cars each month but it was only managing to produce one a day. In 1922, only 150 cars were produced and only 650 were ever sold in a period of six years. Another Duesenberg, the Model X, was extremely fast and could reach speeds up to 100 mph. There were only 13 ever built. Jay Leno owns one of the five known remaining cars.

In 1926 the company was bought by E.L Cord because he was interested in the brothers' engineering skills, and he wanted to produce luxury cars. The company now became known as Duesenberg Inc. To answer the need for a luxury car the Duesenberg Model J was developed. It was considered the most luxurious and elegant car ever created at the time. The Model J quickly became a status symbol in the United States as well as Europe. Many famous people such as Clark Gable, Howard Hughes and Al Capone, had their own Model J. The cars were very expensive and the basic models were priced from $13,000-$19.000. The release of the Model J coincided with the Depression time, and the only reason the company was kept alive was because of the Model J's popularity with Hollywood stars. Around 378 of the Model Js built between the years of 1928-1937 are known to survive.

In 1937 the company closed its doors for good after E.L Cord's financial empire was destroyed.