This Day in Auto History 3.6.1929 David Dunbar Buick died of colon cancer, impoverished and forgotten, in Harper Hospital, Detroit. Only a few weeks earlier, at the age of 74, Buick was still working as an inspector at Detroits trade school. David Buick founded the company that grew into the General Motors Corporation of America, one of the mightiest car-making empires in the world. Millions of cars bearing his name and crest have rolled off production lines, yet he was involved in making only 120 of them. A former bathtub manufacturer, David Buick sold his first car in 1904. Only a few months later, William C. Durant, the eventual founder of General Motors, took control of the company. Durant raised $1.5 million to refinance Buicks starved coffers. He reportedly sold over a half million dollars of stock in a day. Using his contacts in the carriage business, Durant established an extensive distribution network. By 1908, the Buick Motor Company, based in Flint, Michigan, sold more cars than any auto maker in prior history. After working for several years under Durant, David Buick left the Buick Motor Company in 1908. At the time the penniless Buick died, the Buick Motor Company had sold over two million cars and had made William C. Durant one of the most powerful men in the U.S. auto industry. Some sources say the death occurred on March 3, some say March 5, and other list March 6, showing how obscure and anonymous David Buick had become.
Posted on: Thu, 06 Mar 2014 12:30:02 +0000
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