How Your Hobby Started Part VIII

By now you may be wondering why all this dissertation on the Duryea horseless carriage and where it had any connection with Waterloo. In 1906 the Waterloo Motor Works advertised as follows: 'Manufacturers of the Famous Duryea Automobile Gasoline Engines'. So not only one, but two of the famous early automobile engines and cars were made in the city of Waterloo.

Another manufacturing company came into being in 1896 at Waterloo, known as the Associated Manufacturing Company. It was founded by W. W. Marsh, President and Treasurer and H. B. Plumb was the Vice-President and

Secretary. Their first product was a hand-operated cream separator, which was very well accepted and for which the company was known for many years. With this success they went into the gasoline engine business and built engines from 1 ³/₄ hp. to 25 hp.

With an attractive advertising slogan, they built the 'Iowa Oversized Engines' and 'The Hired Man Engine'. They claimed these to be the 'longest-lived engines manufactured'. This company continued in business until 1946 when purchased by the Hamilton Engine Company of Chicago, but continued to operate under the Associated name until they went out of business a few years ago-

Several other companies of which little history is obtainable were also located in Waterloo. The Litchfield Manufacturing Company was established in 1903 by H. L. and C. E. Litchfield. They had been active in Webster City, Iowa where they started in 1879. Their corn pickers, wagons, manure spreaders and tractor trailers had made their reputation over much of our country.

In 1911 they built a very interesting engine. There were only a few of these single cylinder vertical air-cooled engines made by the company, as it seems they had trouble with patent rights.

A 40-62 Huber Tractor which made its first show this past year at the Central States Thresherman's Reunion. It takes a lot of time and work to overhaul, clean and paint this machinery and then it's another thing to take care of it thereafter -one thing, I do have a nice big shed to store my equipment.

I am indebted to our good readers, Mr. and Mrs. Claude Knudson of Gulley, Minnesota for an excellent colored picture of one of the beautifully restored Litchfield engines. This was the mystery engine that Claude Knudson tried for fourteen years to learn the name of the manufacturer. GEM readers came to his assistance and the Museum at Waterloo furnished the rest of the missing links, so now the engine is properly catalogued among engine collectors. I understand this is a six cycle engine, which adds even more to the value of this antique. Are there any other six cycle engines in existence?

Besides the engine manufacturers already mentioned in Waterloo, there was The Dart Manufacturing Co. headed by Charles W. Hellen and it was part of the Galloway enterprises. In 1914 this company was incorporated as the Dart Motor Truck Company.