Detroit Automobile Company

Detroit Automobile Company
FoundedAugust 5, 1899; 125 years ago (1899-08-05)
DefunctNovember 20, 1901 (1901-11-20)
FateReorganized
SuccessorHenry Ford Company
HeadquartersDetroit, Michigan

The Detroit Automobile Company (DAC) was an early American automobile manufacturer founded on August 5, 1899, in Detroit, Michigan.[1] It was the first venture of its kind in Detroit.[2] Automotive mechanic Henry Ford attracted the financial backing of twelve investors; Detroit Mayor William Maybury, William H. Murphy and others. As with many early car ventures, the company floundered, and it was dissolved in January 1901.[1] Twenty vehicles were built and $86,000 ($2.61 million in 2019) of investment was lost.[3][4]

  1. ^ a b Bryan, Ford R., The Birth of Ford Motor Company, Henry Ford Heritage Association, archived from the original on April 15, 2013, retrieved May 23, 2008
  2. ^ "Months past (an account of Henry Ford's first automobile factory)", History Today, vol. 49, no. 8, p. 50, August 1999
  3. ^ Cabadas, Joe (2004), River Rouge: Ford's Industrial Colossus, MotorBooks/MBI Publishing, p. 17, ISBN 0-7603-1708-9
  4. ^ Weiss, H. Eugene (2003), Chrysler, Ford, Durant, and Sloan: Founding Giants of the American Automotive Industry, McFarland, pp. 7–9, ISBN 0-7864-1611-4