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Frederick Douglas Patterson | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 17, 1871 Greenfield, Ohio, US |
| Died | January 18, 1932 (aged 60) |
| Other names | Fred Patterson |
| Employer | C.R. Patterson and Sons |
| Known for | First African American car manufacturer |
| Children | 2 |
| Father | Charles Richard Patterson |
Frederick Douglas Patterson (1871 – 1932) was an American entrepreneur, known for running the family business, C.R. Patterson and Sons, and he is the creator of the Patterson-Greenfield automobile of 1915.
While in college at Ohio State University, he was the first African American to play on its football team. He returned to Greenfield, Ohio to join his father in his carriage business, which became C.R. Patterson and Sons. The younger man saw opportunity in the new horseless carriages, and converted the company in the early 1900s to manufacture automobiles, making 150 of them. Later he shifted to making buses and trucks, and renamed his company as Greenfield Bus Body Company.