HistoryLink.org

On January 8, 1900, six months before the first auto arrives in Seattle, The Seattle Times announces the plan "of some Boston capitalists" to build an automobile manufacturing plant in the city ("To Build Automobiles"). George O. Dumphy, who says he and his brother own an auto factory in Boston, is in Seattle to explore the possibility of establishing a plant there. Nothing will come of the proposal.

Dream of the Steam-Powered Auto

Dumphy said that the Seattle factory would build carriages powered by steam, which he called (not entirely accurately, given the ongoing development of gasoline engines) "the most modern method" ("To Build Automobiles"). He announced plans to start with a modest plant, costing about $15,000, which would produce 25 vehicles per month and employ 30 people. Automobiles produced in the Seattle plant were to be distributed across the country "west of St. Paul and as far south as the Mexican border" ("To Build Automobiles").

Nothing ever came of this proposal. The first auto to arrive in Seattle was an electric-powered vehicle.

Sources:

"To Build Automobiles: Eastern Men Will Have a Factory in Seattle," The Seattle Times, January 8, 1900, p. 8.
Note: This entry was revised on August 3, 2018.

Licensing: This essay is licensed under a Creative Commons license that encourages reproduction with attribution. Credit should be given to both HistoryLink.org and to the author, and sources must be included with any reproduction. Click the icon for more info. Please note that this Creative Commons license applies to text only, and not to images. For more information regarding individual photos or images, please contact the source noted in the image credit.

Major Support for HistoryLink.org Provided By: The State of Washington | Patsy Bullitt Collins | Paul G. Allen Family Foundation | Museum Of History & Industry | 4Culture (King County Lodging Tax Revenue) | City of Seattle | City of Bellevue | City of Tacoma | King County | The Peach Foundation | Microsoft Corporation, Other Public and Private Sponsors and Visitors Like You