Martin-Wasp Corporation

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Martin-Wasp Corporation
legal form Corporation
founding 1919
resolution 1924
Seat Bennington , Vermont , USA
management Karl Hamlen Martin
Branch Automobiles

Wasp at the Bennington Museum
Wasp

Martin-Wasp Corporation was an American manufacturer of automobiles .

Company history

Karl Hamlen Martin was a bodybuilder in New York City . There were also ties to Roamer , Deering Magnetic and Kenworthy Motors Corporation . In the summer of 1919 he founded the company in Bennington , Vermont . In the same year the production of automobiles began. The brand name was Wasp . The first vehicle was presented in the lobby of the Hotel Commodore during the New York Automobile Show in January 1920. Douglas Fairbanks Sr. bought the vehicle, ostensibly for his bride, Mary Pickford . Five vehicles were built in 1921. At the end of 1922, the range of models was expanded. Now financial problems arose. Production ended in 1924. A total of 18 vehicles were built.

vehicles

The company made luxury cars that were very expensive. First there was the Model 211 . It had a four cylinder engine from the Wisconsin Motor Manufacturing Company . The T-head engine was specified with 72 hp . The chassis had a wheelbase of 345 cm , so it was very long. The body was called the Rickshaw Phaeton . It was a four-seater touring car in an extraordinary shape. The original price was initially 5,000 US dollars and 5,500 dollars from 1923.

Model 221 was added in 1923 . It had a six-cylinder engine from the Continental Motors Company . The engine of the type 6 T was specified with 70 hp. The wheelbase was lengthened to 366 cm. The structure was also an open touring car with four seats. The cars cost $ 10,000. Three vehicles were created from this.

A surviving vehicle is on display in the Bennington Museum . This vehicle with a six-cylinder engine was initially only created as a chassis. The client died so that the vehicle was not completed. It remained in the possession of Martin until 1954. Then it was bought by a collector from Ohio , who restored it for seven years and also made a body based on the original plans. It has been on display at the Bennington Museum since November 1982. It served as a wedding vehicle for Martin's grandson.

Model overview

year model cylinder Power ( hp ) Wheelbase (cm) construction
1920-1924 Model 211 4th 72 345 4-seater touring car
1923-1924 Model 221 6th 70 366 4-seater touring car

literature

  • Beverly Rae Kimes, Henry Austin Clark Jr .: Standard catalog of American Cars. 1805-1942. Digital edition . 3. Edition. Krause Publications, Iola 2013, ISBN 978-1-4402-3778-2 , pp. 1618 (English).
  • George Nicholas Georgano (Ed.): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile . Volume 3: P-Z . Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , pp. 1724-1725 (English).

Web links

Commons : Martin-Wasp Corporation  - Collection of images, videos, and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Beverly Rae Kimes, Henry Austin Clark Jr .: Standard catalog of American Cars. 1805-1942. Digital edition . 3. Edition. Krause Publications, Iola 2013, ISBN 978-1-4402-3778-2 , pp. 1618 (English).
  2. ↑ a b George Nicholas Georgano (Ed.): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile . Volume 3: P-Z . Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , pp. 1724-1725 (English).
  3. ^ Bennington Museum (accessed April 20, 2019)