August Duesenberg
August Samuel Duesenberg | |
---|---|
Nationality | American |
Occupation(s) | Early automobile manufacturer and racer |
Known for | Duesenberg automobile |
Awards | Motorsports Hall of Fame |
August Samuel Duesenberg (December 12, 1879 – January 18, 1955) was a German-born American
In 1913 the brothers founded the
Early life and education
August "Augie" Samuel Düsenberg was born on December 12, 1879, in Kirchheide,
Marriage and family
August Duesenberg married Gertrude Pike of Garner, Iowa, in 1906. They had two children, a son, Frederick P. "Fritz" Duesenberg, and a daughter, Dorothy Duesenberg. Fritz Duesenberg died in 1974 and is buried at Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis, Indiana.[3][4]
Career
Early years
In the 1890s, Augie Duesenberg began building and racing
In 1906, Augie's brother, Fred, met Edward Mason, an Iowa lawyer who provided the brothers with financing to manufacture cars. The business was incorporated the
Around 1910 Augie and Fred Duesenberg began working on their "walking beam" four-cylinder engine, which the
Early auto racing
The Duesenberg brothers began racing bicycles and motorcycles in the 1890s and turned to auto racing after the turn of the twentieth century. Along with other automobile makers, they used the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as a test track for their cars. Duesenberg entries participated in Indianapolis 500-mile auto races for nearly twenty years, and were especially active between 1912 and 1932, when Augie served as the team's supervisor and chief mechanic. The first Duesenberg entry in the Indianapolis 500-mile race occurred in 1912. Although their Mason Motor Company-owned racer practiced for the race, it had a mechanical failure and did not compete.[3][7]
Between 1913 and 1916, the Duesenberg racing team gradually improved its standings in the annual Indianapolis 500-mile race. In the 1913 race, the team took ninth place in the race. In the 1914 race, Eddie Rickenbacker, the future World War I aviation ace, drove a Duesenberg-powered racecar to a tenth-place finish and US$1,400 in prize money.[8] The Duesenberg team also had a twelfth-place finisher that year. In the 1915 race the team took fifth and seventh places, and in the 1916 race rookie driver Wilbur D'Alene finished in second place.[9] Racing at the Indianapolis 500-mile race went on hiatus in 1917 and 1918, when efforts focused on wartime production during World War I.[10] When Indianapolis 500-mile auto races resumed in 1919, the Duesenberg team had mechanical and fuel issues and its entries did not finish the race that year, but the team had better success in the 1920s.[10]
World War I-era engine manufacturer
In 1917 the Duesenberg Motor Company of Saint Paul, Minnesota, and the Loew-Victor Manufacturing Company of Chicago, Illinois, merged into the Duesenberg Motor Corporation. Fred Duesenberg was its chief engineer and Augie Duesenberg was assistant engineer. The Loew-Victor Company arranged to produce aviation and marine engines for military use for the American, British, Italian, and Russian governments during World War I. A new factory in Elizabeth, New Jersey, was constructed especially for this purpose and the two brothers moved to New York City in 1917 to supervise operations at the new factory.[11][12]
During the war, the Duesenberg brothers' experience with the
1920s-era carmaker
While continuing to develop the racing engines in Indianapolis, Augie and Fred Duesenberg along with other financial backers established the
A minor shareholder unsuccessfully attempted to put the company into receivership in 1923, and slow sales led the company into receivership in 1924. A year after it emerged from receivership in 1925, the company's leadership was discussing a merger with
Racing team supervisor
Augie Duesenberg supervised and directed the Duesenberg Brothers racing team from a shop across the street from the company's factory, while Fred focused on designing high-end passenger cars for Duesenberg, now a subsidiary of the Cord Corporation. However, the two brothers continued to work together in the development of their American-built racing car business.
Duesenberg racers continued to improve their performance and dominated the annual Indianapolis 500-mile races in the 1920s. In 1920 Tommy Milton and Jimmy Murphy won third and fourth places in Duesenberg racers in that year's Indianapolis 500. The field for the race in 1921 included eight Duesenberg-built racecars. The Duesenberg team car, driven by Roscoe Sarles, finished in second place. Duesenberg-built race cars took eight of the first ten places in Indianapolis 500-mile race in 1922, including the winning car, driven by Murphy, and the second-place finisher, driven by rookie Harry Hartz.[21][22][23] The Indianapolis 500 in 1923 was a low point for the Duesenberg team. Wade Morton, the Duesenberg team driver, started twenty-fourth in the field, but finished in tenth place.[24] Duesenberg-built racers won three out of the four Indianapolis 500-mile races between 1924 and 1927. Driver Lora L. Corum and relief driver Joe Boyer won the race in 1924; driver Pete DePaolo and relief driver Norman Batten won the race in 1925;[20] and George Sanders won the race in 1927 in a Duesenberg-built car owned by Bill White.[25][26] Driving a Duesenberg racer in 1925, DePaolo became the first Indianapolis 500-mile winner to average more than 100 miles per hour (160 km/h).[20] In the 1926 race DePaulo finished in fifth place in a rain-shortened race, while the other Duesenberg team car, driven by rookie driver Ben Jones, experienced mechanical problems and crashed before the end of the race. The Duesenberg team continued to place in the top-ten in the 1928 and 1929 Indianapolis 500-mile races. In the 1928 race Fred Frame drove a Duesenberg racer to an eighth-place finish, while Jimmy Gleason drove a Duesenberg team car to a fifteenth-place finish. In the 1929 race the team's results improved with Gleason taking third and Freddie Winnai finishing in fifth place.[25]
In 1930 the Duesenberg brothers split their racing operations with Augie naming his business A. S. Duesenberg Racing. The result was a total of eight Duesenberg-built racers entered in the Indianapolis 500 in 1930. The only Duesenberg racer to finish the race that year was driven by Bill Cummings, who took fifth place. Thirteen cars in the 1931 race were based on the Duesenberg Model A. Fred Frame drove Augie Duesenberg's ex-team car to a second-place finish, while Fred Duesenberg's two entries, driven by Jimmy Gleason and Ernie Triplett, finished sixth and seventh, respectively.[27][28] Augie was also the designer and builder of a Duesenberg chassis for an entry in the 1931 race that was powered by a diesel engine from the Cummins Engine Company. Dave Evans, who became the first person to complete the race without making any pit stops, drove the car to a thirteenth-place finish.[20] Duesenbergs faded from the top of the leaderboard beginning with the 1932 Indianapolis 500, when Duesenberg racers captured seventh-, eighth-, and ninth-place finishess with drivers Ira Hall, Freddie Winnai, and Billy Winn, respectively.[27]
Although the Duesenberg Brothers racing business dissolved after Fred Duesenberg's death in an automobile accident in July 1932, Augie Duesenberg continued to build racecars on his own.[29] Joe Russo drove the Duesenberg-built "Wonder Bread Special" to a seventeenth-place finish in the 1933 Indianapolis 500. Russo's Duesenberg-built racer for the 1934 Indianapolis 500, the last year that the Duesenbergs were major contenders, finished in fifth place.[27] In addition to his racing car business, which continued into the 1930s, Augie Duesenberg built two marine racing engines for Horace D. Dodge in 1926. He also built mechanical lap-counting equipment for auto races.[30]
Beginning in 1934 Augie Duesenberg built the first of three speed-setting racers with Ab Jenkins. Between August 6 and August 30, 1935, Jenkins set a 24-hour speed record of 135.47 miles per hour (218.02 km/h) in the "Mormon Meteor", a Duesenberg-based racer, on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. Jenkins and the racer also set a one-hour speed record of 152.145 miles per hour (244.854 km/h).[20][31]
Later years
During the tough economic times of the
In 1940, Augie Duesenberg and his nephew, Wesley Duesenberg, formed Duesenberg Model Company to manufacture miniature racecars. During
Death and legacy
Duesenberg died of a heart attack at his rural home near Indianapolis on January 18, 1955, at the age of seventy-five.[34][20] His remains are interred at Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis.[35]
Augie Duesenberg and his brother, Fred, were cofounders of the Duesenberg Motor Company in 1913, and the Duesenberg Automobiles and Motor Company in 1920; however, Augie was not involved in the Indianapolis-based automaker's production of luxury passenger cars.[3][16] Instead, he focused on the Duesenberg Brothers racing business and hand-built American race cars. Duesenberg-built racers set speed records at Daytona Beach, Florida, in 1920, won the French Grand Prix in 1921, and won three Indianapolis 500-mile races (1924, 1925, and 1927), as well as setting one-hour and 24-hour speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah in 1935.[20]
Honors and awards
- Inducted into the Auto Racing Hall of Fame (later renamed Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame) in 1963.[36]
- Inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1990.[37]
- Inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America[38] in 2019.
See also
- Duesenberg
- Duesenberg Model A
- Duesenberg Straight-8 engine
- Stutz Motor Company
Notes
- ^ ISBN 978-0-87195-387-2.)
{{cite book}}
:|author=
has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - ^ a b Moore, George (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: They Always Called Him Augie: August S. Duesenberg". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 16.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Marsh, Elisabeth, "Frederick S. Duesenberg" in Giles R. Hoyt, ed. (September 10, 2014). emigrated Immigrant Entrepreneurship: German-American Business Biographies, 1720 to the Present. Vol. 3. German Historical Institute. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
{{cite book}}
: Check|url=
value (help) - ISBN 9780871953018.
- ^ a b c Ema, Randy (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: The Man Behind the Machine: Friedrich S. Duesenberg". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 7–8.
- ^ Gugin and St. Clair, eds., pp. 105–6.
- ^ "Indianapolis 500: May 30, 1912". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ "Indianapolis 500: May 30, 1914". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ Freeman, Joseph S., and James G. O'Keefe (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: Out of the Crucible: A Racing History". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 83–85.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b Freeman and O'Keefe, pp. 86–88.
- ^ a b c d e Gugin and St. Clair, eds., p. 106.
- ^ Ema, "Duesenberg: The Man Behind the Machine: Friedrich S. Duesenberg," p. 9.
- ^ Roe, Fred (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: It All Began with "A": The First Passenger Cars". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 31.
- ^ Roe, pp. 26–28.
- ^ Ema, "Duesenberg: The Man Behind the Machine: Friedrich S. Duesenberg," p. 12.
- ^ a b c d Gugin and St. Clair, eds., p. 107.
- ^ Ema, "Duesenberg: The Man Behind the Machine: Friedrich S. Duesenberg," pp. 11–12. See also: Ema, Randy (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: Chariots of the Gods: The Grandeur of the Model J". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 39.
- ^ Moore, pp. 17–18.
- ^ "Inductee List: Fred Duesenberg, Historic, Class of 1997". Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Hall of Fame Inductees: August "Augie" Duesenberg". Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ Freeman and O'Keefe, p. 88.
- ^ Duesenberg racecars won first, second, fourth through eighth, and tenth place in the Indianapolis 500 in 1922. See: "Indianapolis 500: May 30, 1922". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ "'It's a doozy: August Samuel Duesenberg". Spaulding Center for Transportation, Iowa Transportation Museum. Archived from the original on May 5, 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2019. Archived May 5, 2009.
- ^ "Indianapolis 500: May 30, 1923". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ a b Freeman and O'Keefe, p. 97.
- ^ "Indianapolis 500". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ a b c Freeman and O'Keefe, p. 98.
- ^ Roe, p. 37.
- ^ Moore, pp. 20–22.
- ^ Moore, pp. 18–19.
- ^ "Duesenberg Special: For the Record". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 55. Summer 1992.
- ^ Moore, p. 22.
- ^ Moore, p. 23.
- ^ a b Gugin and St. Clair, eds., pp. 105 and 107.
- ^ "Indianapolis Auto greats" (PDF). Celebrating Automotive Heritage at Crown Hill Cemetery. Crown Hill Cemetery. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 13, 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
- ^ "9 Named to Auto Racing Hall Of Fame". New York Times. May 22, 1963. p. 69.
- ^ "Hall of Fame Inductees". National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ Augie Duesenberg at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
References
- "9 Named to Auto Racing Hall Of Fame". New York Times. May 22, 1963. p. 69.
- "A. S. Duesenberg Dies". New York Times. January 19, 1955. p. 27.
- "Duesenberg Special: For the Record". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 55. Summer 1992.
- Ema, Randy (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: Chariots of the Gods: The Grandeur of the Model J". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 39.
- Ema, Randy (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: The Man Behind the Machine: Friedrich S. Duesenberg". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 4–13.
- Freeman, Joseph S., and James G. O'Keefe (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: Out of the Crucible: A Racing History". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 80–99.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Gugin, Linda C., and James E. St. Clair, eds. (2015). Indiana's 200: The People Who Shaped the Hoosier State. Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society Press. pp. 105–07. ISBN 978-0-87195-387-2.)
{{cite book}}
:|author=
has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - "Hall of Fame Inductees". National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- "Hall of Fame Inductees: August "Augie" Duesenberg". Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- "Indianapolis Auto greats" (PDF). Celebrating Automotive Heritage at Crown Hill Cemetery. Crown Hill Cemetery. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 13, 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
- "Indianapolis 500". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- "Indianapolis 500: May 30, 1912". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- "Indianapolis 500: May 30, 1914". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- "Indianapolis 500: May 30, 1922". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- "Indianapolis 500: May 30, 1923". UltimateRacingHistory.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- "Inductee List: Fred Duesenberg, Historic, Class of 1997". Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- "'It's a doozy: August Samuel Duesenberg". Spaulding Center for Transportation, Iowa Transportation Museum. Archived from the original on May 5, 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2019. (Archived May 5, 2009.)
- Marsh, Elisabeth, "Frederick S. Duesenberg" in Giles R. Hoyt, ed. (September 10, 2014). Immigrant Entrepreneurship: German-American Business Biographies, 1720 to the Present. Vol. 3. German Historical Institute. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
- Moore, George (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: They Always Called Him Augie: August S. Duesenberg". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 14–23.
- Roe, Fred (Summer 1992). "Duesenberg: It All Began with "A": The First Passenger Cars". Automobile Quarterly. 30 (4): 24–37.
- Wissing, Douglas A.; Marianne Tobias; Rebecca W. Dolan; Anne Ryder (2013). Crown Hill: History, Spirit, and Sanctuary. Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society Press. p. 155. ISBN 9780871953018.
External links
- Duesenberg History and Photos
- August S. "Augie" Duesenberg at Find A Grave