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Dort Drivers Today and Tomorrow

 Collection
Identifier: RH-A-4048

Scope and Contents

Brochure has black and white illustrations of Dort automobiles; information on the Model 14 Fourseason and the Model 19 Fourseason (touring, roadster, coupes, and sedans); and a price list for the automobiles in the brochure.

Dates

  • Publication: 1920-1923

Creator

Biographical / Historical

Born in Inkster, Michigan, Josiah Dallas Dort (1861-1923) formed the Flint Road Cart Company with William (Billy) Durant in 1884 in the city that bears its name. Later known as the Durant-Dort Carriage Company, it became one of the largest producers of carriages and wagons in the United States. Durant later founded General Motors in 1908 and four years later, Dort became the Director and Vice-President of Chevrolet. He stopped working with Durant in 1915 and began the Dort Motor Car Company in Flint. In January of 1920, the company announced it had purchased the Lull Carriage Company on South Pitcher and Grace Streets. The Kalamazoo Gazette reported on February 1, 1920 that the Chamber of Commerce helped with the deal. The Kalamazoo factory would make bodies for the sedans and coupes. The Dort Motor Car Company ceased operations in 1924, not long after the death of Josiah Dort the previous year. It appears operations in Kalamazoo ended in 1923 the year Morris Markin brought the Checker Cab Company to Kalamazoo from Chicago. This company moving to the Dort Motor Car Company factory, also known as the Dort Body Company factory in addition to the chassis plant occupied by the Handley Knight Motor Car Company. The Checker Motor Company used the site until the company declared bankruptcy in 2009. The building came down in 2010.

Extent

.05 Cubic Feet

Language of Materials

English

Physical Description

The collection amounts to .05 cubic feet and contains one advertising booklet from the Durant Motor Car Company titled, “Dort Drivers Today and Tomorrow,” and dates from 1920 to 1923. The booklet measures 7 ½”x10 ¼” with a heavy stock green front and back covers.The front cover has an illustration of a woman looking at a Dort car with the words, “Dort Drivers Today and Tomorrow” in yellow print. There are eight pages with an additional 14 ½” x 10 ¼” foldout of two Dort models. The inside front cover in black print has the Dort Policy and the inside back cover has prices for the Dort Models pictured in the booklet. The booklet contains information on the Model 14 Fourseason and Model 19 Fourseason Touring, Roadsters, Coupes and Sedans. The narrative has information on each of them along with specific body and mechanical specifications. Most of the text is in black ink although there is blue ink for the title of each page and the first letter of the first word on each page, which is very decorative. The second page has illustrations of Josiah D. Dort and the three facilities for the company, two in Flint and one in Kalamazoo. The booklet is in good condition. There is some discoloration at the right and bottom edges of the first page. The staples in the book are slightly loose and there is some rust on them. There is a little wear on the front cover.

General

The Starring Endowment provided the funding for the purchase of this booklet.

Title
Dort Drivers Today and Tomorrow Finding Aid
Status
Completed
Author
Lynn Houghton
Date
2017-09-21
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
English

Repository Details

Part of the Western Michigan University Archives & Regional History Collections Repository

Contact:
Charles C. and Lynn L. Zhang Legacy Collections Center
1650 Oakland Drive
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5307 US
(269) 387-8490