Manistee Motor Car Company

The Manistee Motor Car Company was part of the cyclecar craze from 1912 to 1917. The company was originally an idea of the Anderson Electric & Manufacturing Company in Chicago but was sold to two local businessmen with the hopes of bringing industry and jobs to Northern Michigan. The company was founded in March of 1912 and was to produce three models including a light delivery vehicle. Ultimately the company never really got off the ground producing very few cars and went out of business almost exactly a year later.

Charles Elmendorf had spent his life in the furniture business before coming to Manistee, MI to accept a position at the Manistee Manufacturing Company in 1898. He would start as the factory manager but would be in charge of the company by 1903. George Burr was his secretary and treasurer and also a prominent banker in the community. The two men would try their hand at the automobile manufacturing business in 1912.

The Anderson Electric & Manufacturing Company in Chicago had developed three low priced automobiles that they had planned to bring to market. Elmendorf and Burr bought the prototypes, equipment, blueprints, and semi-completed vehicles and shipped them to Manistee. The two men hoped that the new automobile business would bring much needed jobs and other commerce to the city of Manistee.

The vehicles’ design was that of the cyclecar craze of that day. Smaller, more efficient vehicles were beginning to trend touting efficiency and low maintenance. Two of the models were passenger vehicles and one was a chassis for a light delivery vehicle known as the “Wolverine”. The price range would be between $200-$400 and production would take place in the old Manistee Iron Works building.

The Manistee Motor Car Company was incorporated in March of 1912 and machinery was moved into the building the next month. Just like many automobiles and trucks of that day, many parts were ordered from different manufacturers and assembled at the factory. The very first model is said to have been ordered by Dr. L.S. Ramsdell.

Details are unclear but it appears that at least three total vehicles were sold over the course of the next several months and by March of 1913 the company was out of business perhaps saving an even bigger loss as the cyclecar craze had ended by 1917. Elmendorf and Burr would take the failure in stride and continue on with the Manistee Manufacturing Company for several more years.

Accessed May 23rd 2022. www.wheelswaterengines.com.