Acme Motor Truck Company

In 1915 Walter A. Kysor, J.P. Wilcox, and C.J. Helm founded the Cadillac Auto Truck Company which operated in Cadillac, Michigan. The first truck was produced later that same year and the company began to take off. A conflict with the Cadillac Motor Car Company of Detroit prompted a change in name to the Acme Motor Truck Company in 1917. Throughout its' history, Acme built trucks ranging in size and weight as well as buses. Along the way, they were not only producers of vehicles but also innovators and contributed to many improvements in the industry. Kysor would leave the company in 1923 to start his own automotive heater company and would go on to be very successful. Truck production continued for Acme into 1929 as the Great Depression and other factors took their toll on the industry. The company would flounder until 1932 and in January of that year, Acme would cease to exist, but one can learn more about the Acme Truck Company here at the Wexford County Historical Society.

Walter A. Kysor came to Cadillac, MI in 1901 and along with his father and uncle purchased the W.M. McAdie & Company machine shop. In 1905 the name was changed to the Cadillac Machine Company and as the business grew, many different items were manufactured over the next ten years including sawmill machinery and power transmission appliances.

In 1915 Kysor pitched the idea of a truck company to the Cadillac Board of Trade. Just a few years earlier, Frank Ruggles had started the Republic Truck Company in nearby Alma, MI and was having much success. If the city of Cadillac could also partake in the automotive and trucking industry, jobs and opportunities would follow. In September of that year, the Cadillac Auto Truck Company was formed. A few years later the name would need to be changed due to a conflict with the Cadillac Motor Car Company in Detroit and would become the Acme Motor Truck Company.

The company would introduce several truck models through the years ranging from a ¾ ton all the way to a 5-ton. In 1923 the idea of producing buses started to take shape and Acme would not only produce them but would also become innovators of trucks and buses alike introducing several convenience and safety features. Also In 1923, Kysor would leave the company to start his own venture and take one of those ideas with him. The Kysor Heater Company would sell a forced-air heater which was revolutionary at the time and would market it to the entire automobile industry. The company was formed in Allegan, MI and would later relocate to Cadillac.

Acme continued to be successful through the years but could not withstand the Great Depression along with the larger truck manufacturers. In September of 1929, the company went into receivership and wouldn’t reopen until January of 1931. One year later the doors were closed for good. The once-mighty Acme Motor Truck Company itself did not survive but the building was occupied by B.F. Goodrich in 1937 continued to produce automotive rubber products. Kysor’s heater company also stayed in business for several years indeed making Cadillac a great contributor to the automotive and truck industries

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