Auto Coach Building

One of the country's leading manufacturers of custom bodies for trucks in the early 20th century, the Hesse Carriage Company, built the Auto Coach Building in 1917. It gave the company increased manufacturing space to mass produce truck bodies used in building Ford Model T cars. This ability to rapidly build the bodies differentiated the company from competitors and laid the foundation for its future and ongoing success (the company exists today as Group Hesse). Increasing demand for its products prompted the company to expand the building in 1926 to its current size. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2007 and is now a loft apartment building.

The company's roots date back to 1847 when German native William G. Hesse opened a wagon and carriage shop on Shawnee Street. He had arrived in American when he was 15 and lived in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and St. Louis before settling in Leavenworth, Kansas, which is just northwest of Kansas City. This was an ideal location for his shop since it was just west of where the Santa Fe, California and Oregon Trails, which were used by travelers heading west. Hesse moved to a bigger location in 1850 and expanded it in 1871 (it appears he was still using the Shawnee Street building but it burned down in 1871). He taught his son, Otto, who was born in 1865, woodworking, Blacksmithing, painting, trimming, and how to run the business. Otto invented the short-tongue Ludlow spring wagon, which became one of the company's best products.

Otto and a partner, Joseph Falk, acquired a building in Kansas City in 1898 and took over management of the property in 1900. Hesse continued to manage the Leavenworth property. In 1903, Otto and Joseph built a four story building on East 17th Street and officially established the Hesse Carriage Company in August of that year (it is unclear what the status of the Leavenworth operation was at this time but Hesse died in 1907). The company manufactured a variety of wagons including those for delivering bread and pulling hearses. It also added a body shop in response to the increasing number of accidents.

After the Ford Model T car was introduced in 1908, the company started manufacturing wagon bodies for automobiles. The revenue generated from this enabled the company to build a four-story building just to the north at 1700 Oak Street in 1909. It also partnered with Coca-Cola, which heard about the company and asked it to develop a specific type of vehicle to deliver Coca-Cola bottles. This also proved to be a lucrative venture as it allowed the company to build a two-story addition to the 1700 Oak Street building in 1915. In 1917, Otto developed a way to manufacture delivery van bodies that could be attached to the Model T chassis. Producing these type of bodies required more space. As a result, he bought and demolished three buildings down the street and built the Auto Coach Building in 1917. As noted above, he then enlarged it in 1926.

Over the next twenty years or so the company gradually transitioned to only producing specialized bodies for beverage trucks. It began leasing the Auto Coach Building in 1940 and built a new facility in northeast Kansas City in 1948. That year it also changed its named to the Hesse Corporation. It closely followed innovations in the steel industry and developed a variety of aluminum products. In 1964, it showcased one of its all-aluminum truck bodies at the World's Fair in New York City. It appears that by then the company had completed its shift to building bodies for beverage trucks.

Local businessman Ray Maher bought the company in 1972 and it became a division of his company. It was later sold to the Canadian firm, Remcor, in 1991. Another Canadian company, called Cambli, acquired it in 2013 and it is now known as Group Hesse.

"About Us." Group Hesse. Accessed August 31, 2022. https://grouphesse.com/en/about-us.

Gardner, Tony. "Auto Coach Building." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. April 18, 2007. https://mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/Auto%20Coach%20Bldg.pdf.