Piggins

Piggins was a short-lived American automobile marque associated with the Piggins Brothers, a family-owned machine shop and engine business in Racine, Wisconsin. The company entered automobile production during the brass era, when small engineering firms and machine shops frequently attempted to establish automobile businesses. Its cars occupied the high-price luxury end of the market and were notable for their large dimensions, six-cylinder engines, and ambitious specifications. The Piggins brothers, Charles R. Piggins and Frederick H. Piggins, were machinists. Their experimentation with road vehicles began before the marque was formally established: they built an experimental steam car in 1883, an electric car in 1897, and their first gasoline-powered car in 1902. From 1902 onward, the Piggins Brothers machine shop at 1113 Sixth Street in Racine produced gasoline automobile engines as well as two-stroke marine engines. This engineering and manufacturing background provided the foundation for their later attempt to sell complete automobiles. The brothers promoted their gasoline engine as unusually refined for its era, claiming that it was smokeless and so quiet that it could not be heard from six feet away. In 1908, they applied their engine-making experience to a complete automobile that was described as the largest and most expensive car produced in Racine at the time. The Piggins was a T-head six-cylinder automobile, a configuration associated with substantial early touring cars and with the luxury market. For the 1909 model year, the car was offered in at least two principal versions. The more powerful model produced 50 horsepower, used a 135-inch wheelbase, and was fitted with a seven-passenger touring body. Its listed price was $4,700. A smaller 36-horsepower touring model used a 117-inch wheelbase and was priced at $3,500. These prices positioned the Piggins well above the mass-market automobile and reflected the cost of large, coachbuilt vehicles in the period. Production appears to have been very limited, and no authoritative total production figure is recorded. A few vehicles may have been completed in 1910, but the passenger-car operation did not develop into a lasting automobile business. The Piggins name later reappeared in commercial vehicles. In early 1912, the Piggins Motor Truck Company was formed and produced a truck marketed as the Practical Piggins. Truck production continued until 1916. The business was subsequently merged into the Reliance Motor Truck Company, whose manufacturing operations continued in Racine and Appleton into the 1920s. Accordingly, Piggins is best understood as a defunct early automotive marque with two connected phases: a brief luxury-car venture and a somewhat longer truck-making operation. It is historically significant as an example of the many regional American manufacturers that contributed to the development of the country's early automobile industry but did not survive the industry's consolidation.

The Piggins story began with the mechanical work of brothers Charles R. Piggins and Frederick H. Piggins in Racine, Wisconsin. The brothers were machinists who experimented with several forms of propulsion before becoming automobile manufacturers. Their reported projects included a steam car in 1883, an electric car in 1897, and a gasoline car in 1902. These experiments placed them among the numerous independent American engineers exploring alternative power systems during the formative period of the automobile industry. From 1902, the Piggins Brothers machine shop at 1113 Sixth Street manufactured gasoline automobile engines and two-stroke marine engines. The shop's work gave the brothers practical experience in engine design and small-scale production. They claimed that their gasoline motor was smokeless and exceptionally quiet, asserting that it could not be heard at a distance of six feet. Whether or not the claim was independently verified, it illustrates the performance and refinement claims used by early automobile manufacturers to distinguish their products. In 1908, the Piggins Brothers moved from engine production into complete automobile manufacture. The resulting Piggins was a large luxury car and reportedly the biggest and most expensive automobile yet produced in Racine. It used a T-head six-cylinder engine and was sold as a substantial touring vehicle rather than as a low-cost runabout. The 1909 range included a 50-horsepower model on a 135-inch wheelbase with a seven-passenger touring body, and a 36-horsepower model on a 117-inch wheelbase. Their listed prices, $4,700 and $3,500 respectively, placed the cars in the premium segment of the early American market. The passenger-car venture was brief. Production is recorded for 1908 and 1909, while a small number of additional cars may have been completed in 1910. The total number of automobiles built is not known. Like many early independent marques, Piggins faced the structural difficulty of producing expensive vehicles at very low volume while the American industry was becoming increasingly competitive and capital intensive. The Piggins name was revived or continued in the commercial-vehicle field in early 1912, when the Piggins Motor Truck Company was formed. Its principal product was a truck called the Practical Piggins, which remained in production until 1916. The truck operation gave the enterprise a more utilitarian market focus than the earlier luxury touring cars. Afterward, Piggins was merged into the Reliance Motor Truck Company. Reliance continued manufacturing in Racine and Appleton into the 1920s, extending the industrial legacy of the Piggins operation even though the Piggins marque itself ceased to exist as an independent vehicle brand. Piggins therefore represents both the opportunities and limitations of regional automobile manufacture in the United States. Its founders had relevant machine-shop and engine experience, and its cars were technically ambitious and positioned at the top of the local market. However, the marque remained a low-volume enterprise. Its historical record survives mainly through descriptions of its early luxury cars, the Practical Piggins truck, and its eventual connection with Reliance Motor Truck Company.

• 1916

  Practical Piggins truck production ends

  [1]Pigginsen.wikipedia.org

  Production of the Practical Piggins truck continued through 1916 before the business was merged into Reliance Motor Truck Company.

• 1912

  Piggins Motor Truck Company formed

  [1]Pigginsen.wikipedia.org

  A truck-making operation was established under the Piggins Motor Truck Company, producing the Practical Piggins.

• 1909

  Two-model luxury-car range offered

  [1]Pigginsen.wikipedia.org

  The Piggins was offered in 50-horsepower and 36-horsepower touring-car forms, with different wheelbases and body configurations.

• 1908

  Piggins automobile enters production

  [1]Pigginsen.wikipedia.org

  The Piggins Brothers began producing a large, high-priced six-cylinder luxury automobile in Racine.

• 1902

  Gasoline automobile and engine production begins

  [1]Pigginsen.wikipedia.org

  The brothers built their first gasoline car, and their Racine machine shop began producing gasoline automobile engines alongside two-stroke marine engines.

• 1897

  Experimental electric car built

  [1]Pigginsen.wikipedia.org

  The Piggins brothers built an experimental electric car before turning their principal attention to gasoline propulsion.

• 1883

  Experimental steam car built

  [1]Pigginsen.wikipedia.org

  Charles R. Piggins and Frederick H. Piggins reportedly built an experimental steam-powered car, marking an early stage in their vehicle experimentation.

A regional American luxury automobile marque emphasizing large touring cars, six-cylinder power, engineering capability, and premium construction during the brass era; later extended into practical commercial trucks.

• Luxury automobile · 1909

  Piggins 50-horsepower touring car

  The larger 1909 Piggins passenger car used a 50-horsepower T-head six-cylinder engine and a 135-inch wheelbase. It was fitted with a seven-passenger touring body and listed at $4,700, placing it firmly in the luxury segment of the brass-era American market. Its size, seating capacity, and premium price reflected the period's preference for substantial open touring cars among affluent buyers.

• Luxury automobile · 1909

  Piggins 36-horsepower touring car

  The smaller 1909 touring model retained the Piggins T-head six-cylinder layout but produced 36 horsepower and used a 117-inch wheelbase. Its listed price was $3,500. Although less powerful and shorter than the 50-horsepower car, it remained a costly, full-size touring automobile aimed at buyers seeking a premium American vehicle rather than an inexpensive runabout.

• Commercial truck · 1912

  The Practical Piggins

  The Practical Piggins was the truck associated with the Piggins Motor Truck Company, formed in early 1912. It represented a shift from the marque's earlier luxury touring cars toward practical commercial transportation. Production continued until 1916, after which the Piggins truck business was merged into Reliance Motor Truck Company.

• 1916

  Merger into Reliance Motor Truck CompanyM&A

  Background

  Following the end of Practical Piggins truck production, the Piggins truck operation was incorporated into a larger commercial-vehicle business.

  Action taken

  Piggins was merged into Reliance Motor Truck Company.

  Aftermath

  Manufacturing connected with the successor business continued in Racine and Appleton into the 1920s.

  Source

• 1912

  Shift toward truck productionStrategy

  Background

  The short-lived luxury-car business did not develop into a sustained high-volume operation, while commercial vehicles offered an alternative market for the company's engineering capabilities.

  Action taken

  The Piggins Motor Truck Company was formed and began producing the Practical Piggins truck.

  Aftermath

  Truck production continued through 1916, after which Piggins was merged into Reliance Motor Truck Company.

  Source

• 1908

  Launch of the Piggins luxury automobileProduct launch

  Background

  After years of engine and experimental vehicle work, the Piggins Brothers entered complete automobile production in a market that included many small regional manufacturers.

  Action taken

  They introduced a large T-head six-cylinder automobile positioned as Racine's biggest and most expensive car at the time.

  Aftermath

  Passenger-car production remained limited and appears to have ended after 1909 or possibly a small amount of additional production in 1910.

  Source

1. 1Pigginsen.wikipedia.org