Fruehauf Trailer Company Records

The Fruehauf Trailer Company was founded in 1918 by August Fruehauf. The records contain annual reports, product literature, product manuals, and photographs spanning from the early 1930s into the 1960s.

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Biographical / Historical Note

The Fruehauf Trailer Company was incorporated in 1918 in Detroit, Michigan by August Fruehauf, a blacksmith and carriage builder. In 1914 he had been asked by a neighbor to build a trailer to haul a boat behind a Ford Model T, this trailer was so successful he was soon asked to build more trailers to haul lumber. Business boomed over the next four years, and Fruehauf Trailer Company was established. The popularity of the trailers increased as the company made several innovations to the trailers utilizing various sizes and designs.

In 1930, August’s son Harvey Fruehauf, took over as president and focused on sales campaigns to widen the company's customer base. Harvey retired in 1949, and Roy Fruehauf, August’s youngest son, became president. Roy established manufacturing branches all over the United States and Europe and expanded the business world-wide. In the mid-1950s, however, Roy's financial interactions with the Teamsters led to federal indictments which, though eventually dismissed, resulted in instability in the company. In 1958, Roy stepped down as president and William Grace took over the role. The company again found itself in legal troubles over tax and financial practices when they were indicted and tried for tax evasion in the 1970s. By the 1980s, financial issues forced the company to sell off some of its divisions. The company continued to struggle financially and in 1996, Fruehauf Trailer declared bankruptcy under Chapter 11 and was bought out by Wabash Trucking in 1997.

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Scope and Content Note

The Fruehauf Trailer Company Records focus mainly on the public side of the company's activities. The collection contains advertising materials such as product literature, product manuals, color samples, stickers and signs, branch locations and information, and photographs spanning from the early 1930s into the 1960s. The collection also contains company materials from the 1930s and 1940s such as annual reports, handouts to employees, greeting cards, instructive materials, and newsletters.

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Collection Details

Object ID: 98.1.1828.0
Creator: Fruehauf Trailer Company
Inclusive Dates: 1931-1969
Bulk Dates: 1938-1940
Size: 1.0 cubic ft. (1 box)
Language: English

Collection Access & Use

Item Location: Not Currently On Exhibit

Access Restrictions: The collection is open for research.

Credit: From the Collections of The Henry Ford.

Keywords

United States, Michigan, Detroit

Related Objects

1914 Fruehauf Truck Trailer

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1946 Fruehauf Semi-Trailer, Used by Cole's Express

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Digitized Artifacts From This Collection

In many cases, not all artifacts have been digitized.
Contact us for more information about this collection.

Fruehauf Trailer Co. Advertising Blotter, "Fruehauf Stainless Steel Trailers," 1931-1941

Details

Fruehauf Trailer Co. Advertising Blotter, "Fruehauf Stainless Steel Trailers," 1931-1941

View in our Collectionson thehenryford.org

Artifact

Advertising card

Date Made

1931-1941

Summary

Founded in Detroit in 1918, the Fruehauf Trailer Company built and sold fifth-wheel semi-trailers that became the prototype for the big freight-hauling trailers seen on American highways today. At its peak, Fruehauf had 16 plants and more than 80 distributors, and it manufactured trailers for civilian and military uses. The company ceased independent operations in 1997.

Creators

Fruehauf Trailer Company