In 1896, George Pierce added bicycles to his Buffalo, New York based company’s line of products that also included birdcages. He obtained a license from Overman to build steam cars in 1900 but that failed. In 1901, he produced the Motorette which had a single-cylinder engine and in 1903, the Arrow, a car with two. In 1904, came the Great Arrow with four. In 1907, George sold the company and in 1908, it was renamed to become The Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company.
In addition to cars the company built motorcycles until 1914. That same year the Pierce-Arrow automobile integrated its headlights into the front fenders which gave the car a distinctive appearance.
Pierce-Arrow built cars for the White House, royalty, business tycoons and even a gold plated one for actor Sessue Hayakawa. Along with Peerless and Packard they were know as the “Three P’s of Motordom.”
In 1928, Studebaker took control of Pierce-Arrow for $5.7 million, invested heavily to improve the factory and then in 1933 sold it for $1 million.
In 1936, Pierce-Arrow introduced the Travelodge camper but the weight of the Great Depression proved too much and the company went bankrupt in 1938.
RECREATION OF PIERCE ARROW AD ART 11 x 11 format PRINTS AVAILABLE
Avenue Art Motorcar Gallery 