"The George N. Pierce Co. of Buffalo, N.Y., was formed in 1872 and began building automobiles in 1901. (The company started as the Heintz, Pierce, and Munschauer firms in the 1860s, making household products, including birdcages.) Its first cars were called Motorettes. In September 1901, a Motorette completed the 465-mile New York to Buffalo endurance run with an actual running time that averaged a little over 12 miles an hour. Pierce continued to make a modified version of the Motorette until 1906." - National Museum of American History (online October 2017)

"By the turn of the century, the Pierce company began experimenting with automobiles. While early efforts involved a steam-powered unit, the first production Pierce automobile of 1901 used a single cylinder, 2 3/4 hp deDion engine. In 1903, Pierce replaced the deDion engine in the Motorette with one of their own manufacture. About 170 Pierce Motorettes were made between 1901 and 1903. - The Pierce-Arrow Society (online October 2017)

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"This automobile has a 3½-horsepower De Dion Bouton single-cylinder, water-cooled engine bearing the number 3008. The engine lies just forward of the rear axle. A horizontal, finned-tube radiator is located under the front part of the body. In operation, the water circulated from the radiator to the engine, then to a tank on the body above the engine, then back to the radiator. A float-equipped carburetor received gasoline from a tank under the seat and arm air from a duct running through the center of the water tank. Also under the seat is a small oil tank equipped with a hand pump which forced oil to the engine. A chain connects the engine to a starting crank in front of the right wheel.

"Controls consist of four small levers, located on the steering column, and two pedals. The largest of the levers places the transmission in high hear when it is put to the left and in low gear when it is moved to the right. The small lever to the left is the spark control and the other two levers are carburetor controls. The right pedal operates the external contracting brakes on the small rear-wheel drums, the other pedal operates the reversing mechanism. The ignition switch is on the front of the seat framing. The body rests on four elliptic springs. The frame is tubular. Behind the dash is a package or tool compartment. These automobiles only had two speeds as standard equipment." - National Museum of American History (online October 2017)

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The Stanhope

Electronic Automobilers - 1905
WNY Heritage Magazine  (online October 2017)

 ... the "stanhope" ... featured a single bench seat, folding cloth top, front buckboard, and tiller steering.

A typical wealthy Buffalo couple might have two automobiles: an electric for the women in the family and a gasoline auto for the men in the family. The electric automobile was quiet, easy to operate, and emission-free; it was also heavy, slow, unable to climb hills, and in need of recharging after 20-50 miles.

Such a vehicle was quickly marketed to women, doctors, delivery businesses and others residing in an urban environment where electricity for recharging was available. The gasoline automobile had already been adopted by men for its speed and "portability," i.e. it could "tour" in rural areas and be re-fueled at gasoline stations that quickly sprang up around Western New York. The Buffalo Automobile Club was a touring club for gasoline vehicles; its membership was male.

Although in 1900, equal numbers of electric-, gasoline- and steam-powered automobiles were produced in the U.S., it quickly became apparent that electrics would not succeed in competition with gasoline models (becoming more reliable each year) unless a revolution in the electric battery came about that would result in a lighter battery that would produce more power for a longer run per charge. Thomas Edison took on this challenge (see his optimism here) and did produce an early alkaline battery, but it was not powerful enough to replace the lead-acid battery then used in electrics.

"In mid 1903, the Pierce Stanhope was introduced. Similar the the Motorette, the Stanhope used a Pierce made engine mounted beneath the driver's seat. The Stanhope had two forward speeds, plus reverse." - The Pierce-Arrow Society (online October 2017)

"Stanhope is an archaic car body style characterized by its single bench seat mounted at the center, folding cloth top, and a dashboard at the front. All Stanhopes featured tiller steering, either in the center or at the side. Features of the car included a foot button to signal a bell (early version of a horn), hard rubber tires, wood trim, and eight forward speeds, three backs and a top speed of about 50 miles. The body style disappeared by the vintage vehicle era. It could be considered a specific type of runabout." - Wikipedia (online October 2017)

Cf, The Buffalo Electric 1902 Stanhope

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"The [George N. Pierce] company really became famous, however, for luxurious, high-powered vehicles, including a make called the Arrow. Pierce changed its name to Pierce-Arrow after that make took off, and the name came to symbolize luxury and elegance, in part because the company hired many of the nation’s top illustrators to create artistic advertisements for its products. After some difficult years, the company went out of business in 1938." - National Museum of American History (online October 2017)

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