Who Build the Motor Truck?

By Mary Bellis

Inventors Expert

Updated August 21, 2016.

The first motor truck was built in 1896 by German automotive pioneer Gottlieb Daimler. Daimler's truck had a four horsepower engine and a belt drive with two forward speeds and one reverse. It was the first pickup truck. Daimler also produced the world's first motorcycle in 1885 and the first taxi in 1897. 

The First Tow Truck 

The towing industry was born in 1916 in Chattanooga, Tennessee when Ernest Holmes, Sr helped a friend retrieve his car with three poles, a pulley and a chain hooked to the frame of a 1913 Cadillac.

The first motor truck was built in 1896 by German automotive pioneer Gottlieb Daimler. Daimler's truck had a four horsepower engine and a belt drive with two forward speeds and one reverse. It was the first pickup truck. Daimler also produced the world's first motorcycle in 1885 and the first taxi in 1897

.After patenting his invention, Holmes began manufacturing wreckers and towing equipment for sale to automotive garages and to anyone else who might be interested in retrieving and towing wrecked or disabled autos. His first manufacturing facility was a small shop on Market Street.

Holmes’ business grew as the auto industry expanded and eventually its products earned a worldwide reputation for their quality and performance.Read More...