Alexander Winton

Each major claim carries one of three labels. established means supported by primary records, official bodies or several independent reliable sources. shared means the core fact is sound but sources disagree on details, dates or interpretation. traditional means widely repeated but not traceable to a primary or independent source.

Winton's business history is documented in Cleveland's local history records and in company and newspaper sources. Claims that his was the very first car sold in America are disputed, because other early makers have competing claims; it is safest to call his among the first. The Packard story is well known, but its exact dialogue is anecdotal.

From Grangemouth to Cleveland

established Alexander Winton was born in Grangemouth on 20 June 1860. His father, also Alexander, was a marine engineer. Winton emigrated to the United States in 1879, worked for three years at the Delamater Iron Works in New York, and then spent two years as a marine engineer on ocean-going ships. Settling in Cleveland, Ohio, he founded the Winton Bicycle Company in 1891.

The Winton Motor Carriage Company

established Winton built his first motor car in 1896, and the Winton Motor Carriage Company began business on 15 March 1897. In May 1897 his 10-horsepower car reached 33.64 mph on a Cleveland horse track. That summer he drove about 800 miles from Cleveland to New York to prove that his car was reliable and to attract investors.

Among the first car sales

established On 24 March 1898 Winton sold a car to Robert Allison of Port Carbon, Pennsylvania, for about $1,000. More than 100 Wintons were sold that year, making the company the largest American maker of petrol cars at the time.

shared Winton's sale is often called the first sale of an American car, but other early makers have competing claims. It is safest to describe it as one of the first commercial sales of a petrol car in the United States.

Packard

shared One of Winton's 1898 customers was James Ward Packard. Unhappy with his car, Packard suggested improvements, and Winton challenged him to build a better one himself. Packard did, founding the Packard company in 1899. The story is well established in outline, but the exact words exchanged are anecdote.

Racing and the first crossing of America

established Winton raced his cars to prove their speed. In 1901 he lost a race at Grosse Pointe, Michigan, to Henry Ford. In 1902 his Winton Bullet set an unofficial land speed record of about 70 mph, and a later Bullet was entered in the 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup in Ireland but failed to finish. In 1903 Dr Horatio Nelson Jackson made the first successful drive across the United States in a Winton, taking 64 days.

Decline and the diesel legacy

established In the 1910s Winton concentrated on expensive, custom-built cars, and by 1922 the company made only 690. Car production ended on 11 February 1924. Winton's separate engine company, founded in 1912 and later called the Winton Engine Works, built marine and locomotive diesel engines. General Motors had bought it by 1930, and it became GM's Cleveland Diesel Engine Division.

Family and death

established Winton married four times. He died in Cleveland on 21 June 1932, aged 72, and is buried in Lake View Cemetery.

• Winton's father was a marine engineer, and he trained in the same trade.
• He made bicycles before he made cars.
• His car reached 33.64 mph on a horse-racing track in 1897.
• He drove about 800 miles from Cleveland to New York in 1897.
• He sold more than 100 cars in 1898.
• A Winton was the first car to cross the United States.
• He lost a race to Henry Ford in 1901.
• His engine company became part of General Motors.

• Do not say Winton sold the very first car in America without qualification.
• Do not quote exact words for the Packard exchange.
• Do not say Winton himself drove across America in 1903; Horatio Nelson Jackson did, in a Winton.
• Do not confuse the Winton car company, which closed in 1924, with the engine company bought by General Motors.