Badger (automobile company)

The Badger Motor car company of Columbus, Wisconsin, United States,^[1] was an automobile company founded in 1910.

History

Origins

In March 1909, E. W. Arbogast,^[2] who was the son-in-law of a wealthy grain merchant from Watertown, Wisconsin, was failing to persuade anyone there that he could build a high-power, high-priced car that he could sell in the medium price range.^[2] So he went to Columbus, where he said he could build an example, test it then sell it, but only if the town provided him money to manufacture it if he succeeded.^[2] In May 1909, he was successful. The company was the created, with A.M. Bellack^[3] (a local clothier) as president, Charles E. Fowler (a local grocer) as vice-president, and J.R. Wheeler (a local banker) as treasurer.^[2] The factory was completed in November 1909. Herman Wertheimer was the partner,who also was the Mayor of Watertown,Wi at the time period.

Production

By February 1910, storage space was important for cars completed but not yet delivered, so the third floor of the Columbus Canning Company was used. Trade press was flattering. One of the sales pitches, "a Hill Climber with Power to burn" was shown when finished cars were driven to the third floor of the Columbus Canning Company for storage.^[2] The cars had 4-cylinder engines. However, luck ran out when the nationwide network of dealers was not realized. Dealers already up and running did not always have good things to say, such as one Los Angeles agency who said "Motors too small and torsion rod weakness not improved".^[2] In April 1911, investors decided to hedge their bets by going into real estate. In late 1911, the company went into liquidation.^[2]

Models

References