Were the duryea brothers black
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Townsend & Sanford Duryea were two American born brothers who immigrated to Australia for the gold rush of the 1850’s. Townsend arrived in 1852 and his brother followed him to Melbourne in 1854. But they quickly sold their mining equipment and went into the photographic business opening a number of studios in Melbourne, Geelong and Hobart. By 1855 they had sold up and moved to Adelaide while also making country visits.
Sanford moved to Perth and in October 1857, opened a studio under the Duryea Brothers name in St George’s Terrace, next to Mr Barnett’s store, claiming 15 years photographic experience and offering Daguerreotypes, Crayon Pictures, Halotypes and Stereoscopic Pictures.
Townsend stayed in Adelaide and went into business with Stephen Nixon, the father of C.M. Nixon, who later had a studio in Fremantle.
It’s not known if Sanford, in using the name Duryea Brothers, expected Townsend to join him in Western Australia or if he felt it sounded more professional.
He briefly opened a pop-up studio in Fremantle, next to Mr Lodge’s hotel in January
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Founded the Duryea Motor Wagon Company in 1896, the first company to manufacture and sell gasoline-powered vehicles in the United States
Inspired automotive innovation through their success in the first American auto races
While other automotive pioneers were still tinkering with single vehicles, the Duryea Brothers were launching an industry. Charles Duryea was a visionary, predicting “the advent of the automobile” in his 1882 college thesis. His younger brother Frank was a talented mechanic. After brief careers in the bicycle business, the brothers collaborated on the development and production of a gasoline-powered vehicle. Their 1895 Motor Wagon won the now legendary Chicago Times-Herald Race, completing the 54-mile round trip from Chicago to Evanston, Illinois with a winning time of 10 hours and 23 minutes. The car outperformed three German-made Benz models and two American electric cars. The publicity surrounding the Duryea victory inspired other mechanics and engineers to create and sell their own vehicles. In 1896, the Duryea brothers developed and
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DURYEA: AMERICA'S FIRST CAR COMPANY
OPENS OCTOBER 20, 2023
The Duryea Motor Wagon Company, co-founded by Charles and Frank Duryea in 1896, was the first American company to mass-produce, market, and sell gasoline-powered automobiles. Driven by their fascination with engines and their extensive research, the Duryea brothers achieved something revolutionary – they developed a gasoline engine capable of propelling a carriage without the need for horses. Born and raised in Central Illinois, these two visionary brothers can rightfully be called the fathers of the American automobile industry.
The Peoria Motor Trap, constructed on Barker Avenue in Peoria in 1898, was the prototype for a successful series of thirteen Duryea automobiles produced in Peoria Heights. After many years of use by a plumber in Pennsylvania, this vehicle was displayed in the New York Museum of Science and Industry, and eventually obtained by an automobile collector in New Jersey. A group of historians raised funds and awareness to bring the Peoria Motor Trap back to its city of origin in 1991.
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