RUSTING OLD CORBITT TRUCK

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RUSTING OLD CORBITT TRUCK
RUSTING OLD CORBITT TRUCK

The Corbitt Company was located in Henderson North Carolina where it operated for roughly the first half of the 20th century.

Richard J. Corbitt started as a buyer and seller of bright leaf tobacco, in Henderson in 1894. He predicted big companies dominating the tobacco industry, so in 1899 he decided to enter the buggy manufacturing business. In 1899, there were four buggy builders in Henderson; in just eight years, Corbitt owned them all.

In 1905, Corbitt built his first “motor buggy," a modest, bare-bones automobile using labor he recruited from Detroit, but he lost money on every car he sold.

In 1910 Corbitt introduced trucks and the profit picture began to change. In 1913, he dropped autos and became a full-time truck builder. For most of the next 40 years, the company made money, building trucks and trailers. The trailers included vans, drop-frame vans, and flatbeds up to 36’ in length.

By 1952, R.J. Corbitt was nearly 80 years old and failing. The son he hoped would take over had died so the Corbitt family, which owned over 90% of the company stock, sold the company to United Industrial Syndicate, a liquidation specialist.

R.J., a man respected by all, had discussed continuation of the company with various employees, but sadly no long-term successor could be found.

In 1953 Corbitt built its last truck. and began liquidating its assets.

In 1955 the company closed.

There were several notable claims-to-fame made by Corbitt over its years:

* A Corbitt truck pulled Howard Hughes’ 75-ton seaplane, the “Spruce Goose." from Hughes Aircraft at Culver City CA to a pier at Long Beach 28 miles away. At the time, this was the largest bulk load ever pulled over the highway.

* An example of Corbitt quality and longevity was “Geraldine," a 1951 Corbitt diesel sold new by dealer R.E. Daniel to the Daniel’s Company of Springfield, MO. By the early 80s Geraldine had run up 2,600,000 miles in 48 states! In 1984 she was sold to a dump-truck operator.

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Taken on: July 14, 2012
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