YALE (1)

Kirk Manufacturing Co. (1902-1903)

Consolidated Manufacturing Co. (1903-1905)

Toledo, Ohio

This is a Yale hub emblem (c1904)    alt

The Kirk Manufacturing Company of Toledo, Ohio was a manufacturer of bicycles. In 1902 the company entered the automotive market with a 10 hp two-cylinder runabout with a detachable tonneau called the Yale. All seemed to be going well and in October 1903, Kirk merged with two other Toledo companies to form the Consolidated Manufacturing Company. By 1904 the Yale was a 16 hp two-cylinder touring offered as three model styles and in 1905 a 24/28 hp four-cylinder model was added to the line.

The Yale was reported as a popular motor car in the Toledo region and a new four-cylinder model was announced for 1906 but it was not produced. The Consolidated Manufacturing Company had over extended itself and decided to cease production of the Yale automobile at the end of 1905 and concentrate on the production of bicycles and motorcycles. The company was bankrupt in May 1906.

Emblem

The Yale did not carry a radiator emblem but did show the Yale name and logo on the hub caps, see example above at the top of this post. The Yale name was also displayed on a serial plate fixed to the dash, see the early example below:

This is a rare Yale serial nameplate (c1903)   mjs
Size: 95mm wide 60mm high

The last Yale cars built for 1905 may have displayed a Yale script attached to the radiator core, but I cannot confirm this, as I have not yet seen an original photo of a Yale car with the script. A brass radiator script is displayed on a Yale Model E car surviving from 1905, see photo below, but this may have been added later.

This is a Yale Model E displaying a radiator script (1905)   hcg