STUTZ FIRE ENGINE

Stutz Fire Engine Co. (1919-1928)

Indianapolis, Indiana
New Stutz Fire Engine Co. (1931-1940)
Hartford City, Indiana 

This is a Stutz Fire Engine radiator emblem (c1922-1927)     mjs
Size: 107mm wide 76mm high    MM: Unknown

A. C. Mecklenburg was a fire apparatus manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana. Together with Harry C Stutz, he established the Stutz Fire Engine Company in Indianapolis in 1919, for the manufacture of complete fire engines. Harry Stutz was not directly involved in the running of the business.

The first Stutz fire engine, a 500 gallon-per minute pumper, was exhibited in Kansas City in June 1919 and the first production Stutz fire apparatus was delivered in 1920. In 1921, the company secured an order for 35 fire apparatus units for the Indianapolis fire department. 

The Stutz Fire Engine Company offered a range of motor fire apparatus powered by Wisconsin four-cylinder and six-cylinder engines. Standard Stutz units included triple combination pumpers ranging from 500 to 1200 gallon per minute capacity, combination hose and chemical vehicles, and long-wheelbase city service hook and ladder trucks. Stutz fire engines were well received and used widely across America and had some export success, including five pumpers delivered to Tokyo, Japan.

By 1926, the Stutz Fire Engine Company was in serious financial difficulty and the last two Stutz fire engines were delivered in 1928. Over 300 units had been produced by the time the business failed.

A. C. Mecklenburg set up the New Stutz Fire Engine Company in 1929, initially to service the Stutz fire engines in operation. The new company moved to Hartford City in 1930. 

The first New Stutz fire engines appeared in 1931 and were built on commercial chassis built by Chevrolet, Ford, Reo and Dodge. By the mid-1930s, New Stutz fire apparatus was built on Indiana chassis using Hercules engines and sporting a curved Vee-shaped radiator with a mesh-type grille. In 1937, New Stutz introduced the first diesel-powered fire apparatus in America using Cummins diesel engines.

The final New Stutz fire engine was delivered in 1940.

Emblems

The first Stutz fire engines had a distinctive round hood with a vertical flat radiator, which carried a triangular red, white and black enamel radiator emblem, see examples above and below:

This is a Stutz Fire Engine Md F3 showing rad emblem (1924) wiki 

This is a Stutz Pumper showing rad emblem (1924) indianapolisfiremuseum

The following are two versions of the Stutz fire engine radiator emblem. The first, shown above at the top of this post and again below, is finished in red, white and black enamel.

This is a Stutz Fire Engine radiator emblem (c1922-1927)    mjs
Size: 107mm wide 76mm high    MM: Unknown

The second, shown below, is finished in red and white enamel and is chrome plated. Both Stutz Fire Engine radiator emblems are scarce.

This is a Stutz Fire Engine radiator emblem (possibly c1927-1928)  mjs
Size: 104mm wide 74mm high     MM: Unknown

It is reported that some early Stutz fire engines carried a triangular radiator emblem inscribed "Super High Duty". I have not seen this emblem. If you have details of this Stutz fire engine radiator emblem, please let me know, in order to update this post.

Some Stutz fire apparatus also displayed the "Stutz" name on polished castings on the deck, see example shown below:

This is a Stutz Fire Engine deck casting (1925)     conceptcarz 

The New Stutz fire engines built in the mid 1930s with curved vee-shaped radiators displayed the "Stutz" name on hood side nameplates, see example shown below:

This is a New Stutz pumper showing hood side nameplate (1933) walt mccall

 

The New Stutz Cummins powered diesel fire engines built in 1937, displayed the "Stutz" name in chrome finished letters mounted vertically on the top front of the curved hood over the radiator grille, see example shown below:

This is a New Stutz Diesel pumper showing "Stutz" name (1937)   cummins