The Russell Motor Car Company was an

automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded ...

manufacturer in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

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, that produced cars from 1904 to 1916. The company is considered to have produced Canada's first successful automobile.Filey, Mike. ''Mount Pleasant Cemetery: An Illustrated Guide''. (Dundurn Press Ltd., 1999) p. 188.

History

In 1903, weakness in the

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-powered assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. B ...

market prompted Canada Cycle and Motor Co. (C.C.M.), a bicycle manufacturer, to acquire the assets of Canadian Motors Ltd., a failed automobile producer. Tommy Russell (1877-1940), C.C.M.'s new general manager, saw an opportunity to diversify his company's product line.Vance, Bill.
Russell: a truly native Canadian car
'' Canadian Driver. Retrieved 2008-08-29. From 1903 to 1905, C.C.M.'s new automobile division, named Russell Motor Car Company with Russell serving as president, began production of electric-powered two-passenger runabouts branded Ivanhoe In 1905, the company produced its first "Model A" car with a two-cylinder gasoline engine. A larger "Model B", and a four-cylinder "Model C", arrived in 1906. A 40

horsepower Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are t ...

touring car was introduced in 1907, with a more prestigious 50

model coming in 1908. The Russell vehicles developed a reputation as well-built and engineered cars, and success allowed Russell to focus on the high-end market. Sales offices were opened in

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and

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. In Canada, Russell promoted its vehicles as "The Thoroughly Canadian Car," built with Canadian material, labour and capital. Marketing included publicity stunts such as races on frozen

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

between Russell cars and ice-yachts. The Russell Motor Car Company Limited was incorporated separately from C.C.M. in 1911.''Russell Industries Limited.'' Canadian Register of Commerce & Industry, 1959. The company began to experience difficulties with its

sleeve valve The sleeve valve is a type of valve mechanism for piston engines, distinct from the usual poppet valve. Sleeve valve engines saw use in a number of pre-World War II luxury cars and in the United States in the Willys-Knight car and light truc ...

engines in 1913, sold as Russell-Knights. A downturn in the high-end market, coupled with the commencement of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

in 1914, resulted in Russell selling its automobile production business to the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

manufacturer Willys-Overland Motors in 1916. Russell produced

munitions Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...

during the war, and manufactured automobile parts after the war ended. In 1938, the company changed its name to Russell Industries Limited, as it continued its shift away from the automobile industry, expanding into the manufacture of machine parts. The company continued to exist into the 1950s.

Gallery

File:Line of Russell cars outside Toronto City Hall.jpg, A row of Russell motor cars in front of Toronto

city hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

in 1909. Tommy Russell is seated in the driver's seat of the first car. File:Russell Motor Car 1908.jpg, 1908 Russell Motor Car File:Ad for Russell Motor Car Company.jpg, 1910 Russell advertisement for Knight engine File:George Agnew Reid - Women Operators (CWM 19710261-0551).jpg, Women Operators, WWI at Russell factory by George Agnew Reid

References

External links

c.1911 picture of Russell factoryRussell Cars history site1914 Russell at the Canada Science and Technology Museum
{{Authority control Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of Canada History of manufacturing in Ontario Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1903 1900s cars 1910s cars Manufacturing companies based in Toronto History of Toronto Brass Era vehicles Cars powered by Knight engines