The De Schaum was an American
automobile
A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...
manufactured in
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...
from 1908 to 1909. The company offered a 7 hp
High wheeler
A high wheeler is a car which uses large diameter wheels that are similar to those used by horse-drawn vehicles. These cars were produced until about 1915, predominantly in the United States.
Design
High wheelers were derived from horse-drawn ...
called the De Shaum and Seven Little Buffaloes.
History
William A. De Shaum was William A Shaum with a new name. After building the
Shaum automobile in
Baltimore
Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
, he arrived in Buffalo in 1906 and built a high wheeler for C. Rossler Manufacturing Company.
In 1908 he formed the De Shaum Motor Syndicate Company and began building a high-wheeler under his own name. High-wheeler sales were on the decline and for 1909 he renamed the De Shaum as the Seven Little Buffaloes.
De Shaum was out of business before the end of the year and began a new venture in
Hornell, New York
Hornell is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in Steuben County, New York, Steuben County, New York, United States. The population was 8,259 at the 2020 census. The city is named after the Hornell family, early settlers.
The City ...
in 1910. No cars were ever produced in Hornell and he left for
Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
where he formed a new De Shaum Motor Car Company and the
Suburban Motor Car Company.
External links
The Con Man Who Started It All, W. A. Schaum
References
{{reflist
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States
Motor vehicle manufacturers based in New York (state)
Defunct companies based in New York (state)
Highwheeler
Brass Era vehicles
1900s cars
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1908
Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1909
Cars introduced in 1908