1896 - 1905
From Motorcycles to the Motor City
From the very beginning two things particularly interested brothers George and Earl Holley, an intense interest in
racing with a dedication to engineering excellence. As a teenager, George began racing motorcycles in his
hometown of Bradford, Pennsylvania. Soon his younger brother Earl was helping him build them.
Then, in 1897, the Holley brothers built a three-wheeled, single-cylinder vehicle. George, at only 19, had drawn the original plans himself.
He even went to a pattern shop to learn how to build patterns for a single-cylinder motor. Much to everyone's surprise, the vehicle not only
ran, but it also reached the impressive speed of 30 miles per hour! The Holleys christened their first automobile The Runabout.
Still fascinated by his first love, however, George teamed up with Earl in 1899 to form a company
that would manufacture motorcycle engines. This was the birth of the Holley Motor Co.
Because orders for their engines were few, however, the brothers soon began manufacturing complete motorcycles instead. Earl, drawing on his background
as a bank teller, handled the business and finance end of the company and served as president. George, appointed chairman of the board, was responsible
for engineering and sales. This proved a satisfactory arrangement, as George M. Holley was his own best publicity agent: he took first place in
America's inaugural Motorcycle Endurance Contest in 1902, and also set a series of world speed records for motorcycles at the Pan American
Exposition in Buffalo, New York.
In 1901, following a visit to Paris, France, the Holley brothers obtained a license to
produce and sell the French Longuemare Carburetor in the United States. This decision
redirected the brothers' focus back to the newly emerging automotive industry.
In 1903, George and Earl produced their second automobile: the Holley Motorette. This jaunty little
candy-apple red vehicle was well made and well
received at the modest price of $550. It featured a 5.5 horsepower single-cylinder engine, tilt
steering wheel with lock, and front and rear kerosene lamps. More than 600 Motorettes were
sold during the three-year period in which they were built. Only three are still in existence today,
one which is in the lobby of Holley headquarters in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
In that same year, Henry Ford asked George Holley to make a carburetor for the Model T.
Sensing the
oncoming trend toward industrialized specialization, the Holley brothers elected to concentrate on designing and building carburetors and ignition-system
components for car makers such as Pierce-Arrow, Winston, Buick, and Ford.
They, along with George Welch, incorporated their business under the name Holley Brothers Company.Their first
original carburetor, called the "iron pot," debuted in 1904. It was designed for application on curved-dash
Oldsmobiles. A short time later, it became standard equipment on Fords as well.
From Motorcycles to the Motor City
1896 - 1905
