E. L. Cord

E. L. Cord. Errett Lobban Cord was a pivotal American industrialist and automotive magnate during the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression. He masterminded a vast corporate empire, the Cord Corporation, which controlled a diverse portfolio of transportation and manufacturing companies. His legacy is most enduring in the automotive world, where he championed innovative, front-wheel-drive luxury cars bearing his name and revived iconic brands like Auburn and Duesenberg.

Early life and career

Born in Warrensburg, Missouri, Cord displayed entrepreneurial drive from a young age, leaving school early to work. His initial forays into business included selling Model T cars and operating a taxicab service in Los Angeles. He later moved to Chicago, where he gained significant experience in automobile sales and finance, working for the Moon Motor Car company. This period honed his understanding of the automotive market's financial mechanics, preparing him for his transformative role at the struggling Auburn Automobile Company in Auburn, Indiana.

The Cord Corporation empire

Through a leveraged buyout in 1924, Cord assumed control of the Auburn Automobile Company and used it as the cornerstone for a sprawling industrial conglomerate. He formally established the Cord Corporation in 1929 as a holding company to consolidate his growing interests. The empire expanded far beyond automobiles, encompassing aviation through Stinson Aircraft Company, Lycoming Engines, and American Airways (a forerunner of American Airlines). It also included holdings in New York Shipbuilding Corporation, radio manufacturing with Cord Radio, and various real estate and natural resource ventures, creating a vertically integrated transportation powerhouse.

Automotive ventures and legacy

Cord's most celebrated achievements were in the automotive sector, where he assembled a trio of legendary American luxury car brands known as the "Cord-Auburn-Duesenberg" empire. He acquired the prestigious but financially troubled Duesenberg in 1926, commissioning the magnificent Duesenberg Model J. For Auburn, he oversaw the creation of stylish, high-performance models like the Auburn Speedster. His namesake achievement was the Cord Corporation's Cord L-29, the first American front-wheel-drive production car, and later the groundbreaking, coffin-nosed Cord 810 and Cord 812, designed by Gordon Buehrig. These cars, celebrated at events like the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, remain icons of Art Deco design and engineering innovation.

Later years and death

The collapse of the Cord Corporation began in 1937, pressured by the Great Depression and investigations from the Securities and Exchange Commission. Cord sold his automotive assets and largely retreated from public business life, focusing on extensive ranching and broadcasting investments in Nevada. He served briefly as a Democratic state senator and made an unsuccessful run for Governor of Nevada in 1946. Cord spent his final years managing his substantial holdings, including KCRL-TV in Reno, Nevada, where he died in 1974. His influence is preserved in museums like the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum and through the enduring collector appeal of the automobiles he championed. Category:American businesspeople Category:Automotive executives Category:1894 births Category:1974 deaths