H. & C. Studebaker: the $68 shop

1852 – 1868

The founding: Henry Studebaker (1826–1895) and Clement Studebaker (1831–1901), sons of John and Rebecca Studebaker of Ashland County, Ohio, and grandsons of a German wagon-making family that had arrived at Philadelphia from Rotterdam in 1736, opened a blacksmith shop at the corner of Michigan and Jefferson streets in South Bend in February 1852 — 16 February, in the standard company accounts. Their capital was $68. They began by making metal parts for freight wagons and within the year were building complete wagons; two wagons were built the first year, in the Studebaker National Museum's curriculum account of the shop.

The brother from California: The third brother, John Mohler Studebaker (1833–1917), had gone west in 1853 and made his money at Placerville, California, selling wheelbarrows to gold miners — the site of his Placerville business is California Historic Landmark No. 142. In April 1858 he came home with $8,000 and put it into the firm, buying out Henry's share. Henry, the eldest, had reservations the later company histories handled two ways: the family's Dunkard Brethren faith viewed war as evil, and the official history written by Albert Russel Erskine put it that Henry "was tired of the business. He wanted to farm. The risks of expanding were not for him." What is documented is the occasion: the business John M.'s money entered was already booming on an order to build wagons for the United States Army — the museum's account gives a government order of 100 wagons in 1857 — and the firm had built its first carriage in 1857, a hand-trimmed courting buggy.

The Civil War trade: The fourth brother, Peter Everst Studebaker (1836–1897), was running a general store at Goshen, Indiana, which in 1860 he expanded into a wagon distribution outlet, the seed of the branch-house system that would sell Studebakers across the country; the youngest brother, Jacob Franklin (1844–1887), would join the works in 1875. The great leap came from the Civil War: the firm built supply wagons and ambulances for the Union Army, shipping by rail and steamship, and ended the war years a substantial manufacturer — one museum account gives 130 men employed and a profit of $250,000 by 1865. By 1868 annual sales had reached $350,000.

The incorporation: In 1868 the three older brothers in the business formed the Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing Company: Clement president, Peter secretary, John M. treasurer. The factory by then had its own spur to the Lake Shore railroad, and westward wagons increasingly went out by rail and steamship rather than over the trails. The brothers' father had set the firm's rule, carried on its letterhead culture for a century: always give more than you promise.

Sources:

1. Studebaker National Museum, company history as carried in the South Bend Tribune's retrospective, "From wagons to automobiles, the rise and fall of Studebaker" (2026), and the museum's published curriculum history, "The Studebaker Story" — the 1852 opening at Michigan and Jefferson, the two wagons of the first year, the 1857 order of 100 Army wagons, and the Civil War supply trade.
2. Albert Russel Erskine, History of the Studebaker Corporation (1918), as excerpted in the standard encyclopedia history of the company — the $68 capital, John M.'s $8,000 and his April 1858 buy-in, Henry's departure and its two stated reasons, Peter's Goshen outlet of 1860, the $350,000 of sales by 1868, and the 1868 incorporation with its officers.
3. The Gentleman Racer, "Visiting the Studebaker National Museum" (2022) — the 130 men and $250,000 profit by 1865, as carried in the museum's displays.