MTFCA Forum

Photo caption said this is Walter Marr and David Buick's son, without indicating who is who. (?). The car is, if course, stripped down for "proving". No idea of the date or model, but I'll bet Rich Eagle knows !

Walter Marr is on the left. (Drivers side.)

From the book Seventy years of Buick by George H. Dammann.

"The photo shown above is the car often credited with being the first Buick. It is the vehicle used by Walter Marr, shown behind the wheel and Thomas Buick (David's son) to make the historic trip from Flint to Detroit and back. The 2-day, 230 mile trip was made to convince apprehensive backers that the car was a substantial and functional vehicle worthy of manufacture." (July, 1904.)

Thanks for the details Bob ! Marr was Buick's first chief engineer.

Thanks for posting the historically significant automotive photo Rich.

Walther Marr's engineering genius was instrumental in many of Buick's innovations in the early years of the company. Walter Marr and Henry Ford were acquaintances and sometimes consulted with each other in the early days. One of his crowning achievements was the Buick "Twin Six" which sadly never went into production. However, two prototypes were built. His great grandson, Paul Marr recovered and restored the remaining 1915 D55 "Twin Six."

Below: Paul Marr, Walter Marr's great grandson with the 1915 Twin Six. Beautiful Buick Twin Six engine.
Video of engine running: https://youtu.be/HSpo2v1axAg?si=guAC8HZD6s21y9Vs

It's nice to see Walter Marr mentioned. Some of the great geniuses are not given enough credit. There is a great book, WALTER L MARR: BUICK'S AMAZING ENGINEER By Beverly Rae and Cox Kimes on the market that tells his story. Here are some other photos of firsts :

There are apparently no photos extant of David D. Buick with a Buick car.

Bob, thank you for that !! Most interesting about the twin six. It was concurrent with Packard's Twin Six (1915-24). What a wonderful machine.

Rich Eagle wrote: ↑

Thu Dec 14, 2023 2:02 pm

It's nice to see Walter Marr mentioned. Some of the great geniuses are not given enough credit. There is a great book, WALTER L MARR: BUICK'S AMAZING ENGINEER By Beverly Rae and Cox Kimes on the market that tells his story. Here are some other photos of firsts :

Thanks for recommending that book Rich E. I noticed it was available on AbeBooks and thought it might be a good read. Will order for Christmas reading.

This looks like a good place to put this photo.

My first car was a 1924 Ford sedan brought home in 1962; have had several Model T's after that; currently own two 1912's. I also own a 1909 and a 1910 Buick Model 10, Buick's low end car meant to compete with Model T. It is my observation that for $100 (10%) more, you got twice the car with the Buick. Admittedly, Buick did not give you a windshield and top for the base price as did Mr. Ford, but the whole car is much more substantial with both oil and water pump on an overhead valve (valve in head) engine. The big negative for the Buick (and positive for Ford) is that the high speed lever on the Buick is not connected to the low speed pedal, so one is perpetually having to pull back the lever to get out of high gear. I often quip that a Model T is easy to drive if you have five appendages, but the Buick requires six.

Dan Haynes wrote: ↑

Thu Dec 14, 2023 2:11 pm

There are apparently no photos extant of David D. Buick with a Buick car.

I did not know that! However, I had wondered about it. I know I never knew of a photo of David D Buick in one of his namesake automobiles. He sold his interests in the company early on.
If I recall correctly, in spite of the fact he had made a fortune in the plumbing supply business (patented a porcelain application technique), and created one of the mot popular automobiles in automotive history, he himself died nearly broke and still working for a living at an age where he should have been retired.