Walking down Winona’s Huff St., towards the river, there is a car dealership on the side of the road that sells this one Jeep I really like. I mean if a car could be cute, this one would be. It is kind of funny to think that in the small city of Winona there is four dealerships. Cars today are kind of common thing. Almost like you have to own a car (or at least drive your parents) to be someone. Me being the weird guy that I am, was staring out a window the other day and thought, “I wonder if in the times of horse drawn wagons, if you owned your own wagon, did that make you socially superior?” That question led me to googling weird stuff till I eventually discovered that Winona once had its very own wagon company, and it was huge.
The year 1925 was a sad year. That is, if you were an employee for the Winona Wagon Company, because you were just laid off due to your company having to close to avoid bankruptcy court. A few years before the Winona Wagon Company closed, they decided change from their traditional production of horse drawn wagons to automobile cabs. At the time this was a great business move and as far as the owners could see this was a lifesaving move. Sadly, not long after the change in production, car manufacturers discovered that they could efficiently mass produce their own cabs. This was the final nail in coffin for wagon companies like Winona’s.
Winona Wagon Co.’s half a century lifetime was filled with many ups and down. When they were not making world class wagons, the company was busy burning down the factory. In fact, when the company was first opened in 1874 it was called Rushford Wagon Company, located in Rushford, Minnesota. The young company immediately became popular after its grand opening, so much that the founder, A.J. Stevens, was barely able to keep up with all the orders. By 1879, at the end of long day it is believed a careless worker accidentally caused a spark that immediately set the factory up in flames. Instead of rebuilding in the same spot, Steven decided to make the financially wise decision and move the company twenty miles down the road to Winona, Minnesota. Winona was right on the Mississippi river and had a good-sized train station which made this a trading hotspot for the region.
In October of 1879, A.J. Stevens reopened his wagon company under the new name of Winona Wagon Company. Moving locations turned out to be a wise decision because once they were fully operational, orders were coming in left and right, growing faster and much more than he could ever in Rushford. Over the next decade Winona Wagon Co. escaped many scares of another fire. But by 1891 their luck had run out. A passing switch engine had touched off a spark in the spoke shed. The dry wood quickly set ablaze, burning the whole shed down. Things got worse. That day there was strong winds which spread the fire to the shipping rooms and many other sheds, burning most of the stock and material. Thanks to the local firefighters, the fire contained and did not burn down the main building. Stevens was able to quickly able to rebuild after this setback due to their previous financial success, and in no time, the wagon company was back on their feet.
By this time Winona Wagon Company was a thriving company. At their peak, their factories were open 10 hours a day, producing about one wagon every minute, and about 50,000 a year. Their wagons were hauling corn in Iowa, supporting farmers in North Dakota, carrying silver ore in Nevada, shipping potatoes in Idaho, and transporting lumber in California. By the 1900s, Winona’s wagon company was a house hold name like GMC or Ford is today.
Now many of you might be thinking something like, “that many wagons were around back then?”, but I have to be honest, and I know this sounds dumb, but when I discovered that fact I immediately thought, “there was more than one wagon company back then?!” Yes, I know this makes me sound dumb, and I agree, but there were actually an estimated 80,000 different wagon companies across the United Stated by the turn of twentieth century. Some of the top brands were: Studebaker, Schuttler, Milburn, Murphy, Bain, Mitchell, Moline, Jackson, Espenschied, and Winona Wagon Co.
When someone wanted to get a wagon so that they could impress their date or transport mounds of hay more efficiently, they would go down to the local wagon dealership like the one in Redwing, Minnesota. The process was a lot like today, you pull up to the dealership and browse through all the different styles of wagons to get the one that best fit your needs (and yes, they even had sleazy dealers as well). Once you figured out what wagon would best serve you, the dealer would give what they had on hand, or, if there was not enough on hand, the dealer would place an order with the factory. Orders were especially often due to many companies having many different models, Winona Wagon Co. had more than different 100 styles alone.
A.J. Stevens’ wagons were not just a preferable wagon based off the sleek green body or its eye catching yellow wheels, but it was known for how reliable they were ¾ being both sturdy and durable. The wagon company’s slogan was “Good Timber and Bone Dry.” The slogan means nothing to average person today, but back in the late 19th and early 20th century, this meant the world. Winona Wagon Company was known for using some of the finest raw materials such as aged timber and sturdy fasteners. The company also received praise for the lack of creaking in the joints of the wagons and how flax would not escape through cracks in the floor. Stevens chalked it up to boiling the wheels in oil and the body being artfully finished with stain and paint.
Winona Wagon Company was also known for its unique undercarriage. The felloes were double riveted to ensure the wagon moved steadily (this just means the wheels were top notch). The axel was uniquely secured to the bolster (sturdy piece of timber that supported the axel). On the mountain wagons there was a block of iron formed to fit in between the axel and bolster to make the wagon even more sturdy. Iron blocks helped take more of the load off the center portion of the axle and spread it across the entire wheel base. The result was that the outer axle was tied to the upper bolster while also being reinforced by the skein (the metal thimble fitted over the wooden axle). That meant that both the axel and the bolster, plus a few other parts, would have to break before the wagon was rendered useless, which was important because most wagons were used on rugged and unforgiving landscapes. Yet another distinctive design feature of Winona wagons was the iron clad hub. The design was a metal covering or shield that surrounded the hub, protecting it from the destructive elements. According to the company, this feature meant that no matter how much the hubs were exposed to sun, snow, rain or dirt, they wouldn’t check or crack. This type of building was not something other companies practiced, which made Winona Wagon Co. famous for the craftsmanship put into each of their products.
Just as business was going well Stevens, something new made its way into the market. By 1901, the first modern motorcar was introduced to the market. This Mercedes vehicle did not scare the successful business man at first because of how prone to breaking down cars were and their inability to cross rough terrain, but the idea of a “horseless carriage” was quickly catching on. As the demand for these new vehicles grew, so did the demand for parts to make them. Stevens saw this as an opportunity to get a slice of the pie. So, in the teens of the 20th century, he made the decision to start making automobile cabs to send sell car manufacturers. At first this was a smart business move that generated good revenue and kept the company afloat, but this success only lasted so long. By 1925, the Winona Wagon Company had to close its doors due to automobiles figuring out how to efficiently mass produce the entirety of the vehicle under one roof, no longer having a need for outsourcing. By 1930, no more wagon companies were able to stand in the shadows of the horseless carriage, marking the end of an era.
The City of Winona has come a long way from what its industrial and trading past. It kind makes me wonder how a pretty big state college ended up here. Without Winona’s past, would not be what it is today and sadly that is taken for granted and people Do not usually think about it. It’s the same for cars. We all love our vehicle, but neglect to remember that someone, once upon a time, was sitting in their horse drawn wagon and thought, “I bet I can find a way to make this move without horses.”
