December 24, 2016

DOLSON

John L.Dolson & Sons (1902-1906)

Dolson Automobile Co. (1906-1907)

Charlotte, Michigan


This Dolson emblem is soldered onto the radiator tank top (c1906-1907)    ms
Size: c80mm

John L.Dolson & Sons were manufacturers of horse drawn vehicles but entered the automotive market in 1904 with a 15 hp two-cylinder touring car. A 30 hp four-cylinder model followed in 1905. In 1906 the company was renamed the Dolson Automobile Company. Dolson cars were very well made and had a reputation for strength and durability. In 1907 Dolson offered their most powerful car, a 60 hp four-cylinder model called the Cannon Ball Roadster.

But the company was in financial trouble and was bankrupt by the end of 1907. Total production of the Dolson was about 700 cars.

Emblem

The first Dolson cars did not carry an emblem but may have carried a small tag attached to the back of the car similar to the tags used on Dolson horse drawn vehicles, see example below:

This is an early Dolson name tag (c1902)    ms 

The first Dolson radiator emblems probably appeared in about 1905 or 1906, although I cannot confirm these dates. These emblems were in the form of small cast brass scripts soldered onto the radiator tank top and are very rare, see example above at the top of this post.

By about 1906 the Dolson also carried a larger Dolson script attached to the radiator core, as shown below.

Original photo showing the Dolson radiator script (c1906)    pcc


This is a slightly different Dolson radiator script (1907)   ms
Size: c180mm 









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