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J.E. Demar Co. was an early New York City
coachbuilder
formed by the Manhattan distributor of the Baker Electric. Little is
known of
the firm’s work save for a striking white touring car depicted in a
1910
advertisement.
Joseph Edward Demar was born in 1867 in
Washington D.C. to
Charles H. and Francis E. Demar - his father was proprietor of a Dry
Goods
store located in D.C. at 1305 32d St. Northwest.
The 1890 US Census lists J. Edward Demar
(home address - 1303
32d St. Northwest) as a partner in Robert S. Fletcher & Co.,
a general merchandise broker located in the Seaton Hall Bldg. at 408
Ninth St. Northwest,
Washington, D.C.
His first mention in the automobiles trades
appeared in a 1903 issue of Automotive Industries:
“The Baker Motor Vehicle Agency, New York,
to sell Baker
motor vehicles, has been incorporated by J. Edward Demar, Albert
B.
Rulison, New York, and Samuel W. Wickens, of Newark, N. J. Capital
$25,000.”
An overview of Demar's operation was included in
the June 1, 1904 issue of the Cycle and Automobile Trade
Journal:
“The Baker Motor Vehicle Agency
“The Baker Motor Vehicle Agency is situated
at 1790
Broadway, New York. corner of Fifty-eighth street. and the Baker
Electric
Carriage is handled exclusively. The concern is a stock company,
with J.
E. Demar as secretary and manager. They have been established about
eight
months and occupy a three-story building comprising 12.500 square feet
of floor
space, with storage capacity for 60 machines. They also do repairing.
“They look after nothing but Baker
Electrics, and their
policy is to give an over-all cost for the upkeep of a machine, this
charge
including ordinary repairs not made necessary by accidents. By this
plan the
customer knows exactly what his vehicle is going to cost him per month
to keep,
and this scheme has proved most satisfactory both from the standpoint
of their
customers and themselves. Of course this plan could not be applied to
the
maintenance of gasoline cars, but where but one make of electric
machine is
looked after, it has proved a most satisfactory way of conducting the
business.
“The Baker line includes vehicles from $350
to $1600.”
The Baker Motor Vehicle Agency was located
on the first
floor of the 10-story United States Rubber Building.
The 1904 Directory of Directors in the City of
New York and the suburbs lists Demar as president of the firm:
“DEMAR, J. E.; 1790
Broadway, Baker Motor Vehicle
Agency, President, Secretary, Manager and Director.”
The 1905 Directory of Directors in the City of
New York and the suburbs indicates Demar was also the general manager
of the National Automobile Co., a yet unidentified business:
“DEMAR, J. EDWARD; 1790 Broadway,
National Automobile
Co., General Manager and Director.”
The Recent Business Changes column of the
April 9, 1908
issue of The Automobile infer that Demar had vacated his 1790 Broadway
showroom:
“The Continental Caoutchouc Company, which
has had its
headquarters for a number of years at 43 Warren street, New York City,
announces its removal to 1788-1790 Broadway, corner of Fifty eighth
street, the
premises formerly occupied by the Baker Electric Company. The
Continental
people will take immediate possession. General Manager Gilbert reports
an
increasing demand for Continental tires this season particularly for
the new
demountable rim carrying ready-flated tires.”
The formation of the J.E. Demar Co was announced
in the July 18, 1907 issue of the Iron Trade Review:
“Joseph E. Demar, 515 West 111th street;
Richard Ely and
Julian B. Beaty, 141 Broadway, all of New York, have incorporated
the J.
E. Demar Co., New York, to manufacture motors, engines, carriages,
etc.”
The March 1908 issue of MoToR reports Demar had
added automobile tops to his product line:
“Now in the Top Business.
“J.E. Demar & Co. have secured
quarters at 244 West 49th St., New York City, and will engage in the
manufacture of tops and bodies and will do painting and refinishing.”
The Demar Co'.s listing in the 1909 Trow
(formerly Wilson's)
Copartnership and Corporation Directory of New York reveal the names of
his business associates:
“Demar, J.E. Co. (N.Y.) (J. Edward Demar,
Pres.: Alfred J. Diefenderfer, Sec.; Oscar R. Weiss, Treas. Capital,
$15,000. Directors;
J.
Edward Demar, Alfred J. Diefenderfer, Oscar R. Weiss) 244 W. 49th.”
The April 1910 issue of The Carriage Monthly
announces the firm's relocation to 304-306 West Forty-Ninth St.:
“J. E. Demar Co., manufacturers of
automobile bodies
and tops, have leased the six-story and basement garage at 304-306 West
Forty-Ninth Street, New York City, for a term of years at an aggregate
rental
of about $100,000.”
Furthur details were included in a concurrent
article in Motor Age:
“New York — The J. E. Demar Co.,
manufacturer of
bodies and tops, has leased a six-story and basement garage, 50 by 100,
at
304-306 West Forty-ninth street.”
The firm entered into bankruptcy proceeding in
January of 1911, Motor World Wholesale reporting:
“On Tuesday last, 24th inst., a petition in
bankruptcy was
filed against the J. E. De MarCo., manufacturers of
automobile tops,
at No. 304 West 49th street, New York. It was alleged that the
company is
insolvent. The receiver permitted three creditors to obtain judgments
for $358, and
on
January 10 gave a bill of sale on some machinery to the W. A. Woods
company.
Assets are estimated at "$21,000. The company was incorporated in 1907,
with capital stock $15,000, which was afterward increased to $50.000.”
R.L. Polk & Co.’s 1914 Manhattan
Directory lists Demar as head of a new firm:
“Markell Corporation (N.Y.) (J. Edward
Demar, Pres.; William
H. Sandall, Sec.; Capital $1,000. Directors: Mildred J. Pelikan,
William H.
Sandall, E. Huber, J. Edward Demar) 1784 B’way r. 611”
The October 22, 1913 issue of the Horseless Age
reveals that after the bankruptcy Demar had been working for the
Manhattan F.B. Stearns distributor:
“J. E. Demar, one of the best known of
metropolitan
automobile salesmen, has resigned from the F. B. Stearns Co. to enter
in
business as a manufacturers' agent. He will also do a general brokerage
business and has established headquarters in the United States Rubber
building
in New York.”
A concurrent issue of The Autombile / Automotive
Industries gives the name of the new firm:
“Demar In Own Business — J. E.
Demar has gone into
business for himself as the Markell Corp., with offices in the United
States
Rubber Building, New York City. He will act as a manufacturers' agent
in the
buying and selling of cars and supplies.”
The 1915 New York State Census provides the name
of his wife and daughter:
“Joseph E. Demar (b.1867 - occupation salesman)
spouse Harriet (b.1877), daughter Arline (b.
1898 in Scotland).”
Within the year Demar had taken a position with
the Manhattan Hupmobile distibutor, the Septtember 23, 1916 issue of
Automobile Topics reporting:
“DeMar Heads Riess Sales
“J. E. DeMar, who is well known in the
New York trade,
has become sales manager for Chas. E. Riess & Co., Inc., New York
distributor for the Hupmobile. He was formerly assistant sales manager
for the
F. B. Stearns Co. of New York.”
The November 7, 1918 issue of Automotive
Industries announced yet another new business venture for Demar:
“J. Edward Demar has resigned as sales
manager of Chas.
E. Reiss & Co., Inc., New York, to accept the presidency of the
Carlisle
Sales Co., Inc., distributer of the Carlisle cord tire, with offices
and
showrooms at 237 West Fifty-eighth Street.”
An article in the August 24, 1919 San Francisco
Chronicle provides Demar's take on a recent innovation in the tire
business:
“Tire Shop
Called On
For Colors to Suit Lady’s Whim
“It is not quite possible for women of
fashion to have tires
on their automobile in shade-harmony with their hair or gowns. Tire
manufacturers have made astonishing progress during the past year or so
in the
art of coloring their casings, particularly tire treads. Like some of
the women
they also went to the druggist for assistance.
“Red rubber, of best quality, is colored
with antimony,
after a long and rather expensive process. Red rubber of inferior
quality is produced
hurriedly with iron oxide. Pure cream color is made with zinc; gray is
obtained
with sulphur and black with lamp-black.
“People are getting fussy about the color of
the treads on
their tires," says J. Edward DeMar, president of the Carlisle Sales
company of New York. The Carlisle is the tire made from one continuous
rope or ‘giant
cord,’ on a machine which has revolutionized cord-tire building. The
Carlisle
non-skid tread is of ebony hue with parallel streaks of lightning
running
around the circumference of the wheel and forming the non-skid designs.
‘Recently’,
explained DeMar, ‘a wealthy woman made a special call upon me to find
out if I
could order for her from our factory a set of Carlisle Cord Tires with
blue
tread and red lightning non-skid design. When I explained that even the
Carlisle
Cord Tire factory, which is the most modern in the world as to methods
of
manufacture, could not get quite as close to nature as that, she said
she would
be willing to take a red tread with white lightning, but I had to tell
her we
were also all out of white lightning.”
Demar remained in the tire business until his
retirement.
©2013 Mark Theobald for Coachbuilt.com
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