The Maxwell-Briscoe Company of Tarrytown, New York, was named after founders Jonathan Dixon Maxwell, who had previously worked for Oldsmobile, and Benjamin Briscoe, a pioneer in the automobile industry and part owner of the Briscoe Brothers Metalworks (he was president of Maxwell-Briscoe at its height). Additional financial backing was supplied by J.P. Morgan.
When a fire destroyed the Tarrytown, N.Y. factory in 1907, Maxwell-Briscoe constructed what was then the largest automobile factory in the world in New Castle, Indiana. Following a takeover of Maxwell, it became a Chrysler plant that would continue in operation until its demolition in 2004.
Maxwell ranked third place in the U.S. auto industry by 1909 (behind only Ford and Buick), with sales of nearly 9,500 cars. That was the same year that Alice Huyler Ramsey (along with three other women aboard) became the first woman to drive coast-to-coast - a feat she achieved in a Maxwell. Sales more than doubled in 1910. Competing with distinction in the Glidden Tours, Maxwell had outright wins in 1911 and 1912.
The United States Motor Company was formed in 1910 by Benjamin Briscoe and collapsed in 1913 due to a conflict between two of its backers. This led to the failure of its last supporting car manufacturer, the Brush Motor Company. The U.S.M.C. sought to combine Maxwell, Briscoe, Columbia, and, later, Stoddard-Dayton and Brush. Maxwell, which had been the only profitable company of the combine named United States Motor Company, was the only survivor. Following the collapse, Briscoe pursued another venture - the Briscoe automobile.
The 1912 Maxwell
The 1912 Maxwell model lineup consisted of the twin-cylinder Messenger Vestibuled Roadster resting on an 86-inch wheelbase, a four-cylinder, 25 horsepower Mascotte Fore-Door Roadster on a 104-inch wheelbase, and a four-cylinder, 30 hp Mercury Fore-Door Roadster on a 110-inch wheelbase. The Special Fore-Door Tourer with seating for five resided on a 114-inch wheelbase platform and was powered by a 36-horsepower four-cylinder engine. The overhead valve engine in the Special displaced 4,610cc and was paired with a three-speed sliding gear transmission. It had a leaf spring suspension and two-wheel mechanical drum brakes.
by Dan Vaughan