Inter-State Automobile Company

Inter-State Automobile Company
Industry	Automotive
Founded	1909; 117 years ago
Founder	Thomas F. Hart
Defunct	1919; 107 years ago
Fate	Sold plant to General Motors
Headquarters	Muncie, Indiana, United States
Key people	Thomas F. Hart, Frank C. Ball
Products	Vehicles; Automotive parts
Production output	8,179 (1909-1918)

The Inter-State was a Brass Era car built in Muncie, Indiana, by Inter-State Automobile Company from 1909 to 1919.

History

Company name

Thomas F. Hart announced in October 1908 the winning name of his new company, chosen via a contest. The Inter-State Automobile Company set up shop at 142 Willard Street. Ads stated "we could get more for this car."^[1] Originally, all Inter-States were mid-market, both in size and price, with four-cylinder engines. In 1913, 6-cylinder engines were added.^[2]

Receivership followed in the fall of 1913. Thomas Hart cited "internal dissention and his inability to secure working capital because of disagreement among stockholders."^[1] In February 1914, Frank C. Ball (one of the original Inter-State investors) bought the Inter-State factory and real estate. This resulted in a renaming of the parent company to the Inter-State Motor Company.^[1]

General Motors

In 1915, a new Beaver 4-cylinder low-priced car was released. By May 1918, automobile production was suspended in favor of war work. In late February 1919, F. C. Ball announced he would be resuming passenger car production, but by March of the same year, Ball sold the Inter-State factory to General Motors for them to produce their new Sheridan.^[2]

Overview of production figures

Year	Production	Model
1909	323
1910	627
1911	839	Model 31 A;^[3] Model 34 ^[4]
1912	1.012
1913	614
1914	117
1915	1.123
1916	1.238
1917	1.413
1918	876
Sum	8.182

References

1 2 3 Kimes, Beverly Rae; Clark, Jr, Henry Austin (1996). Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805-1942 (3rd ed.). Iola, WI: Krause Publications. ISBN 978-0-87341-428-9.
1 2 Wise, David Burgress (2000). The New Illustrated Encyclopedia of Automobiles. Chartwell Books. ISBN 0-7858-1106-0.
↑ "Model 31 A". Hand book of automobiles (1911). 1911-01-15. Retrieved 2025-03-29.
↑ "Model 34". Hand book of automobiles (1911). 1911-01-15. Retrieved 2025-03-29.

[Kimes-1] 1 2 3 Kimes, Beverly Rae; Clark, Jr, Henry Austin (1996). Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805-1942 (3rd ed.). Iola, WI: Krause Publications. ISBN 978-0-87341-428-9.

[Wise-2] 1 2 Wise, David Burgress (2000). The New Illustrated Encyclopedia of Automobiles. Chartwell Books. ISBN 0-7858-1106-0.

[3] "Model 31 A". Hand book of automobiles (1911). 1911-01-15. Retrieved 2025-03-29.

[4] "Model 34". Hand book of automobiles (1911). 1911-01-15. Retrieved 2025-03-29.

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