ABSTRACT
The sprouted in the Boston region but rooted in Bridgeport, Locomobile reminds us of the New England beginnings of the American automobile industry. The Stanley brothers decided to take advantage of public enthusiasm aroused by the exhibition and prepared to manufacture a batch of their steamers. The more Walker thought about the idea the more liked it and after two months returns to Watertown, reappearing at the factory in mid–April with an offer to buy out the entire business. The first major steps the new automobile men took were away from each other. Barber and Walker split. Among early automobile factories the extent of Locomobile's floor space was second only to the De Dion–Bouton works in suburban Paris. The Locomobile company is outstanding among all the other firms in the young industry for its large–scale production of low priced cars. The market for steam cars, at least those made by Mobile and Locomobile, is evaporating.
