CADILLAC

Cadillac Motor Company is a story of turning failure into success and creating a premium legend. The company began on the ruins of Henry Ford’s second failed venture, and today stands as one of America’s leading luxury automakers. After Henry Leland convinced former Ford board members of the potential of a new enterprise, he utilized his own engine, originally developed for the Olds Motor Vehicle Company.

On August 27, 1902, the Cadillac Automobile Company was founded, named after Detroit’s founder, Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, with Leland as its director. The Leland & Faulconer factory, which started out producing bicycles and marine engines, was already making automobile engines for Ransom Olds by 1899. The first Cadillacs combined a Ford-designed body with Leland’s Cadillac engine. At the 1903 New York Auto Show, the company received over 1,000 orders.

In 1905, Leland and his son Wilfred merged the engine and automobile production under the unified Cadillac Motor Car Company brand. The new facility brought all processes under one roof, and the brand quickly gained fame for the precision and interchangeability of its parts. In 1908, Cadillac was awarded the prestigious British Dewar Trophy for innovation, proving the unique quality of its products.

In 1909, the company was sold to General Motors, with the Leland family remaining in charge of production until 1917, upholding high standards. Cadillac was the first to mass-produce fully enclosed cars, introduce electric starting, ignition, and lighting, and develop powerful V-8, V-12, and V-16 engines. In 1935, Cadillac introduced the all-steel roof, a groundbreaking innovation for its time.

From 1921 to 1987, Cadillacs were manufactured at the Clark Street facility, and today, production is concentrated at four locations, two of which are in Michigan.