Cars were becoming more commonplace, and there were over 15 new and used car dealers shown in the 1922 Holyoke City Directory. One more would be added to the list when the Franklin-Holyoke Corporation entered the new car sales market in 1922.
The Franklin-Holyoke Corporation, or Franklin Motors, was incorporated on May 1, 1922. The principals of the corporation included Ledlie D. Moore of Newtonville, MA, who was the President, William H. Congdon, Jr. of 303 Sargeant Street, the Vice-President and Joseph D. Balch of 463 Appleton Street, the Treasurer. The company was authorized with $25,000 in capital.
The dealership opened in 1922 and was the local branch retailer for the Franklin Motor Car Company’s vehicles. The company sold touring cars, sedans, coupes, four-door and demi-sedans, and roadsters.
Franklin-Holyoke’s headquarters were at 69 Lincoln Street, which was owned at the time by Wilson Harry Dale. Mr. Dale had purchased the property on September 6, 1921. On June 2, 1922, Mr. Dale sold the property to Louis Magri, whose family would have a personal or corporate interest in the real estate for the next 85 years. Many may recall Magri’s Grocery Store at this location for many years during the 20th century.
Franklin-Holyoke opened the Franklin Service Station at 586 South Street during the summer of 1922. For sales, the telephone number was 624, and for service, 409.
The advertisements indicated the car would get 20 miles per gallon of gas, would be equipped with tires with a 12,500-mile tread life, and would retain its value favorably compared with its competitors. Background research indicated that the Franklin was produced in Syracuse, New York, and was a leader in automobile technology. The cars were air-cooled rather than water-cooled, resulting in increased performance over their competitors.
In 1923, the company offered used cars for sale in addition to new vehicles. It was in this year that the company also added the Maxwell vehicle to its line. The Maxwell’s fuel efficiency was 22 miles per gallon of gas, and had tires with an estimated 18,000-mile road life. The car would accelerate from 5 miles per hour to 25 miles per hour in 8 seconds.
In early 1924, the company was selected as the local distributor for Chrysler autos, which at the time produced the Maxwell. By June 2024, a little over two years after its inception, the Holyoke dealership ceased operations as it was unable to pay its debts. Two months later, the city of Holyoke revoked the company’s dealer registration certificate, ending the story of the short-lived Franklin-Holyoke Corporation.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; publication dates and pages are shown.
Hampden County Registry of Deeds, Springfield, Massachusetts
Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Price & Lee Holyoke, Massachusetts City Directories
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