1918 Moreland Truck
Picture taken from the Arizona Republican Newspaper, September 29, 1918.
Source: https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84020558/1918-09-29/ed-1/seq-17/
The Moreland Motor Truck Company was officially established in Los Angeles during the spring of 1911. Watt L. Moreland, named general manager, ran the corporation along with a board of directors. The Moreland Motor Truck Company manufactured a general line of trucks, which could be found up and down the Pacific Coast, from South America to Canada, while many trucks were exported to Australia.[1]
Watt Moreland was an early Los Angeles inventor. In 1909, at an auto show held in Hamburger’s department store in downtown L.A., he introduced a long-range motor. The following year Moreland opened the Moreland Motor Truck Company. He manufactured six models with a Gasifier engine fueled by distillate, a form of diesel.[2]
Watt Moreland had invented the Moreland Gasifier which allowed his trucks to operate using a cheaper fuel. The 50% fuel savings was a top advertising point for the company.
In the 1920s, the company flourished and they became a major manufacturer of work trucks, fire engines, touring trucks, and buses on the West Coast. Moreland trucks became popular in Mexico and South America.
During the Great Depression, the Moreland Motor Truck Company took a major financial hit. They could no long compete with the heavy competition from General Motors, Mack, and Ford. In 1938 the company officially closed their doors.
[1] McGroarty, John Stevens, Los Angeles, From the Mountains to the Sea, Vol. II, (New York: The American
Historical Society, 1921), p100-1.
[2] https://www.latimes.com/home/la-hm-lostla13-2009jun13-story.html.
Thank you for reading.
Jenny R. Findsen
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