High Wheeler on the High Desert

On October 27, 1907, the first automobile arrived in Bend.

Driven by C.H. Ellis of the Des Chutes Telephone Company it was a 1907, Model 3, Holsman Motor Buggy. It did, indeed look like a buggy with its high, wooden-spoke wheels.

It was the first High Wheeler auto built in the U.S. and was designed by Henry K. Holsman, a Chicago architect, for those living in rural areas where the few roads that did exist were uneven, muddy, rutted, or dotted with tree trunks.

Frustrated with the low clearance of the automobiles of the time, Holsman designed the first High Wheeler with enough clearance to navigate these roads that literally beat up automobiles.

“They [the High Wheelers] were designed for people who needed the convenience of an automobile but lived in rural areas,” explained Holsman, “people like doctors, vets, and even farmers.”

The Holsman High Wheeler was akin to a souped-up carriage. The wheels were wooden and rimmed either by steel or hard rubber.

In an early advertisement for the Holsman the specs were simple:

“Starts and stops, runs forward and backward at variable speeds by one lever movement. The patent direct rope transmission gives large wheels and no tire punctures. No clutches or gears, no water or pumps, and no overheating.”

To navigate, it had a tiller that doubled as a steering device and throttle. The Holsman was also the first automobile to have reverse.

What more could one need? Maybe more horsepower as it had only a 2-cylinder 12 HP opposed motor with speeds of 5-10 mph. It could be pushed to 20 mph, but that was not recommended due to its high center of gravity.

A rope transmission? The Holsman drive was at first by a 7/8 inch manila rope that turned the rear wheels, but was eventually changed to a chain braided over with manila and steel wire, and later a naked chain.

Among other interesting features were the headlights — oil lamps that had to be lighted with a match.

Primeval brakes acted directly against the steel tires and were hand operated.

A variety of different models were manufactured between 1902-1911, but all retained the original concept; a simple, light-weight buggy-styled vehicle with high wheels. They had low operating costs and could go almost anywhere on rural roads.

The Holsman High Wheeler was a good choice for a service vehicle for Ellis and his Des Chutes Telephone Company. He was able to travel the outlying rural areas with the ability to carry equipment.

However, it had only a 5 gallon gas tank, so on longer trips, gas cans had to be freighted along the way. No doubt, delivered ignominiously by a horse-drawn conveyance.

When his telephone company went out of business, Ellis was not able to pay his engineer, E.A. Smith, so he gave him the Holsman in lieu of wages. Smith was delighted and immediately named the car “Bosco.”

The Holsman Motor Buggy led a long life and for many decades Smith was often seen running about town, appearing at many events and often chauffeuring the Deschutes Historical Society Pioneer Queen in local parades.

The Holsman stayed in the Smith family until it was officially retired in 2012 to the second floor of the Deschutes County Historical Museum. It had a long, productive career and was said to be still operable. Its fenders were long gone, left behind somewhere on a country road. The rubber on the tires chipped and mostly worn off, but Bosco, the Holsman Motor Buggy, still retained a lot of dignity for an old work horse.

Horseless, that is.