Denver Automotive Machine Shop

More Facts on the Dodge Brothers History
Ironically the transportation revolution that swept the United States during the nineteenth century-and, which culminated in the development of the automobile-contributed to the Dodge family's poverty. By 1882, when John graduated from high school, "the railroad had developed into a booming new transportation medium in the past few years, and as Niles was emerging as a railroad link of its new industry between Chicago and Detroit," explain Pitrone and Elwart, "the Dodge business, dependent in great part on the obsolescent river traffic, continually worsened." Soon after John's graduation the family moved to Port Huron in search of better opportunities.
Within four years, however, they had moved again. "In 1886 when the Dodge family moved to Detroit," say Pitrone and Elwart, "the Detroit River was rivaling the Suez Canal in the amount of tonnage passing through its channels." The brothers went to work at first in marine engineer Tom Murphy's Boiler Shop, then in 1892 moved to the Dominion Typography Company across the river in Windsor, Canada, where they not only produced machines that nearly perfectly cut type for printing, but also contributed to the company's Maple Leaf bicycle, which was successful largely because of Horace's patented ball-bearing device. They also married-John in September 1892 to Ivy Hawkins, Horace in 1896 to Christina Anna Thomson.