As this circa 1911 advertisement for a Franklin Commercial truck shows, OEMs have been highlighting the benefits of efficiency and reliability. Other issues touched on in the advertisement sound surprisingly modern, including TCO, maintenance, concerns about depreciation, and an emphasis on safety. 

Franklin's Commercial Division was located at 242 East Water Street in Syracuse, New York. The truck was used by the State of California for its highway commission, mining engineers in Arizona and New Mexico, and in the Philippines, and New Zealand for business purposes. The company declared bankruptcy in 1934.

Work Truck eNews will be featuring historic images of fleet trucks on a regular basis. If you have an historic fleet truck image you'd like to share with readers, e-mail it to Lauren Fletcher or Chris Wolski.

Originally posted on Work Truck Online

About the author
Chris Wolski

Chris Wolski

Former Managing Editor

Chris Wolski is the former managing editor of Automotive Fleet, Fleet Financials, and Green Fleet.

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