Today, trucks have replaced horses and rail as the center of American logistics. Just as wagon freighting and railroading once influenced culture, so too does trucking today. And at the center of this subculture lies Mack. From its iconic placement in Disney’s “Cars” franchise to the popularization of the idiom “Built like a Mack truck,” its influence cannot be understated.
All this is thanks to the Mack brothers - their determination and teamwork – that helped to pioneer an industry and create a manufacturing enterprise that has produced thousands of trucks.
Jack left home at 14 and obtained his first job driving a mule cart for a construction group working on the Erie and Wyoming Valley Railroad. However, it was not long before his interest in machinery caused him to branch out. He worked a variety of engineering jobs until 1890 when he joined his brother Gus at the Fallesen and Berry Company as a stationary steam engineer. Jack’s vast experience led to a mastery of every machine in the building after several months.
It was here that his business acumen and interest in science and invention would help found the Mack brothers’ future enterprise.
Due to the increase in business, the brothers moved the company to Allentown, Pennsylvania in 1905.
The following are just two of the innovations that the Mack brothers designed and patented but had a far-reaching impact on the development of the trucking industry.