Yellow Cab Company was founded in 1910 by John Hertz who subsequently established an independent vehicle manufacturing business, the Yellow Coach Manufacturing Company, in 1917. īy 1920, there were two dominant taxicab companies operating in Chicago: Yellow Cab and Checker Taxi. In 1919, Commonwealth moved to Joliet, Illinois. (1915), as reorganized after the bankruptcy of Partin-Palmer. (1914), and finally the Commonwealth Motor Co. of Ecorse, Michigan (1911), the Palmer Motor Car Co. of Hornell, New York (1908–10), the Suburban Motor Car Corp. : 66 With new investors, ownership, and locations, the name changed in succession to the De Schaum-Hornell Motor Car Co. The Deschaum Motor Car Co., founded 1908 in Buffalo, New York, was the earliest ancestor of what would eventually become Checker Motors. Kickbacks were common, and the system favored larger operators, who had the financial resources to 'play the game'.Ĭommonwealth Motors and Morris Markin Hotels, department stores, and office buildings embraced the amenity, but often limited access to their facilities to a single cab company. Particularly in Chicago, where numerous railroads had terminals, there was considerable need for on-demand, point-to-point chauffeur-driven transportation.

Motorized taxicabs began to appear on the streets of major cities from the early 1900s. The vehicle is comparable to the London Taxi with its iconic, internationally renowned styling, which went largely unchanged from 1959 to keep production costs down. The Checker Taxicab, particularly the 1959–82 Checker A series sedans, remain the most famous taxicab vehicles in the United States. Both companies were owned by Morris Markin by the 1930s. Checker Motors was an American vehicle manufacturer based in Kalamazoo, Michigan that built the iconic Checker Taxicab, sold commercially as the Checker Marathon until 1982.

The last Checker Taxicab built, a 1982 A11 in green and cream with Checker's trademark checkerboard trim, on display at the Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, MichiganĬhecker Taxi was a dominant taxicab company and national franchisor that was based in Chicago, Illinois.

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