View source for Walter Chrysler

{{short description|American automotive industry executive}}
{{for|his son, the American art collector and museum benefactor|Walter P. Chrysler Jr.}}
{{Infobox person
| birthname = Walter Percy Chrysler
| image = Walter Chrysler in 1937.jpg
| caption = Chrysler in 1937
| birth_date = {{birth date|1875|04|02}}
| birth_place = [[Wamego, Kansas]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|1940|08|18|1875|04|02}}
| death_place = [[Kings Point, New York]], U.S.
| resting_place = [[Sleepy Hollow Cemetery]]
| resting_place_coordinates = 
| occupation = [[Machinist]], [[Management|manager]], [[entrepreneur]]
| alma_mater = [[International Correspondence Schools]] in Scranton, PA (presently Penn Foster Education)
| known_for   = Founder of the [[Chrysler Corporation]]
| party = 
| spouse = Della Viola Forker (died 1938 at age 58)
| children = Thelma Irene Chrysler<br>Bernice Chrysler<br>[[Walter P. Chrysler Jr.|Walter Percy Chrysler Jr.]]<br>John Forker Chrysler
| relations = [[Edgar Garbisch]] (son-in-law)
| boards  = [[Chrysler|Chrysler Corporation]]
| awards = 
}}
'''Walter Percy Chrysler''' (April 2, 1875 – August 18, 1940) was an American industrial pioneer in the automotive industry, [[automotive industry]] executive, and the founder and namesake of American [[Chrysler|Chrysler Corporation]].

== Childhood ==
Chrysler was born in [[Wamego, Kansas]], the son of Anna Maria Chrysler (née Breymann) and Henry Chrysler.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wargs.com/political/dole.html|title = Ancestry of Robert Dole (B. 1923)}}</ref> He grew up in [[Ellis, Kansas]], where today his boyhood home is a museum. His father was born in [[Chatham, Ontario]], in 1850 and immigrated to the United States after 1858.<ref>''Chrysler: The Life and Times of an Automotive Genius'', p. 14</ref> A [[Freemason]],<ref name="Denslow1957p211">{{Harvnb|Denslow|2004|p=211}}.</ref> Chrysler began his career as a [[machinist]] and [[rail transport|railroad]] [[mechanic]] in Ellis. He took correspondence courses from [[International Correspondence Schools]] in [[Scranton, Pennsylvania]], earning a mechanical degree from the correspondence program.

==Ancestry==
Walter Chrysler's father, Henry (Hank) Chrysler, was a Canadian, of German, English and Dutch ancestry. He was an [[American Civil War]] veteran who was a [[Railroad engineer|locomotive engineer]] for the [[Kansas Pacific Railway]] and its successor, the [[Union Pacific Railroad]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Chrysler|Sparkes|1950|pp=18–19}}.</ref> Walter's mother was born in [[Rocheport, Missouri]], and was also of [[German American|German]] ancestry.<ref>{{Harvnb|Chrysler|Sparkes|1950|pp=14, 23}}.</ref> Walter Chrysler was not especially interested in his remote ancestors; his collaborative author Boyden Sparkes says that one genealogical researcher reported "that he had a sea-going [[Dutch people|Dutchman]] among his forebears; one Captain Jan Gerritsen Van Dalsen", but that "as to that, Walter Chrysler made it plain to me he was in accord with [[Jimmy Durante]]: 'Ancestors? I got millions of 'em!'."<ref>{{Harvnb|Chrysler|Sparkes|1950|p=206}}.</ref> However, he thought enough of genealogy to include in his autobiography that his father, Hank Chrysler, "Canadian born, had been brought from [[Chatham, Ontario]], to Kansas City when he was only five or six. His forebears had founded Chatham; the family stock was [[Germans|German]]; eight generations back of me there had come to America one who spelled his name Greisler, a [[German Palatines|German Palatine]]. He was one of a group of [[Protestants]] who had left their German homeland in the [[Rhine|Rhine Valley]], gone to the [[Netherlands]], thence to England and embarked, finally, from [[Plymouth]] for New York."

Other researchers have since traced his ancestors in more detail. Karin Holl's monograph on the subject<ref>{{Harvnb|Holl|1984}}</ref> traces the family tree to a Johann Philipp Kreißler, born in 1672, who left Germany for Canada in 1709. Chrysler's ancestors came from the [[Rhineland-Palatinate]] town of [[Guntersblum]]. His family belongs to [[Old Stock Americans]].{{cn|date=August 2024}}

==Railroad career==
Chrysler apprenticed in the railroad shops at Ellis as a [[machinist]] and railroad mechanic. He then spent a period of years roaming the west, working for various railroads as a [[Railway roundhouse|roundhouse]] mechanic with a reputation of being good at [[Valve gear|valve-setting jobs]]. Chrysler moved frequently, first to  [[Wellington, Kansas]], in 1897, then to [[Denver, Colorado]] for two weeks, and finally [[Cheyenne, Wyoming]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chryslerclub.org/walterp.html |title=A Brief Look at Walter P. Chrysler |last=Petersen |first=Mike |publisher=WPC News |website=chryslerclub.org |date=November 1986}}</ref> Some of his moves were due to restlessness and a quick temper, but his roaming was also a way to become more well-rounded in his railroad knowledge. He worked his way up through positions such as foreman in [[Trinidad, Colorado]], superintendent, division master mechanic, and general master mechanic.

During 1905 and 1906, Chrysler worked for the [[Fort Worth and Denver Railway]] in [[Childress, Texas|Childress]] in [[West Texas]]. He later lived and worked in [[Oelwein, Iowa]], at the main shops of the [[Chicago Great Western]], where there is a small park dedicated to him.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://oelwein.fun/parks |title=Oelwein Municipal Parks |website=City of Oelwein Online |access-date=2021-11-05 |archive-date=2022-11-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127092728/https://oelwein.fun/parks |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="TMoY">{{cite magazine|url= http://www.time.com/time/subscriber/personoftheyear/archive/stories/1928.html|title= Person of the Year 1929 – Walter P. Chrysler|magazine= [[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date= January 7, 1929|access-date= April 15, 2011|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110127012618/http://www.time.com/time/subscriber/personoftheyear/archive/stories/1928.html|archive-date= January 27, 2011}}</ref>

The pinnacle of his railroading career came at [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]], where he became works manager of the Allegheny locomotive erecting shops of the [[American Locomotive Company]] (Alco). While working in Pittsburgh, Chrysler lived in the town of [[Bellevue, Pennsylvania|Bellevue]], the first town outside of Pittsburgh on the north side of the [[Ohio River]].

==Automotive career==
Chrysler's automotive career began in 1911 when he received a summons to meet with [[James J. Storrow]], a banker who was a director of [[American Locomotive Company|Alco]]. Storrow asked him if he had given any thought to automobile manufacture. Chrysler had been an auto enthusiast for over five years by then, and was very interested. Storrow arranged a meeting with [[Charles W. Nash]], then president of the [[Buick|Buick Motor Company]], who was looking for a smart production chief. Chrysler, who had resigned from many railroading jobs over the years, made his final resignation from railroading to become works manager (in charge of production) at Buick in [[Flint, Michigan]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Chrysler|Sparkes|1950|pp=123–127}}.</ref> He found many ways to reduce the costs of production, such as putting an end to finishing automobile undercarriages with the same luxurious quality of finish that the body warranted.

In 1916, [[William C. Durant]], who founded [[General Motors]] in 1908, had retaken GM from bankers who had taken over the company. Chrysler, who was closely tied to the bankers, submitted his resignation to Durant, then based in New York City.

[[File:2006 12 26 and 27 Connecticut and New York 019.jpg|thumb|right|This plaque is located in the lobby of the [[Chrysler Building]].]]

Durant took the first train to Flint to make an attempt to keep Chrysler at the helm of Buick. Durant made the then-unheard of salary offer of $10,000 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|10,000|1916}}}} in {{inflation/year|US}}){{inflation/fn|US}} a month for three years, with a $500,000 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|500,000|1916}}}} in {{inflation/year|US}}){{inflation/fn|US}} bonus at the end of each year, or $500,000 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|500,000|1916}}}} in {{inflation/year|US}}){{inflation/fn|US}} in stock. Additionally, Chrysler would report directly to Durant, and would have full run of Buick without interference from anyone. Apparently in shock, Chrysler asked Durant to repeat the offer, which he did. Chrysler immediately accepted.

Chrysler ran Buick successfully for three more years. Not long after his three-year contract was up, he resigned from his job as president of Buick in 1919. He did not agree with Durant's vision for the future of General Motors. Durant paid Chrysler $10 million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|10,000,000|1919}}}} in {{inflation/year|US}}){{inflation/fn|US}} for his GM stock. Chrysler had started at Buick in 1911 for $6,000 a year (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|6,000|1911}}}} in {{inflation/year|US}}),{{inflation/fn|US}} and left one of the richest men in the United States. GM replaced Chrysler with [[Harry H. Bassett]] a protege who had risen through the ranks at the Weston-Mott axle manufacturing company, by then a subsidiary of [[Buick]].

Chrysler was then hired to attempt a turnaround by bankers who foresaw the loss of their investment in [[Willys|Willys-Overland Motor Company]] in [[Toledo, Ohio]]. He demanded and received a salary of $1 million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|1,000,000|1919}}}} in {{inflation/year|US}}){{inflation/fn|US}} a year for two years, an astonishing amount at that time. When Chrysler left Willys in 1921 after an unsuccessful attempt to wrestle control from [[John Willys]], he acquired a controlling interest in the ailing [[Maxwell Motor Company]]. Chrysler phased out Maxwell and absorbed it into his new firm, the [[Chrysler|Chrysler Corporation]], in [[Detroit|Detroit, Michigan]], in 1925. In addition to his namesake car company, [[Plymouth (automobile)|Plymouth]] and [[DeSoto (automobile)|DeSoto]] [[marque]]s were created, and in 1928 Chrysler purchased Dodge Brothers and renamed it [[Dodge]]. The same year he financed the construction of the [[Chrysler Building]] in [[New York City]], which was completed in 1930. Chrysler was named [[Time (magazine)|''Time'' magazine]]'s [[Time Person of the Year|Man of the Year]] for 1928.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19290107,00.html|title=Walter P. Chrysler, Man of the Year|magazine=Time|date=January 7, 1929|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090422190911/http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19290107,00.html|archive-date=2009-04-22}} (This was the first cover of ''Time'' to be published in full color.)</ref>

He was inducted into the [[Automotive Hall of Fame]] in 1967.<ref name="AHF-Chrysler">{{cite web |url=https://www.automotivehalloffame.org/honoree/walter-p-chrysler |title=Walter P. Chrysler |website=Automotive Hall Of Fame}}</ref>

==Later years==
[[File:W.C. mausoleum.jpg|thumb|The mausoleum of Walter Chrysler at [[Sleepy Hollow Cemetery]]]]

In 1923, Chrysler purchased from [[Henri Willis Bendel]] a {{convert|12|acre|ha|0|adj=on|spell=in}} waterfront estate at [[Kings Point, New York|Kings Point]] on [[Long Island]], [[New York (state)|New York]],<ref>[https://wikimapia.org/#lat=40.812169&lon=-73.7626147&z=17&l=0&m=b&v=8 Google Earth image of the Chrysler Estate]</ref> and renamed it Forker House. In December 1941, the property was sold to the U.S. government's War Shipping Department and became known as Wiley Hall as part of the [[United States Merchant Marine Academy]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.melvillehall.com/history.htm|title=Melville History|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203004405/http://www.melvillehall.com/history.htm|archive-date=2013-12-03|publisher=US Merchant Marine Academy}}</ref>

Chrysler also built a country estate in [[Warrenton, Virginia]], in what is referred to as the [[Virginia]] horse country and home to the Warrenton Hunt. In 1934, he purchased and undertook a major restoration of the [[Fauquier White Sulphur Springs]] Company resort and spa in Warrenton. Sold in 1953, the property was developed as a country club.

Chrysler turned 61 in the spring of 1936 and stepped down from an active role in the day-to-day business of the company. Two years later, his wife died at the age of 58 and Chrysler, devastated by the loss of his childhood sweetheart, suffered a [[stroke]]. His previously robust health never recovered from this, and he died of a [[cerebral hemorrhage]] in August 1940 at Forker House in Kings Point, New York. He was buried at [[Sleepy Hollow Cemetery]] in [[Sleepy Hollow, New York|Sleepy Hollow]], New York.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Walter-P-Chrysler|title=Walter P. Chrysler: American industrialist|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|first=Lee|last=Iacocca|date=8 June 2023 }}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Carl Breer]]
*[[Owen Ray Skelton]]
*[[Frederick Morrell Zeder]]
*[[The Three Musketeers (Studebaker engineers)]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{Citation | last1 = Chrysler | first1 = Walter P. | last2 = Sparkes | first2 = Boyden | year = 1950 |orig-year=1937 | title = Life of an American Workman | publisher = Dodd, Mead & Company | location = New York, NY, USA | postscript = . ''First printed as a serialization in the Saturday Evening Post, 1937, and privately printed in book form that year. Later republished in 1950 by Dodd, Mead & Company, New York, with a new postscript by collaborative author Boyden Sparkes.'' | lccn = 38009829}}
*  {{Citation | last = Curcio | first = Vincent | year = 2000 | title = Chrysler: The Life and Times of an Automotive Genius | publisher = Oxford University Press | location = New York, NY, USA | isbn = 978-0-19-507896-1 | postscript = . | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/chryslerlifetime00curc }}
* {{Citation | last = Denslow | first = William R. | year = 2004 | orig-year = 1957 | title = 10,000 Famous Freemasons | edition = Paperback republication | volume = Part One, Volume 1, from A to J | publisher = Kessinger Publishing | isbn = 978-1-4179-7578-5 | postscript =. ''Foreword by Harry S. Truman.''}}
* {{Citation | last = Holl | first = Karin | title = Walter P. Chrysler, his German roots [German title: Kreißler-Chrysler, eine Auswanderungsgeschichte. Written in English and German.] | journal = Schatzungsregister des Kurpfälzischen Oberamtes Stromberg, 1683 und 1722 | volume = 22 | publisher = Verlag der Arbeitsgemeinschaft Pfälzisch-Rheinische Familienkunde e.V. | location = Ludwigshafen am Rhein | year = 1984 | url = http://kreissler-chrysler.de/indexE.html | issn = 0171-1512 | access-date = 2010-08-08 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091027212907/http://www.kreissler-chrysler.de/indexE.html | archive-date = 2009-10-27 }}

==External links==
{{commons category|Walter Chrysler}}
* {{FadedPage|id=Chrysler, Walter P.|name=Walter P. Chrysler|author=yes}}
* [http://www.greatnecklibrary.org/gnhistory/lgestate6.html Photo of the Bendel Estate at Kings Point] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029162028/http://www.greatnecklibrary.org/gnhistory/lgestate6.html |date=2019-10-29 }}
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=7-EDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA194 "The Man Who Bet His Dreams"], ''[[Popular Mechanics]]'', August 1932, pp.&nbsp;194–198
* {{PM20|FID=pe/061622}}

{{Chrysler Group LLC}}
{{Time Persons of the Year|27–50}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chrysler, Walter}}
[[Category:1875 births]]
[[Category:1940 deaths]]
[[Category:American automotive engineers]]
[[Category:American founders of motor vehicle manufacturers]]
[[Category:American people in rail transportation]]
[[Category:American people of Canadian descent]]
[[Category:American people of Dutch descent]]
[[Category:American people of German descent]]
[[Category:American Freemasons]]
[[Category:American chief executives in the automotive industry]]
[[Category:Chrysler executives]]
[[Category:American machinists]]
[[Category:Mechanics (people)]]
[[Category:People from Warrenton, Virginia]]
[[Category:People from Wamego, Kansas]]
[[Category:Burials at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery]]
[[Category:Buick]]
[[Category:General Motors executives]]
[[Category:People from Kings Point, New York]]
[[Category:People from Ellis County, Kansas]]
[[Category:Engineers from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Engineers from Virginia]]
[[Category:Time Person of the Year]]