The First Century

The last Studebaker vehicle of the company's first century of operation is shown rolling off the assembly line on February 15, 1952. It was just one day shy of the actual date when Henry and Clem opened their blacksmith shop in South Bend one hundred years before. The car is driven by Studebaker President Harold S. Vance and his passenger is Walter C. Zientowski. Zientowski was Studebaker's oldest employee at the time, at fifty (and a half).