Wilson Trailer Company is an Iowa corporation, independent (privately held) cargo trailer manufacturer headquartered in Sioux City. Wilson manufactures (i) industrial road transport trailers for livestock, grain, and the like – flatbed and gooseneck design, aluminum and custom – and (ii) trailer-equipment and accessories such as self-unloading belt conveyors.[2][3]
History
Frank Taplin Wilson founded the company in 1883 as a small wagon and carriage shop in the Huron territory, South Dakota. In 1890, he moved to Sioux City, Iowa, to join his brother, George Washington Wilson (1859–1913). Wilson Trailer is still family operated by the fourth and fifth generations.
| Frank Taplin Wilson (1863–1947) & Kate Florence Jenkins (1872–1950) co-founder, et ux. | George Washington Wilson (1859–1913) & Fannie Ann Main (1863–1953) co-founder, et ux. | |||
| Mildred Ruth Wilson (1897–1981) & Clarence Arthur Persinger (1895–1959) daughter, et ux. | ||||
| Clarence Wilson Persinger (1923–2010) & Louise Elizabeth Gunderson (1925–2018) grandson, et ux. | ||||
| Wilson Gunderson (Bill) Persinger (born 1949) & Lynn Humphries great-grandson, co-CEO, et ux. | John Thomas Persinger (born 1959) & Connie Jo Rosene great-grandson, co-CEO, et ux. | |||
| Tiffany L. Persinger (born 1977) & Christopher M. Hunt (born 1976) great-great-granddaughter, et ux. Vice President Operations, since February 2021 | ||||
Big band history – sleeper buses
In the late 1930s, Wilson began manufacturing sleeper buses for big bands, notably territory bands.[4] Lawrence Welk has speculated that he was the first to design and use a sleeper bus.[5][6]
Production plants
Wilson Trailer has six facilities:
- Sioux City, Iowa — headquarters
- Yankton, South Dakota — modern production facility
- Moberly, Missouri — modern production facility
- Lennox, South Dakota — modern production facility
- Sioux City, Iowa — modern production facility
- Sioux City, Iowa — corporate parts and service center
External links
Bibliography
Notes
References
- Billboard (November 13, 1937). "Low-Price Bands Save Dough By Using Bus, Truck Trailers" (PDF). 49 (46): 17. Retrieved May 7, 2021 – via americanradiohistory.com; David Frackelton Gleason (born 1946), Cleveland.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - Coakley, Mary Lewis (1907–1995) (1958). Mister Music Maker, Lawrence Welk (1st ed.). Doubleday. p. 151. Retrieved May 7, 2021 – via Internet Archive.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) OCLC 493799 (all editions). - Davis, Bob (April 17, 1976). "Wilson Trailer Shows Continued Growth Here". Sioux City Journal. Vol. 112, no. 261. Sioux City. p. A15. Retrieved May 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- Shotwell, Bob (March 6, 1988). "He Still Waits for Bus; Not Any Bus; A 'Sleeper' From '30s". Des Moines Register. Vol. 139, no. 37. Des Moines. p. 1F. Retrieved May 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
Primary references
- "Wilson Trailer Company Information and History – 1938". Wilson Trailer. Sioux City. Retrieved May 7, 2021 (see photo of Lawrence Welk's sleeper bus under the 1928 timeline tab).
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link) - "Wilson Trailer Company". LinkedIn. Retrieved May 7, 2021.