08/12/2025
2005
This photograph was captured in 2005 at the Janesville GM Assembly plant. The Samson Tractor was lent by the Rock County Historical Society for the Sweet 16 celebration, which commemorated the production of 16 million vehicles from February 14, 1923, to August 2005.
Photo Credit to Leon Freeburg
Joseph Albert Craig was instrumental in facilitating the arrival of Samson in Janesville in 1919
The story of General Motors in Janesville begins years before the company is officially located here.
It is traced to 1882, when the Janesville Machine Co. was formed.
Joseph Albert Craig was offered a position as general manager. He accepted and began a long, successful relationship with that company.
Craig became company president in 1918. That March, he convinced W.C. Durant, president of General Motors Corp., that the Janesville Machine Co. would be a good buy for GM.
Soon afterward, the Samson Tractor Co., of Stockton, Calif., was also purchased by General Motors Corp., precipitating the merger of Janesville Machine Co. and. Samson Tractor Co. and formation of the Samson Tractor Division of General Motors Corp. in Janesville.
Craig was named head of that company in 1919, and his nephew, Hugh Craig, later was named general sales manager of Samson Tractor Co.
The merged companies were relocated on a vacant factory site in Janesville with a 225-by-545-foot building constructed in 1919.
Announcement of Samson's entry into the Janesville industry set off a wave of enthusiasm in Janesville, and the city boomed as it never had before.
On May 1, 1919, production of the Model "M" Samson tractor commenced at the rate of 10 units a day. They were the first pieces of machinery to be produced in Janesville at the present General Motors Assembly Division site'.
By mid-1920, however, production of the Model "M" tractor had picked up to 150 units per day. In addition, the
company was producing a smaller Model "D," also known as the "Iron Horse." The latter piece of equipment failed drastically.
Fashioned like a tractor, the implement was steered with reins, although it used no driving horses. It sold for $450. Nearly all that had been sold were repurchased by the company and salvaged for scrap and parts.
During its heyday, the Samson Tractor Co. proved to be an aggressive organization. It incorporated and developed many of the ideas present today in the automotive industry.
It probably was the first to use an air-powered wrench on the assembly line and the first to incorporate the water bath air filter.
According to a 1921 pamphlet on file at the Rock County Historical Society, "Samson Horse Drawn Implements," some of the equipment produced included Turf and Stubble Walking Plows, Black and Mixed Land Plows, Frame less Plow with Cast Wheels, hitches, harrows, planters, cotton corn planters and walking cultivators. The newest innovation, a Samson Seat Guide Cultivator, was described as a misnomer because it is actually a weight guide that uses the weight of the rider to guide the shovels.
The company produced two sizes of trucks, three-fourth ton and a 14-ton. Advertising said they could be adapted for lumber, coal or department store deliveries, freight haulage, or for factory and plumber use. Horse-using customers were encouraged to buy the trucks: "Samson trucks will not eat up all the profits in their first cost and upkeep," the ad said. It also cited statistics by the United States Department of Agriculture, claiming that it costs "twice as much to haul by wagon as it does by motor truck." Advertising, also stressing dependability, was directed toward farmers.
The most Important extra after the cab and body was wheel extension bases that enabled the trucks to be used in soft or plowed fields. Their average speed on dry land was 15 mph.
The trucks were produced through the 1923 models. However, production ceased earlier than that in Janesville.
Cost by today's standards is enviable. The three-fourth ton truck sold for $655 and the other for $1,095. A prototype was made of a nine-passenger touring car that was to sell for $750, but the car never was manufactured here.
Progressive as they were in manufacturing methods, Durant and GM misjudged the dimensions and timing of a revolution in farm mechanization and the venture failed Nor could they compete for what little business there was with Henry Ford's "Fordson."
Tractor business ceased in September 1921 and, for a time, the building was used to make service parts for tractors that already had been built, General Motors has never tried making tractors since.
In September 1922, again with J.A. Craig's encouragement, General Motors Corp. decided the Samson Tractor facilities in Janesville would be an ideal location for a Chevrolet assembly line and the production of Chevrolet motor cars. The first Chevrolet rolled off the line Feb. 15, 1923.
To Learn more about the Plant History check out
The Heartbeat of Janesville’s GM Exhibit, situated on the premises of the Rock County Historical Society Campus, it showcases memorabilia, a substantial amount of which has been donated by local community members. a 1927 Chevrolet, and the 100 Millionth Chevrolet built and assembled right here in Janesville, WI
The museum is open from Thursday to Saturday, between 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM, with extended hours offered by appointment.
Admission prices are set at $15 for individuals aged 15 and above, whereas members of RCHS are granted free access.
For further details, please reach out to 608-756-4509.
