Marmon-Herrington in World War Two

Marmon-Herrington Company in World War Two
Indianapolis, IN - 1931-1963
Louisville, KY - 1963 to present

This page updated 9-27-2022.

Fifty-five years after Marmon-Herrington closed its plant in Indianapolis, one of the two remaining factory buildings still has Marmon-Herrington painted on it. The rest of the plant has been torn down and repurposed as the headquarters for the IndyGo municipal bus service. The name Marmon-Herrington on the side of the building shows no weathering. It looks so good that it would appear IndyGo has repainted the name and maintained it. Either that, or the painting has been done by an Indianapolis industrial historian. Author's photo added 9-29-2019.

From 1902 to 1933, the Marmon Motor Car Company built automobiles. Marmon-Herrington was formed in 1931 by Walter Marmon and Walter Herrington, focused on building all-wheel drive trucks. Marmon-Herrington was especially successful in converting Ford trucks into all-wheel drive. Today, the company continues to provide all-wheel drive components to the heavy-duty trucking industry.

Indianapolis historians have overlooked Marmon-Herrington's contribution to the winning of World War Two. At the main military museum in downtown Indianapolis, there is no mention of the company among other noted local firms. And yet, Marmon-Herrington was one of a select group of 17 American companies that built tanks during World War Two. The tanks were built on the west side of Indianapolis at West Washington Street and Harding Avenue, just 2.6 miles away from the downtown military museum.

Towards the bottom of this page is a 1944 Marmon-Herrington publication entitled "Ten Years Before Pearl Harbor." It covers the time period from the company's birth in 1931 to 1944. This publication has photos of all of the products it built for military applications during that time period. It shows an aggressive company that produced a prolific number of different products for an international customer base.

This website shows Marmon-Herrington's contribution to the winning of World War Two which has been overlooked until this time.

The Marmon "Wasp" that won the very first Indy 500 in 1911 is on display at the Indianapolis 500 Hall of Fame Museum in Speedway, IN. The author viewed the vehicle at a local big box electronics retailer in Fishers, IN in March 2017. The museum loans out the "Wasp" on a regular basis. Author's photo.

This photo was taken in 1964 about the time the plant closed. The view is to the south-east with West Washington Street (US-40) along the bottom of the photo. Harding Street runs north and south in the middle of the complex.

This artist's rendition of the Marmon-Herrington plant, 1511 West Washington Ave. in Indianapolis, is from the company's 1944 publication "10 Years Before Pearl Harbor." The drawing is looking southwest with Washington Ave. along the right and Harding Street along the front. The long building facing Harding Street has had a section removed and is now two buildings, as shown below in my contemporary photos.

This Sanford map shows the Marmon-Herrington factory in 1950. Imaged added 5-11-2022.

The orientation of this photo is looking north along Harding Street towards West Washington Street. Along Harding Street is an original factory building, which has had a section removed as noted above. Author's photo added 9-29-2019.

This is the smaller section of the original factory building. Author's photo added 9-29-2019.

This is the second portion of the original building. There is a courtyard where a section of the original building has been removed. Work is being done on the interior of this building to repurpose it for IndyGo offices. Author's photo added 9-29-2019.

This is the north face of the north building. Duesenberg Motors was the previous occupant of the factory at this location. When it went out of business, Marmon-Herrington moved in. Again, it appears someone has painted the name on the building. It is doubtful Marmon-Herrington would have left the name Duesenberg on the building, so this has most likely been painted by an Indianapolis industrial historian or IndyGo. Also, this was not the building nearest Washington Ave. The office building was in the grassy area, which most likely would have had the company name on it. The new brick building in the right-hand side of the photo is the IndyGo bus terminal and maintenance building. This is where most of the factory was. Author's photo added 9-29-2019.

This 1945 Marmon-Herrington-converted H-542-H11C was seen at the World War II American Experience Museum in Gettysburg, PA. It was on outside display for an open house at this excellent museum. This vehicle was originally built as an H-542-H1C 5-ton 4x2 light duty tractor. This is one of 1,200 H-542-H1C light duty tractors Marmon-Herington converted into the H-542-H11C heavy duty configuration. Author's photo added 9-27-2022.

Author's photo added 9-27-2022.

The data plate indicates that this is a 5-ton 4x2 heavy duty tractor Model Marmon-Herrington H542-IIC. At the bottom of the data plate, it shows that it was converted from a light duty HIC. The vehicle is serial number 4672. Author's photo added 9-27-2022.

The photos were taken on a sunny September afternoon. Author's photo added 9-27-2022.

How cool is this? When I did the original research on Marmon-Herrington, I discovered that the company built trolley buses after World War Two. However, I did not have any photos to publish of a Marmon-Herrington-built trolley. This was in April 2017. Then five years later, in March 2022, I was at Dayton History in Carillon Park, Dayton, OH researching another company where I found this 1949 Marmon-Herrington electric trolley. Author's photo added 5-11-2022.

This is a Model TC-48, purchased by the City Railway Company of Dayton, OH in May 1949. Between 1949 and 1988, when it was retired, it traveled a million miles over the streets of Dayton powered by electrical power supplied by overhead cables. The electrical trolleys in Dayton were ahead of their time. Currently, municipalities are returning to electric powered buses to reduce greenhouse gases and for quieter operation on city streets. Author's photo added 5-11-2022.

Author's photo added 5-11-2022.

Trolley Number 515 was known at the "Queen of the Fleet." She was one of twenty trolleys Marmon-Herrington produced for the City Railway Company of Dayton, OH. Author's photo added 5-11-2022.

Marmon-Herrington won the Army-Navy "E" award once during World War Two.

Marmon-Herrington Company World War Two Production: The company produced $89,951,000 of military products during the war.

Table 1 - Marmon-Herrington Military Vehicles Accepted by Detroit Ordnance, US Army The information below comes from "Summary Report of Acceptances, Tank-Automotive Material, 1940-1945" Published by Army Services Forces, Office, Chief of Ordnance-Detroit, Production Division, Requirements and Progress Branch January 21, 1946 (Date on document is 1945. However, this appears to be an error as the summary has 1945 acceptances.)
Type	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945	Total
Light tank, 7-ton (most likely CTLS)			240				240
M22 (9TE1)				680	150		830
5-ton 4x2 tractor heavy duty SWB (120 inch WB) (Same as International Harvester H542-9. M425 in Army Nomenclature)					2,000	1,200	3,200
Total			240	680	2,150	1,200	4,270

Author's Note and Disclaimer: The Detroit Office of Ordnance of the U.S. Army was the primary purchasing entity for vehicles for the U.S. Army during World War Two. It also purchased vehicles for the USMC, US Navy, and Lend-Lease. However, there were other organizations that also purchased vehicles including the Army Corps of Engineers, Navy Bureau of Ordnance, Navy Bureau of Aeronautics, and foreign countries making direct purchases.

The above information only reflects what Army Ordnance purchased. In the case of Marmon-Herrington, it had many contracts from foreign companies leading up to World War Two. Historical information indicates the U.S. Army purchased 240 CTLS tanks for use in Alaska. This matches with the 240 7-ton light tanks accepted by Army Ordnance in 1942. As shown below in Table 2, Marmon-Herrington produced vehicles not accepted by Army Ordnance early in the war. Most of the tank production was taken over by the U.S. Army as the intended customers were under Axis control. Table 2 gives a full view of what the company did during World War Two.

Table 2 - Marmon-Herrington Military Products 1940-1944 The information in the table below come from the 1944 Marmon-Herrington document entitled "10 Years before Pearl Harbor." This document is published in its entirety at the bottom of this webpage.
Model	Description	Customer	Year built	Number built	Comments
	Air Field Crash Truck, 6-wheel Drive	Royal Canadian Air Force	1940
	All-wheel drive Ford passenger car	Unknown South American Army	1940
HH5-4	Earth Borer Truck	U.S. Army Corps of Engineers	1940
	All-wheel drive Air compressor truck	U.S. Army Corps of Engineers	1940
	All-wheel drive Ambulance	USMC	1940
DSD800-6	Mobile machine shop	Persian Army	1940
DSD800-6	Gun Tractor and Ammunition Carrier	Persian Army	1940
DSD400-6	Ammunition and Personnel Carrier	Persian Army	1940	At Least 40	On the page in "10 Years before Pearl Harbor" showing the year 1940, there are 40 DSD400-6 trucks awaiting shipment. This may or may not be the entire order.
MOT	Machine gun truck, 4x2	The Netherlands	1940
90-BWS-4	Observation Balloon Winch Truck	U.S. Army Air Corps	1940-1941		This is interesting. Observation balloons should have been obsolete by this time. Imagine one on the western front in Europe in 1940 with Me-109s roaming the sky. The life expectancy of the observer would be counted in minutes.
	1/4-ton amphibious jeep prototype	U.S. Army Quartermaster	1941-1942	1	Lost in competition to Ford Motor Company. See more information below.
BB-2	4x4 COE Barrage Balloon Winch Truck	U.S. Army Air Corps	1941
LLDMG5-4	4x4 Machine Gun Truck	NPC	1941
TBS-45	Track-laying Tractor	The Netherlands	1941
JJ6-COE-4	4x4 COE Crash Trucks	U.S. Army Air Corps ?	1941	56?	These trucks had American-LaFrance fire apparatus. Records show that American-LaFrance built 56 pumpers in 1941 for the U.S. Army Air Corps. There is no chassis manufacturer identified. They may well have been the Marmon-Herrington JJ6-COE-4
MM5-6	6x6 Crash Trucks	Java	1941	5?	Five trucks are shown in the photo. This may be the entire production.
TBS-5	Prototype track-laying Tractor		1941	1
TBS-30	Two-man Light Track-laying Tractor	The Netherlands	1941		These are similar to British Universal Carrier, although there appears to be no armament. They were intended as small prime movers.
TBS-45	Track-laying Tractor	The Netherlands East Indies	1941		Same as above.
	4x4 long-wheel base fire truck	Kingsbury Ordnance Plant, LaPorte, IN	1941	1
BB-1	Balloon Winch	U.S. Army Air Corps, then U.S. Army Corps of Engineers	1941		This is the winch and drive motor only. No truck is shown or specified in the document.
DSD600-6	6x6 Wrecker	Russia	1942	"A large fleet."	This appears to be the Marmon-Herrington Wrecker that later became the Ward-LaFrance M1 10-ton Wrecker.
CTL-3M	2 man tank	USMC	1942
CTMS-1TB1	3-man Tank with 360 degree rotating turret	The Netherlands	1942	"A large group."
	6x6 Searchlight and Sound Locating Truck	The Netherlands	1942	"A large number."
CTLS-4TAC	Tank with single offset turret	China	1942		Order taken over by U.S. Army Ordnance
CTL-6	2 man tank with no turret	USMC	1942
CTM-3TB3	3-man tank with diesel engine and rubber block tracks	USMC	1942
MTLS-1G14	4-man tank with turret		1942
	4x4 truck	U.S. Army Corps of Engineers	1942		Used on the Alcan Highway and in the Canal Zone
M22	M22 Locust Airborne Tank	U.S. Army Ordnance	1943-1944	830
M426	5-ton 4x2 tractor heavy duty SWB 120 inch WB. (International-Harvester H-542-11)	U.S. Army Ordnance	1944-1945	3,200	These used Timken axles. IH used its own axles.
M426	Conversion of M425 to M426 specifications	U.S. Army Ordnance	1945	1,200	When complete, the trucks were designated as H-425-11-C for conversion. H-425-11 was the IH designation for the M426. The M426 could pull heavier loads than the M425.

Table 3 shows that Marmon-Herrington had $89,951,000 in major government contracts during World War Two. What is of special interest and not normal for most American companies in the World War Two era is the number of United States Military contracts the company had before the U.S. became involved in the war in December 1941. 43% of Marmon-Herrington's major contracts were issued in 1940 and 1941. This is another indicator that the company was aggressively pursuing military contracts from both domestic and foreign sources.

There are two contracts for the T9E1/M22 Locust light tank. These two contracts totaled $28,849,000 for 830 tanks. This is an average cost of $34,757 per tank. Marmon-Herrington also supplied $114,000 in spare parts for the M22.

There were three contracts issued in 1943 and 1944 for a total of 3,200 M426 5-ton 4x2 tractor/trucks. The first contact was awarded October 1943 for $4,500,000. This was Army Ordnance contract number 33-008-215. The second contract was Army Ordnance contract 33-008-215S for $10,199,000 dated March1944. These two contracts were for a total of 3,000 vehicles at a unit cost of $4,900.

The third and last contract for building new M426 trucks was Army Ordnance contract 33-008-1638 for $1,054,000 awarded November 1944. This was for 200 vehicles at a unit cost of $5,270.

Marmon-Herrington was issued a contract in January 1945 for the conversion of 1,200 M425 trucks to M426. This contract was for $1,224,000 or a conversion cost of $1,020 per truck.

In February 1944 Marmon-Herrington was issued a Navy contract for $374,000 for "Tank Hull Assemblies." This was a conversion of an M18 Hellcat tank destroyer into an amphibious vehicle. The Navy may have thought the M18s could be used as armed amphibious vehicles to assist in its island invasion campaign in the Pacific, providing fire support both in the water and after landing. There were two different versions of this. The first, designated as the T86, used the original fourteen inch treads for propulsion..

A second M18 was converted and designated T86E1. This version used a twin propeller system to propel the vehicle through the water. Tests of both types of vehicles in the water indicated the treads worked better for propulsion.

The basic layout for the T86 and T86E1

Marmon-Herrington also converted a third M18 Hellcat tank destroyer into an amphibious vehicle with a 105mm howitzer. This used the tracks for propulsion. All three types of vehicles Marmon-Herrington worked on were still undergoing tests when the war ended. The projects were then cancelled.

This is the T87 with the 105mm howitzer installed.

The U.S. Army issued a $352,000 contract in January 1945 for "Gun Motor Carrs T-87." This appears to have been for 250 sets of detachable pontoons for the a 105mm armed M18. They were never used.

Table 3 - Marmon-Herrington Company's Major World War Two Contracts The information below comes from the "Alphabetical Listing of Major War Supply Contracts, June 1940 through September 1945." This was published by the Civilian Production Administration, Industrial Statistics Division. Table added 5-22-2022.
Product	Contract Amount	Contract Awarded	Completion Date
Ordnance Material - Navy	$65,000	6-1940	7-1940
Tanks - Navy	$606,000	6-1940	3-1941
Tanks - Foreign	$4,720,000	6-1940	3-1942
Tanks - Foreign	$3,654,000	8-1940	9-1942
Cars Command - Foreign	$116,000	8-1940	1-1941
Tractors - Foreign	$315,000	8-1940	7-1941
Tractors - Foreign	$1,467,000	8-1940	12-1941
Tractors - Foreign	$105,000	8-1940	11-1940
Winches - Army	$79,000	9-1940	12-1940
Trucks - Army	$62,000	10-1940	3-1941
Winches - Army	$163,000	12-1940	4-1941
Winches - Army	$86,000	12-1940	3-1941
1940 Total	$11,438,000
Tanks - Foreign	$823,000	1-1941	9-1942
Trucks - Army	$100,000	1-1941	3-1941
Tanks - Foreign	$275,000	3-1941	7-1942
Tanks - Foreign	$5,689,000	3-1941	12-1942
Motor Vehicles - Foreign	$160,000	3-1941	6-1941
Tanks - Foreign	$796,000	4-1941	3-1942
Tanks - Foreign	$1,977,000	4-1941	2-1943
Tanks - Foreign	$1,628,000	4-1941	12-1942
Tractors - Foreign	$1,390,000	4-1941	4-1942
Tractor Parts - Foreign	$322,000	4-1941	6-1941
Aircraft Material - Army	$2,032,000	6-1941	3-1942
Tractor Parts - Foreign	$66,000	6-1941	9-1941
Tank Equipment - Foreign	$99,000	7-1941	1-1942
Tanks - Army	$78,000	10-1941	1-1942
Tanks - Light	$6,218,000	10-1941	7-1942
Tanks - Parts - Foreign	$66,000	11-1941	4-1942
Winches - Army	$4,962,000	11-1941	7-1942
Tank Parts - Foreign	$166,000	12-1941	3-1942
Tank Parts - Foreign	$467,000	12-1941	4-1943
Tank Parts - Foreign	$114,000	12-1941	8-1943
1941 Total	$27,428,000
1940 and 1941 Total	$38,866,000
Tanks - Army	$135,000	1-1942	6-1942
Light Tanks T9 - Army	$19,500,000	1-1942	1-1943
Trucks - Treasury	$55,000	2-1942	9-1943
Tractors - Army	$60,000	1-1942	8-1942
Kits Conversion - Army	$504,000	1-1942	7-1942
Auto Parts - Army	$341,000	4-1942	8-1942
Car Parts - Army	$65,000	4-1942	6-1942
Light Tanks T9E1 - Army	$9,349,000	4-1942	3-1944
Tank Parts - Foreign	$85,000	4-1942	8-1942
Vehicle Parts - Army	$251,000	5-1942	9-1942
Trucks - Treasury	$784,000	7-1942	9-1943
Truck Parts - Army	$165,000	9-1942	12-1942
Trucks - Army	$58,000	12-1942	1-1943
Winch Parts - Army	$111,000	12-1942	1-1943
Tank Parts - Foreign	$94,000	12-1942	1-1943
Tank Parts T9E1 - Army	$114,000	2-1943	6-1944
Motor Vehicles - Army	$116,000	3-1943	6-1943
Truck Assemblies - Army	$409,000	5-1943	5-1944
Tank Parts - Foreign	$63,000	9-1943	10-1943
Trucks - Army	$4,500,000	10-1943	12-1944
Tank Hull Assemblies - Navy	$374,000	2-1944	5-1944
Trucks - Army	$10,199,000	3-1944	5-1944
Motor Vehicle Parts - Treasury	$91,000	4-1944	11-1944
Tractor Trucks - Army	$1,054,000	11-1944	6-1945
Gun Motor Cars T-87 - Army	$352,000	1-1945	4-1945
Ordnance Equipment - Army	$100,000	1-1945	8-1945
Truck Tractor Convern - Army	$1,224,000	1-1945	6-1945
Spring Assemblies - Army	$55,000	4-1945	8-1945
Trucks - Treasury	$600,000	8-1945	2-1946
Truck Tractors - Treasury	$277,000	8-1945	1-1946
Total	$89,951,000

In 1942 the Marmon-Herrington parking lot was filled with 4x4 trucks. Most, if not all, of the vehicles were Ford-built commercial trucks converted to four-wheel drive by the company at its Indianapolis plant. I count approximately 700 trucks awaiting shipment in this photo.

Marmon-Herrington of Indianapolis has the distinction of being the only American company to have both tanks and trucks come down the same assembly line. In this 1943-44 era photo, M22 Locust light tanks are coming down the assembly line.

In this 1944 era photo, there are now M426 five-ton 4x2 tractors coming down the same assembly line. These were International Harvester H-5-11 tractors built by Marmon-Herrington under license. In 1945 Marmon-Herrington would convert 1,200 IH-built M425 light duty tractors into M426 heavy duty tractors.

Marmon-Herrington and Ford Motor Company competed against each other for the production of what became the Ford GPA. Marmon-Herrington was chosen to compete with Ford, which already had contracts for the Jeep, again because of its experience in four-wheel drive vehicles. Its design was composed of a unibody construction that ended up being 400 pounds heavier than the Ford entry, which won the competition. During the competition, the vehicle was called the QMC-4 1/4-Ton Truck Light Amphibian. Here is the Marmon-Herrington version, which lost the competition during testing.

Four-Wheel Drive Components - Marmon-Herrington supplied four-wheel drive trains to convert Ford trucks for the British Commonwealth.

Armored Cars - The Marmon-Herrington Armored Car consisted of a Canadian-built Ford 3-ton truck that was then shipped to South Africa. There, they were fitted with a Marmon-Herrington four-wheel drive train, and had the necessary armor and armament added. The vehicles were known as Marmon-Herrington Armored Cars, even though the company only supplied the four-wheel-drive train. A total of 5,746 armored cars in several versions were built by the South Africans. Today 33 still exist, all outside the United States. They served not only in WWII, but also in the Indonesian National Revolution, the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the Turkish Invasion of Cyprus, and the Rhodesian Bush War.

A Marmon-Herrington Mark III Armored Car manned by Indian troops during WWII.

World War Two Ford Truck Conversions -

This 1940 Ford V-8 truck is in storage awaiting restoration at the Nokomis & District Museum in Nokomis, SK, Canada. During World War Two it served as a crash truck at the R.C.A.F. base in Defoe, SK. This was home of the No. 5 Bombing and Gunnery School between 1941-1945. After Ford built the truck, it was shipped to Marmon-Herrington in Indianapolis, IN where it was converted to an all-wheel configuration. Once this was complete, it was then shipped to LaFrance Fire Engine and Foamite, Ltd in Toronto, ON where the rear body and emergency equipment was installed. Then it was shipped to Defoe, SK where it served during the war. Photo and information courtesy of Michael Marb.

Photo courtesy of Michael Marb.

Pre-World War Two Tanks 1935-1942 - Marmon-Herrington built seven different styles of tanks similar to the CTMS tank shown below, displayed at the New Jersey National Guard Annex in Lawrenceville, NJ. About 300 total tanks were built; being sold to the US Marine Corp, The Netherlands for service in the Dutch East Indies, and several Latin American countries. The US Marines purchased 15; and 240 were taken by the US Army, which were used for training in Alaska. Today, only seven of the tanks remain worldwide. Five are in the United States, one in Guatemala, and one is at an unknown location.

The Marmon-Herrington CTMS-1TB1 Light Tank

This is serial number 791, located in the artillery and armor section of the New Jersey National Guard Museum Annex at Lawrenceville, NJ. This formerly served with the Guatemalan Army. Author's photo.

This design is typical of the pre-World War Two light tank design. Differences in the other tanks included crew size, armament, and location of the turret. Author's photo.

The information on the museum placard for this particular tank is incorrect. It states that the CTMS tank served with American forces in Alaska. The American Army in Alaska used the CTLS, and the turret was offset to the right, or left, of the tank. Author's photo.

Author's photo.

Author's photo.

This CTLS light tank operated by the US Army in Alaska had the turret offset to the right side of the tank.

The Marmon-Herrington CTL-3A did not have a turret. Five CTL-3As were delivered to the USMC in 1939 and were taken out of service in 1943.

World War Two M22 Locust Tank - Marmon-Herrington's largest tank production run was the M22 Locust Light Tank. The company built 830 during 1943 and 1944. While the M22 was not assigned to any operational units with the US Army, 260 were shipped to Great Britain under Lend-Lease, where eight were involved on the British attack on the Rhine River. After World War Two, the Egyptians used a significant number in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

How small is a M22 Locust light tank compared to a M4A3(76)HVSS Sherman medium tank? Pretty small, as seen here at the Rock Island Arsenal in IL. Author's photo added 8-12-2019.

This Marmon-Herrington M22 Locust light tank was on display at the 2021 Findlay Military Show in Findlay, OH. This tank was just recently restored, and this was its public debut. Author's photo added 5-16-2021.

Author's photo added 5-16-2021.

Author's photo added 5-16-2021.

The next three photos are of a Marmon-Herrington M22 Locust light tank that is on display at the American Heritage Museum in Hudson, MA. Author's photo added 8-12-2019.

Author's photo added 8-12-2019.

Author's photo added 8-12-2019.

This M22 Locust tank is on display at the Museum of American Armor in Old Bethpage, Long Island, NY. It is one of many armored vehicles and trucks the museum has from the WWII era, all of which are in running condition. Author's photo added 6-12-2018.

Author's photo added 6-12-2018.

Author's photo added 6-12-2018.

Author's photo added 6-12-2018.

This M22 Locust tank is owned by the Roberts Armory in Rochelle, IL. The author's photograph was taken at the 2015 Rockford, IL WWII reenactment. Note its size compared to the on-looking spectators.

Author's photo.

Author's photo.

The M22 squeezed a three-man crew into the vehicle. There was the driver and tank commander/loader seen here, along with a gunner for the 37mm cannon. Author's photo.

Author's photo.

Author's photo.

The relative size of the M22 to its supporting infantrymen is evident. Author's photo.

Author's photo.

This M22 Locust is part of the Armor and Cavalry collection at Fort Benning, GA. Author's photo added 9-21-2018.

Author's photo added 9-21-2018.

This M22 Locust light tank is on display at the Rock Island Arsenal in IL. Behind it is a M4A3 Sherman tank. Author's photo added 8-12-2019.

Author's photo added 8-12-2019.

The M22 was designed with the intention of being a light tank that could support airborne troops upon landing. One of the methods of delivering the M22 to the airborne battlefield was to remove the turret, and then hook the turret and body of the tank to the bottom of a C-54. Then after the paratroopers secured a suitable landing field for the C-54, the M22 tanks could be delivered and re-assembled for support. British troops found that they could attach the turrets to the tank in about ten minutes using the C-54's internal hoist. Ten minutes is a long time under fire to be putting a tank together. All of this assumed that the paratroopers target area would include a landing field large enough to land the C-54. It no doubt sounded like a good idea at the time. It was never implemented. Author's photo.

What could have been...

The Ward-LaFrance M1 wrecker owes its heritage to the 1935 Marmon-Herrington TL31-6 wrecker. The later DSD600-6 wrecker was designed by Marmon-Herrington, which was produced for Russia. Corbitt Truck Company built the first three prototypes. Then Ward-LaFrance won the production contract. It has to be assumed that Marmon-Herrington was included in the bidding due to its all-wheel drive truck experience. It could have been a victim of its own success in obtaining several different contracts for tanks and trucks in the late 1930's and early 1940's. Its assembly lines were busy with orders for a multitude of products for several countries. At the same time, the United States started ramping up its purchase of military products. Marmon-Herrington also missed out on building the half-track with a powered front axle, which it invented in 1936. Four other truck manufacturers began production of the halftrack in 1941. It wasn't until 1943 that it had the capacity to start production of the American M22 tank. Author's photo added 9-29-2019.

Post-World War Two Military Fire Apparatus:

This is American LaFrance O-11A fire and crash truck which is on display at the Museum of Aviation at Robins AFB, GA. The O-11 was used by the United State Air Force starting in 1952 and continuing up into the 1970s. It was the main fire and rescue truck at Air Force bases world wide including Vietnam. Author's photo added 6-14-2022.

Marmon-Herrington also built an unknown number of these units for the U.S. Air Force.

There was an O-11, O-11A, and O-11B in the series each of which had various upgrades to the equipment. Depending on the source, there was either 1,100 or 1,800 units built by both American LaFrance and Marmon-Herrington. Author's photo added 6-14-2022.

Author's photo added 6-14-2022.

"Ten Years Before Pearl Harbor"
This 1944 booklet published by Marmon-Herrington gives excellent insight into the company's preparation before World War Two, and the many different products it produced during the war. Being written by Marmon-Herrington, it is a primary source document.

Thank you to Bill Kreiner for sending this to me. This has been such a revelation, as in the past it has been hard to find information on Marmon-Herrington. It has become a forgotten and ignored company by local Indianapolis historians. It is as though the company was writing the information below just so I could publish it 75 years later. Not only does it tell its story during World War Two, but also how it prepared for the war starting at its inception in 1931.

This is a must read for the serious Marmon-Herrington historian! It is a fascinating story.

This page explains that the first 33 vehicles built by the new Marmon-Herrington Company in 1931 were all-wheel drive refueling trucks for the Army Air Corps.

Marmon-Herrington was very aggressive in pursuing foreign customers. In 1932 Iran became a long lasting and important purchaser of the company's products.

In 1934 Marmon-Herrington designed and then built six T-11 4x4 armored cars for U.S. Army Ordnance. This was one of several types of armored cars it developed in 1934.

In 1935 Marmon-Herrington All-Wheel Drive is officially introduced for military products.

1936 was an important year for Marmon-Herrington, as it designed and built the first half-track with a powered front axle. It also converted a 1/2-ton Ford truck to All-Wheel Drive. This eventually led to the Jeep and the many other four-wheel drive trucks that were produced during World War Two.

There are 42 trucks shown in the photo at the top of the page. Forty of them are the DSD400-6 Ammunition and Personnel Carriers for Iran.

Building the CTMS-1TB1 tank in 1942 for the Netherlands did not make any sense. The Dutch East Indies was under the control of the Japanese, and the Netherlands itself was occupied by the Germans. The tanks were taken by the United States military but were of little practical use. On the other hand, while the rest of the United States was just starting to become really engaged in war production, Marmon-Herrington was already in the war. During the years leading up to World War Two, its military sales to foreign countries gave employment to many men in the Indianapolis area who might otherwise have been unemployed.