Mercury outboard history
Posted: Sat Jan 03, 2009 10:07 pm
Found this on a site while looking up info on an old motor I am bidding on at ebay for the paddle boat...yeah I know, a motor on a paddle boat, how lazy, but hey I want to get into some real shallow areas this summer on another lake that doesnt have boat access ramp and do some fishing and since I dont have a flat bottom boat anymore...
anyhow, I thought this was sort of funny...
In 1940, the first Mercury branded outboards were introduced. The lineup included five models- three singles and two twins- with retail prices that ranged from $42.95 to $98.50. The new line of outboards were named after the Roman god of speed, Mercury.
E.C. Kiekhaefer began his business in a plant in Cedarburg, Wis. in 1939. It wasn't until 1946 that operations moved to the current location in Fond Du Lac, when Kiekhaefer purchased Corium Farms. Even after the expansion, grain elevators were used for engine test cells.
During the summer of 1961, Ann Strang- the mother of Mercury executive Charlie Strang- visited her son and a team of engineers at a research lab in Oshkosh, Wis. Her son explained their efforts to make the new 100 HP outboard appear smaller and more compact in size. Ann's observation and suggestion forever changed the face of Mercury outboards. She stated "Well, a large woman always wears a black dress. Why don't you paint it black?" The group concurred. In Charlie's own words "We painted one black and it shrunk about 20 percent!" It was in the fall of that same year, as a 1962 model, the first black Mercury and the industry's first 100 HP outboard motor came off the line. Who would have thought it started with a black dress?
anyhow, I thought this was sort of funny...
In 1940, the first Mercury branded outboards were introduced. The lineup included five models- three singles and two twins- with retail prices that ranged from $42.95 to $98.50. The new line of outboards were named after the Roman god of speed, Mercury.
E.C. Kiekhaefer began his business in a plant in Cedarburg, Wis. in 1939. It wasn't until 1946 that operations moved to the current location in Fond Du Lac, when Kiekhaefer purchased Corium Farms. Even after the expansion, grain elevators were used for engine test cells.
During the summer of 1961, Ann Strang- the mother of Mercury executive Charlie Strang- visited her son and a team of engineers at a research lab in Oshkosh, Wis. Her son explained their efforts to make the new 100 HP outboard appear smaller and more compact in size. Ann's observation and suggestion forever changed the face of Mercury outboards. She stated "Well, a large woman always wears a black dress. Why don't you paint it black?" The group concurred. In Charlie's own words "We painted one black and it shrunk about 20 percent!" It was in the fall of that same year, as a 1962 model, the first black Mercury and the industry's first 100 HP outboard motor came off the line. Who would have thought it started with a black dress?
