 A Hayes WHDX 70-170 ballast tractor 6×6 truck operating in Spain in 2010. | |
| Formerly | Hayes-Anderson Motor Company Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Type |
|
| Industry | Truck manufacturing |
| Founded | 1920 (1920) in Vancouver, British Columbia |
| Founder |
|
| Defunct | 1975 (1975) |
| Fate | Dissolved by Paccar |
| Headquarters | Vancouver, British Columbia , Canada |
| Parent | Paccar |
The Hayes Manufacturing Company, also known as Hayes, was a Canadian manufacturer specializing in heavy equipment vehicles. Founded in 1928 as Hayes-Anderson, Hayes developed custom trucks and off-road vehicles and expanded with the local forestry industry in Vancouver. Before World War II, Hayes had diversified into streamliner buses, while afterwards they expanded into on-highway semi-trailer trucks. In 1969, Mack Trucks acquired a majority stake in Hayes before ultimately being sold off to Paccar five years later. Hayes ceased operations in 1975.
History
[edit]
The Hayes Manufacturing Company was established in Vancouver in 1920 by Douglas Hayes, an owner of a parts dealer,[1] and entrepreneur W. E. Anderson from Quadra Island,[1] as Hayes-Anderson Motor Company Ltd.[2] The company sold American-built trucks and truck parts for the first two years, then built their own trucks, which were designed for the climate of the Pacific Northwest, because the American-built trucks weren't strong enough for the heavy loads of the logging industry at the time.[3] The company was renamed Hayes Manufacturing Company Ltd. after Anderson left the company in 1928.[4] That same year, Hayes moved to a new plant, which was located on 2nd Avenue in Vancouver, where the company remained until its disestablishment.[5] In 1933, Hayes added diesel engines and dual axles to their logging trucks; the first truck manufacturing company to do so.[2] Despite Anderson leaving the company, the trucks kept the Hayes-Anderson badging until 1934.[4] When hauling logs had become very popular throughout British Columbia, Hayes started production of over-sized logging trucks and trailers.[2]
Throughout the late 1930s, Hayes was a distributor of British-made Leyland trucks, and the Leyland trucks supplemented Hayes' range of trucks.[6] The company also used Leyland's components for the trucks.[6] Hayes merged with Lawrence Manufacturing, a logging equipment manufacturer, in 1946, and was called Hayes-Lawrence.[7] Three employees – Vic Barclay, Mac Billingsley and Claude Thick – left the management division of Hayes to start Pacific Truck & Trailer Co. in 1947.[6] In the early 1950s, the company started manufacturing a range of on-road trucks.[8] The Signal Company, the parent firm of Mack Trucks, acquired a two-thirds share in Hayes Manufacturing in 1969,[9] and Hayes began a mass expansion;[10] production increased from 50 trucks per year to 500.[11] The company was renamed Hayes Trucks in 1971.[12] The company at its peak in the late 1960s had 600 employees and three plants; all of them were located in Vancouver.[1] In 1975, Signal sold the company to Gearmatic Co., a subsidiary of Paccar, which closed the Hayes plants and stopped production.[13] The Canadian Bank Note Company made 1 million Hayes truck stamps as part of the Historic Land Vehicles series.[14]
Products
[edit]Hayes manufactured cab-over and conventional trucks. The company used Detroit Diesel, Cummins, Rolls Royce and Caterpillar engines.[16] Hayes also manufactured buses, moving vans, tractors and trailers.[4] The company's few bus models included the Hayes Teardrop, a streamlined bus introduced in 1936.[17] Several Teardrop buses were purchased by Pacific Stage Lines,[17] one of which has been preserved by the Transit Museum Society.[18]
See also
[edit]- Pacific Trucks — Company founded by three former employees.
- Challenger trucks — A company founded in 1987 that rebuilt Hayes trucks.
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Francis 2012, p. 81; Allington 2000, p. 321.
- 1 2 3 Holtzman 1995, p. 46.
- ↑ Francis 2012, p. 81; Holtzman 1995, p. 46; Carroll & Davies 2005, p. 393; Allington 2000, p. 321.
- 1 2 3 Francis 2012, p. 81; Holtzman 1995, p. 46.
- ↑ Allington 2000, p. 321.
- 1 2 3 Francis 2012, p. 81; Carroll & Davies 2005, p. 393.
- ↑ Holtzman 1995, p. 46; Allington 2000, p. 321.
- ↑ Holtzman 1995, p. 47; Carroll & Davies 2005, p. 393.
- ↑ The Financial Post Survey of Industrials 1973, p. 159; Allington 2000, p. 321.
- ↑ Francis 2012, p. 81.
- ↑ Holtzman 1995, p. 47.
- ↑ The Financial Post Survey of Industrials 1973, p. 159.
- ↑ Francis 2012, p. 81; Holtzman 1995, p. 47; Carroll & Davies 2005, p. 393; Allington 2000, p. 321.
- ↑ Postage Stamp Guide 2025.
- ↑ Carroll & Davies 2005, p. 393.
- 1 2 Kelly & Francis 1990, pp. 119–121.
- ↑ Transit Museum Society 2024.
Works cited
[edit]- Carroll, John; Davies, Peter (July 8, 2005). The Illustrated Encyclopedia Of Tractors & Trucks (1st ed.). London, United Kingdom: Lorenz Books. ISBN 978-0-7548-1524-2.
- Holtzman, Stan (1995). American Semi Trucks. Osceola, Wisconsin: Motorbooks International. p. 46. ISBN 978-1610605731.
- Allington, Robert (2000). Francis, Daniel (ed.). Encyclopedia of British Columbia (1st ed.). Madeira Park, British Columbia, Canada: Harbour Publishing. ISBN 978-1-55017-200-3.
- Francis, Daniel (September 1, 2012). Robertson, Pam (ed.). Trucking in British Columbia: An Illustrated History. Madeira Park, British Columbia, Canada: Harbour Publishing. ISBN 978-1-55017-561-5.
- The Financial Post Survey of Industrials, Vol. 47. Maclean-Hunter. 1973. ISBN 978-0888961068.
- Kelly, Brian; Francis, Daniel (1990). Transit in British Columbia: The First Hundred Years. Madeira Park, British Columbia, Canada: Harbour Publishing. ISBN 1-55017-021-X.
- "Hayes HDX 45-115, 1975, Logging Truck - Canada Postage Stamp | Historic Land Vehicles". Postage Stamp Guide. Retrieved May 1, 2025.
- "1937 Hayes PCT-32 "Teardrop" – Pacific Stage Lines #63". Transit Museum Society. June 6, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
- Defunct truck manufacturers
- Defunct bus manufacturers
- Manufacturing companies based in Vancouver
- Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1920
- Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1975
- 1920 establishments in British Columbia
- 1975 disestablishments in British Columbia
- Bus manufacturers of Canada
- Truck manufacturers of Canada
- Canadian companies disestablished in 1975
- Canadian companies established in 1920
- Heavy haulage