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Topic starter
21/09/2026 10:26 am
Frank Sinatra:
and the Christie Front Drive Motor Company (1912 - 1918). And , over the years, became a punchline for denigrating jokes about the Garden State. It's rebirth over the last decade or so has seen it transformed by gentrification into a hipster's paradise overflowing with bars, restaurants, and condos for all the youth that can't afford Brooklyn, let alone Manhattan.
The Front Drive Motor Company was founded by J. Walter Christie with the idea of motorizing the existing fire brigades motorless steam pumpers with a 4 cylinder 90 HP engine powered front axle. The first to purchase this 1912 Christie Front Drive Steamer was the New York City Fire Department. 600 vehicles with various configurations including transverse mounted engines mounted under the driver's seat were built. As a last gasp for the company, they designed the 1919 Model tank for the Army, but the design was not accepted for production. I really got a kick out of this Franklin Mint model of Christie's first (#1) motorized pumper. The content, fit and finish is just superb.
