On Nov. 6, 1899, the Packard brothers’ first automobile rolled out of their incandescent lamp factory on Dana Street, motored down North Park Avenue and paraded around Courthouse Square.

From the beginning, Packard built high-quality, luxury cars for an elite clientele. William D. Rockefeller was so impressed, he bought two. Packard cars quickly earned a reputation for reliability and performance. In the summer of 1903, “Old Pacific” became the first car driven across the country under its own power. Packard’s “Gray Wolf” racecar shattered the “mile a minute” speed barrier a few months later.

In 1903, the Packard brothers and their partner George Weiss sold controlling interest in their automobile business to wealthy Michigan investors who moved production to Detroit, where the company grew exponentially. By the late 1920s, Packard reigned supreme as the world’s largest and most prestigious luxury car manufacturer, counting presidents, princes and Hollywood’s biggest stars among its loyal customers.

Packard survived the Great Depression, unlike competitors such as Duesenberg, Peerless and Pierce Arrow, and thrived during World War II by manufacturing Merlin aircraft engines and PT boat marine engines. After the war ended and auto production resumed, a confident Packard launched ambitious plans to compete head on with Detroit’s Big Three automakers.

So, it was with great fanfare that Packard Motor Car Company proudly celebrated its 50th anniversary as America’s oldest independent automobile company.

Packard bragged that its Golden Anniversary cars contained “77 major improvements and dozens of minor changes, adding up to the finest of the 1,200,000 automobiles Packard produced in the past 50 years.”

Packard’s “Ultramatic” automatic transmission was the most significant advance introduced that year. Automotive writers praised the Ultramatic as much smoother than General Motors’ Dynaflow. Consumer Reports rated it highly, and Popular Science said it worked “like a dream” and would “give all other transmissions aces and deuces and still pace the field.”

In a well-orchestrated publicity stunt that spring, Packard car dealers from all around the country assembled at the Packard Proving Grounds in suburban Detroit and drove away in 2,000 special edition metallic gold anniversary models.

The celebration continued into the fall. On Nov. 3, Packard’s president presented the keys to a new Golden Anniversary model just as it rolled off the assembly line to the company’s longest serving employee, Edward D. Jones, a Mineral Ridge native who helped build the first car in Warren.

Packard’s Golden Anniversary celebration ended where the company began. Corporate dignitaries and Packard family members joined Packard’s Executive Vice President Hugh Ferry in Warren on Nov. 17 to dedicate a bronze plaque marking the spot where the first Packard automobile was built.

With their companies’ shared lineage, Packard Electric’s General Manager B.N. MacGregor hosted a luncheon for Packard Motor Car Co. executives at the Trumbull Country Club after the ceremony. Hugh Ferry lauded the Packard brothers at that reception, stating:

“Their father amassed a fortune. This was large enough, I believe, for the Packard brothers to have lived comfortably without ever making a lamp bulb, an electric cable, or an automobile. Instead, they chose to be capitalists in the best sense of the word. They risked their fortune and invested their great energy in daring projects. They created opportunities for thousands of persons. They built factories, schools and hospitals. They helped change for the better the face and map not only of Warren and Detroit, but also of America and the world. All honor to the Packard brothers, we shall not soon see their likes again.”

Packard’s Golden Anniversary year proved successful. The company earned a net income of $7.8 million ($103 million in today’s dollars). It produced 104,593 vehicles, second most in company history, and sold 12,000 more cars than its chief rival, Cadillac. Packard ended the year in excellent shape financially as well, with assets of more than $61 million (over $800 million in today’s dollars).

Sadly, the good times did not last. Packard passed into automotive history in 1958, but memories of the illustrious marque survived. Today, the rich Packard legacy endures and is celebrated here at the National Packard Museum in Warren, the birthplace of Packard.