Everitt-Metzger-Flanders Co. Canada 1909-1911
Studebaker Corporation of Canada
Windsor 1912 - 1936; Hamilton 1948 - 1966

Above: The Studebaker '20'', originally a 'Flanders 20'
Below: Artist's somewhat exaggerated conception of the Studebaker Plant in Windsor's factory district. At one time this was one of the busiest plants in Windsor.

Below: E-M-F and Studebaker logos.

In late 1909 the American company E-M-F opened a branch plant in Walkerville and began the manufacture of E-M-F 30 and Flanders 20 Automobiles. 

Not long after their move into Canada, E-M-F and Studebaker (who at the time distributed E-M-F cars in the States) got into a dispute which led to Studebaker acquiring E-M-F in a take-over. The Studebaker Corporation of Canada was formed, the E-M-F 30 and Flanders 20 were renamed the Studebaker '30' and '20' and sold until the end of 1912. 

One of the more interesting cars manufactured by Studebaker was the E.K. Big Six, so named because of its 7-passanger size and ability to reach speeds of 80 miles per hour. Rum runners of the day did much of their business with this vehicle--so much so, that in 1921 the Windsor Police Department bought a $3,000 Big Six of their own just to keep up with the Runners.

Studebaker enjoyed a successful Canadian run until the late-1920's when it released the Erskine, a European-style six that no one wanted to buy. A few years later, it purchased the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Co., which had for years been in a state of decline. The cars did not sell and Studebaker unloaded the company in 1934. Studebaker continued to manufacture a full line of cars in Windsor until 1936, when Canadian tariff protection was parred down.

After the war, in 1948, a new plant opened in Hamilton. By 1963 the American Plant in South Bend, Indiana, was closed, leaving Hamilton to produce Studebakers alone, which it did until 1266. 

Links

Studebaker National Museum 
Studebaker Internet Club