Local Magnate Acquires Seattle Automobile Agency
Tacoma businessman H.A. Cummings expands his empire by purchasing the Capitol Hill Auto Club garage, signaling the rise of the automobile as a regional industry.
The story, cleaned up
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One of the largest automobile transactions to take place in months was the purchase yesterday by H. A. Cummings of the Capitol Hill Auto Club garage of Seattle, for a consideration of $50,000. The Capitol Hill club has been the largest Oldsmobile agency in the Northwest, and its sales for the past three seasons have aggregated an enormous figure. Mr. Cummings, who has been connected with the Oldsmobile people for seven years, and who is at present managing the Cummings Auto company of this city, will change the name of the Seattle house to that of the Cummings Auto company, and will run it as a branch of the Tacoma garage. The Olds Motor works has announced Tacoma as one of the best automobile towns on the coast.
“The Olds Motor works has announced Tacoma as one of the best automobile towns on the coast.”
This deal highlights the early 20th-century gold rush in car dealerships, which fundamentally altered urban planning in Tacoma and Seattle. The 'Capitol Hill Auto Club' site and the early dominance of brands like Oldsmobile represent a moment when the car shifted from a curiosity to the defining feature of Northwest infrastructure.
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