1. The elder Alvan Macauley became the first state treasurer for West Virginia after the Civil War.
20 Facts About Alvan Macauley
1. 2.
The Macauleys moved to Washington DC where Alvan was educated in the public school system.
3.
Alvan Macauley attended Lehigh University in Pennsylvania and gained an engineering degree.
4.
Alvan Macauley graduated from Columbian College with a law degree.
5.
Alvan Macauley took a job as a patent attorney with the National Cash Register Company.
6.
Alvan Macauley moved to St Louis in 1901 to become the head of American Arithmometer Company.
7.
Alvan Macauley revitalized the company and by 1905 sought to expand the operation.
8.
Alvan Macauley set his eye on a certain alley, but the city was unwilling to give it to him, as his predecessor, who had left the company on angry terms, still had political pull in the city and was blocking the move.
9.
Alvan Macauley responded by traveling to Detroit, securing an alley there, and returning to St Louis.
10.
Alvan Macauley oversaw an era when Packard was the leader in the luxury car market.
11.
Alvan Macauley hired Jesse Vincent, an engineer who led the technical development at Packard.
12.
Alvan Macauley responded by seeking a foothold in the mid-priced car market.
13.
Alvan Macauley stayed on as chairman of the board until 1948.
14.
Alvan Macauley was instrumental in the company's decision to produce the powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, which was a key factor in the success of the famous P-51 Mustang fighter in World War II.
15.
Alvan Macauley resigned from Packard in 1948 after the company lost its place as the leading luxury-car maker in America to Cadillac.
16.
Alvan Macauley served as president of the American Automobile Manufacturers Association and the National Automobile Chamber of Commerce.
17.
Alvan Macauley appeared on the cover of Time magazine in 1929 after testifying before the Senate Finance Committee's subcommittee at the behest of Pennsylvania Senator David A Reed.
18.
Alvan Macauley had several personality quirks including a dislike of people who jingled the change in their pockets or had gold fillings in their teeth.
19.
Alvan Macauley died on January 16,1952, in Clearwater, Florida, from an attack of uremic poisoning and pneumonia.
20.
Alvan Macauley was survived by his wife, three children, ten grandchildren and fifteen great-grandchildren.