Did you know that Dodges were the first automobiles to officially serve in the United States military?
Early in 1916, General John J. “Black Jack” Pershing ordered six Dodges for his Mexican expeditionary force, soon expanding the order to 150 units. Pershing’s Dodges quickly gained a reputation for extreme ruggedness and reliability, rare qualities in cars of that era. Pershing considered his Dodges unstoppable.
On May 14, 1916, one of Pershing’s lieutenants, George S. Patton, discovered the hideout of Julio Cárdenas, a top associate of Mexican guerilla general Pancho Villa. With 15 men and three Dodge touring cars, Patton raided the compound and defeated Cárdenas and his men.
Military experts regard the raid as the first mechanized cavalry attack in history, while Patton went on to fame as “Old Blood and Guts,” America’s fiercest (and most controversial) general of World War II.
When Pershing was called to Europe to serve in the American Expeditionary Forces in the first World War, he took his beloved Dodges with him. Eddie Rickenbacker, at that time a well-known racing car driver, served as Pershing’s personal chauffeur. Rickenbacker would later become an ace pilot in WWI, a hero in both WWI and WWII, and the owner of Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Courtesy of redlinedodge.com
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