History

The Crosley automobile was the brain child of Powel Crosley Jr., of Cincinnati, Ohio. He was the owner of the Cincinnati Reds baseball team, an inventor and an industrialist. In pre and post WWII, there were Crosley radios and Crosley refrigerators. His vision for the Crosley automobile was for one that would be extremely affordable and economical to operate. The first Crosley automobiles were built in 1939. Production ceased during WWII, but resumed from 1946 through 1952.

1948 was the peak year for sales of the 1200 pound +/- vehicles which came in numerous configurations and averaged 50-55 mile per gallon. That year, nearly 25,000 of these vehicles were sold and they were produced as sedans, station wagons, convertibles, delivery vehicles, sports cars, and pick-ups. This very rare Crosley pickup, which sold new for just over $1,000.00 includes the original Crosley automobile radio.