Dusting Off the Old Ones was published in 1961 by W. B. Clarke, Miles City, Montana.
Miles City's Early Autos

There are not many living in this community to-day who were interested in automobiles at the time when the High Henry Minstrel Show displayed a Stanley Steamer in a parade down Main Street here in Miles City just after the turn of the century. This is believed to be the first automobile to grace the streets of our fair city. There was no pavement on the streets at that time. Just try to imagine Miles City to-day with neither pavement nor automobiles. There is some conjecture as to who was the first automobile dealer in Miles City, but among the first were:

  • Lakin Brothers - with EMF and Flanders
  • Miles & Ulmer - with Velie
  • Gus Wiebke - with Ford
  • Clifford & Boorse - with Overland and Velie

A little later on, there were:

  • Fax Brown - with Chevrolet
  • J. M. Boorse - with Hupmobile
  • H. W. Titus and Russell Wiley - with Velie
  • Milligan and Leighton - with Maytag
  • Myers & Lindeberg - with Case and Studebaker
  • Heren Brothers - with Ford - and later - Dodge
  • Adams & Cranston - but we cannot recollect the car they represented.

Of the makes of cars mentioned, where are the EMF's, Flanders, Hups, Velies, Overlands, Maytags and Cases? And of the dealers - there is just one of them occasionally seen on the streets - Jerry Clifford.