1927 Blue Bird School Bus

Summary

This 1927 Blue Bird is the oldest surviving school bus in America. Albert Luce, Sr., built his first bus in 1925 by mounting a purchased wood body to a Ford truck frame. The body could not withstand the Georgia roads. Luce, convinced he could make a better bus, applied a steel framework under the wood body. His success led him to make school buses full time.

This 1927 Blue Bird is the oldest surviving school bus in America. Albert Luce, Sr., built his first bus in 1925 by mounting a purchased wood body to a Ford truck frame. The body could not withstand the Georgia roads. Luce, convinced he could make a better bus, applied a steel framework under the wood body. His success led him to make school buses full time.

This is the first in a long line of buses made by Blue Bird, one of the country's major school bus builders. It is the oldest surviving school bus in America. In 1925, Albert L. Luce, Sr. owned two Ford dealerships in Georgia when a customer came in and ordered a bus to transport his workers. Mr. Luce purchased a wooden bus body and mounted it on a Ford Model TT truck. But the body began rattling apart before the customer could even finish paying for the bus. Mr. Luce was convinced he could make a better bus body and, by 1927 he had built the school bus you see here. The key to success was a strong steel framework under the wood. Within a few years Mr. Luce sold his Ford dealerships and began making school buses full time. Chassis: 1927 Ford Model TT Truck Engine: 176 cu. in., 20 hp Body: Hand built using steel and wood

Detailed Description
Artifact

School bus

Date Made

1927

Creators

Luce, Albert L, 1888-1962 

Ford Motor Company 

Place of Creation

United States, Georgia, Perry 

United States, Michigan, Dearborn 

Creator Notes

Body built by Albert L. Luce; chassis built by Ford Motor Company

Driving America
 On Exhibit

at Henry Ford Museum in Driving America

Object ID

2007.73.1

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of Albert L. Luce, Jr.

Material

Steel (Alloy)
Wood (Plant Material)
Canvas
Rubber (Material)
Glass (Material)

Technique

Handmade

Color

Chrome yellow (Color)
Black (Color)

Dimensions

Height: 84 in

Width: 67 in

Length: 207 in

Weight: 3140 lbs

Inscriptions

In black letters in the left and right sides of body: BLUE BIRD No. 1 / BUILT 1927

Specifications

Make & Model: 1927 Blue Bird school bus

Body maker: Albert L. Luce, Sr., Fort Valley, Georgia

Chassis maker: Ford Motor Company, Highland Park, Michigan (1927 TT truck)

Engine: inline-4, L-head valves, 177 cubic inches

Transmission: 2-speed manual

Height: 102 inches

Wheelbase: 123.5 inches

Width: 66.5 inches

Overall length: 194 inches

Horsepower: 20 at 1600 revolutions per minutes

Weight: 3140 pounds

Pounds per horsepower: 157

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