Buick Founder's 150th Anniversary Commemorated

Press Release

The 150th anniversary of the birth of David Dunbar Buick, creator of the Buick automobile, will be commemorated Friday (Sept. 17, 2004) in Flint, Mich., in the Detroit area and in Arbroath, Scotland. Buick was born in Arbroath Sept. 17, 1854.

In Arbroath, local resident Eric Buick (no relation) will speak at the site of a plaque near David's birthplace and host a luncheon. In Birmingham, Mich., the founder will be recognized at a dinner tied to the Ryder Cup and Buick's involvement with golf.

In Flint, which was Buick Motor Division's hometown for 95 years, the Sloan Museum, its Buick Gallery and Research Center and the Longway Planetarium will be open free of charge Friday through Sunday, courtesy of Buick.

David Buick became a Detroit plumbing inventor and executive before incorporating Buick Motor Co. in 1903. The company was sold to a Flint wagon firm later that year, and in 1904 Flint industrialist William C. Durant took charge. Durant made Buick a big success by 1908, when he created General Motors, using Buick as his financial foundation. David Buick left the company soon afterward. He died in Detroit in 1929. Burial was in Woodmere, Detroit.

A Michigan historical marker commemorating Buick was recently installed outside GM headquarters at Renaissance Center, Detroit.