According to a 1918 story in the New York Herald, Locomobile developed this model for the use of General John J. “Black Jack” Pershing, and his staff, in Europe where Pershing was serving as the commander of the American forces during World War I.
According to the story, after observing British commanders using Rolls Royces and French commanders using Renaults, General Pershing requested a vehicle from Locomobile which would be representative of America and be able to meet the physical challenges of being driven 200-300 miles per day over war-torn roads at high speeds. Locomobile first shipped two of these automobiles and they were used simultaneously, one following the other, so that the General could change cars without losing any time in the event of a blown tire.
The Locomobiles successfully met the challenges, and then more units were supplied for the use of the General Staff. The automobile company wasted no time including this information in their advertising:
You can’t blame Locomobile for being proud of its association with General Pershing, a great general as well as a good and decent man. He still holds the distinction of being the only active-duty six-star general in American history. For more information on this man, I highly recommend a documentary created by University of Nebraska professor Barney McCoy called “Black Jack Pershing: Love and War,” which is available on Amazon Prime. If it doesn’t make you shed a tear, you better check your pulse.
