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Ralph E. Oakland Collection

 Collection
Identifier: RH-A-4354

Scope and Contents

In the smaller box, the first folder contains 2 negatives of a model A-6 Checker Cab, and contains 5 negatives on 2 small film strips of stylized cabs from the Hail Kalamazoo fundraiser event. The next folder contains 7 illustrations of Checker vehicles and parts, while the following folders contains more Checker illustrations from John Duyser and the Jaqua Company on paper plaques. The following folder has 4 photos of Frank Parmelee vehicles. The final folder contains 14 photos of Checker Cabs and Checker parts.

In the larger box there are 16 legal size folders. The first folder contains papers that contain the history of Checker Cab Co., which includes two 75th anniversary booklets from Checker Cab Co., a page from a Kalamazoo Museum magazine, pages from Taxi! A Look at Checkers Past by Stanley K. Yost, and photocopies of those pages. The next folder has information about Morris Markin. It contains 2 copies of a photograph of him, his son, and Ralph E. Oakland, 2 newspaper clippings on his death (as well as their photocopies), and 2 plastic covered magazine pages about him. One is from Forbes and the other from Time. The next folder contains information about Hail Kalamazoo, which includes a slip of paper announcing the participants and 7 newspaper pages with articles on the event. The folder behind it contains the photocopies of the newspaper pages. The next folder contains brochures from Checker Cab Co. on cars. There are three, one on the sedan, station wagon, limousine, and taxicab, one on the model A-3, and one with general information about their vehicles. The following folder has papers from Checker Cab Co., and has gold 50th anniversary stickers for Checker Motors Corporation, a paper advertisement and a photocopy, a paper telling people to tell others if they are pleased with their service, a poster with rates and coupon rates, and an organization chart of their 150-cab fleet. The next folder contains newspapers that mention Checker Cab Co. and amounts to 2 full pages and 2 smaller articles and their photocopies. Another folder contains magazines that mention Checker Cab Co. and includes a page from a Kalamazoo Museum magazine, an Autocar magazine, and 2 copies of an Ethyl News magazine. Both full magazines have the pages mentioning Checker Cab Co. copied and placed in the same folder. The next folder has papers from the Checker Car Club of America, which includes printed out pages from their website in 2003 and a Checker Car Club of America Dues Renewal Form. The next folder contains a newsletter from the Checker Car Club of America called the Checkerboard News and includes 7 issues. The next folder has papers that correspond with the Motor Cab News Trademark. Inside there is a certificate that certifies their trademark of the Motor Cab News logo, as well as two papers with the Motor Cab News logo printed on it as well as their photocopies. The following folder contains papers related to the Superba Checker Car, and has specifications of the car and a correspondence between Ralph E. Oakland and William R. Carter about the car. The next folder has two full newspaper pages that have some history of the Checker Cab Company and the photocopies of those pages. The folder behind it contains 2 books. One is titled Taxi! A Look at Checkers Past by Stanley K. Yost and Kathryn Bassett and the other is Checker Cab Co Photo History by James Hinckley. The second to last folder has papers on Frank Parmelee, and is just 4 Frank Parmelee omnibus passes and a slip of paper advertising Frank Parmelee bus systems. The final folder has miscellaneous items and includes three copies to the song Cab Driver and a newspaper photo of a woman driving a bullet-proof armored car.

Dates

  • Creation: approximately 1921-2010

Creator

Morris Markin Biography

Morris Markin was born in Russia July 15, 1893. In 1912, he moved to Chicago where he worked as an errand boy and later as a tailor’s apprentice. When his boss died suddenly, he bought the shop on credit for his boss’s widow. In WWI he was hired on contract to make US Army uniforms and made a fortune.

He later began running a fleet of taxicabs and an auto body shop. The two main cab companies at the time were Yellow Cab Company and Checker Cab Company. Checker did not own a cab manufacturing company in 192 like Yellow Cab Company did. Instead, they partnered with Lomberg Auto Body Manufacturing Co. and Commonwealth Motors to produce the Mogul Taxi for Checker Cab Co. Markin loaned money to Lomberg and he later took possession of the company, renaming it Markin Automobile Body and bought Commonwealth Motors in October 1921 and merged them to form Checker Cab Manufacturing Co. in 1922. The company moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan in 1923.

Markin made cabs for Checker Cab Co., but also made Checker passenger cars for a time, including the Superba, a sedan, and a limousine.

Morris Markin died July 8, 1970 and his son took over Checker. The last Checker Cab made in Kalamazoo was made July 12, 1982, though they continued making parts until 2009. The Kalamazoo Plant was sold January 14, 2010 to the Jones Group, marking the end of the company.

John Hertz Biography

John Hertz founded Yellow Cab Company, but sold it to General Motors in 1925, but managed to retain his stakes in the company. He sold controlling interest to Parmelee Transportation Company and in 1929 sold the rest to Markin, who bought Parmelee Transportation Co. and took control of both Parmelee and Yellow Cab.

Ralph E. Oakland Biography

Ralph E. Oakland was born January 12, 1899 in Chicago, Illinois and he became the Vice President of Checker Cab Manufacturing Corporation in Kalamazoo. He died December 9, 1980.

Extent

2 boxes : 21 folders total. One of boxes contains 5 legal size folders, while the other contains the remaining 16 legal size folders.

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The collection is composed of 2 boxes filled with 21 folders of books, magazines, newspapers, brochures, correspondences, history, and other papers regarding the Checker Cab Company of Kalamazoo, Michigan from its start in 1921 to its bankruptcy in 2010.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by David and Patti Oakland. (David is Ralph’s grandson.)

Physical Description

The collection consists of 21 folders kept in 2 boxes. Within the folders, there are a plethora of different papers ranging from books, newspapers, magazines, correspondences, photographs, illustrations, history, and more. One of the boxes contains 5 legal size folders, while the other contains the remaining 16 legal size folders.

Overall, the items in the collection are in pretty good condition, with some papers having more wear than others, and care should still be taken handling the items. Everything is still legible.

Title
Ralph E. Oakland Collection Finding Aid
Status
Completed
Author
Leo Gingerich; Stephanie Chapman; Mallory Heslinger
Date
2024-02-08
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Western Michigan University Archives & Regional History Collections Repository

Contact:
Charles C. and Lynn L. Zhang Legacy Collections Center
1650 Oakland Drive
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5307 US
(269) 387-8490