with significant design innovations, including a two-cylinder, air-cooled engine, which he named the "Buggyaut." Manufactured in a garage at 32 Carpenter St., the Buggyaut was an inexpensive auto with large wheels designed for rural markets and unpaved roads. To make the car affordable, Duryea introduced a simple body design, mounted on the side bars of the chassis, in usual buggy fashion, that made the Buggyaut light and easy riding. The two-passenger model, complete with top, sold for only $700, but the Buggyaut never achieved the success that he had envisioned. In 1914, Duryea closed the garage and left Reading. In 1916, eight years after Henry Ford introduced his Model T, Duryea made another attempt to produce his own "car for the people." With financing from Keyser Fry of Reading, he created the Duryea GEM, a cross between an automobile and a motorcycle, with a newly designed engine and suspension. Advertised as the "Biggest Idea in the History of the Motor Car and the Last Word in Automobile Construction," the Duryea GEM combined the comfort and stability of an automobile with the simplicity, handling, and economy of a motorcycle. It was also extremely affordable, costing only $250 and boasting an impressive 65 miles of driving per gallon of gasoline. Once again, however, lack of funding forced Duryea to drop the project, with only six being thought to have been built. The GEM was the last automobile built by Charles Duryea. Although Charles did discuss with Frank Duryea the building of the first commercially successful American automobile, Frank was the actual builder during their collaboration. He did correspond with his brother Charles regarding what did and did not work in the design. Charles left Springfield in 1892 before construction began. This was documented in transcripts during the Selden Patent trial. Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles in Boyertown, Pennsylvania hosts an annual Duryea Day Antique and Classic Car Show, which features an extensive collection of automobiles manufactured in southeastern Pennsylvania in the early 20th century. Since 1951, the SCCA has sponsored a biannual "Duryea Hillclimb" race in Reading which traces Charles' original test route. See also Buckeye gasoline buggy Duryea Motor Wagon Duryea Power List of defunct United States automobile manufacturers References External links Photo of Duryea Motor Wagon Company factory, Springfield, Massachusetts, Detroit Public Library (copyright retained for unpublished photonegative) Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States Brass Era vehicles Vehicles