Thursday 25th October 1917

Dodge began full-scale truck production. The first civilian Dodge Brothers’ Commercial was the famous Screenside introduced in 1917 as a 1918 model. The Screenside was built on a beefed up 114-inch wheelbase automobile chassis. It was rated for a maximum payload of 1,000 lbs. (half-ton) and used the auto’s 212 cubic inch, 35 horsepower, four cylinder engine and the auto’s three speed transmission. Approximately six months after launching the Screenside the half-ton was added to the commercial car line. Think of the panel as an enclosed screenside with double rear cargo doors. These two models were the only trucks the original Dodge Brothers Company built between 1918 and 1928. They were upgraded to a 3/4-ton payload rating (1,500 lbs.) in 1923 and their wheelbases were lengthened to 116-inches in 1924.