Nash-Kelvinator Corporation

Nash-Kelvinator Corporation was the result of a merger in 1937 between Nash Motors and Kelvinator Appliance Company. The union of these two companies was brought about as a result of a condition made by George W. Mason prior to his appointment as CEO of Nash. The company manufactured cars and refrigerators as well as aeronautic components and helicopters during World War II. In 1954, the company merged with Husdon Motors to form American Motors Corporation (AMC). History The founder of Nash Motors, Charles W. Nash, now serving as chair of the board, wanted George W. Mason for his expertise as a production engineer for several car manufacturers before being appointed president of Kelvinator in 1928. To have Mason, Nash had to buy Kelvinator, a leading manufacturer of refrigerators. The merged company began on 2 January 1937 with no debt and $50 million in cash assets. Mason then served as president of Nash-Kelvinator until 1954 when the firm merged with Hudson Motors. Nash-Kelvinator ranked 27th among United States corporations in the value of World War II production contracts. As part of the Arsenal of Democracy, the company shifted its factories to make a large variety of military components and aeronautic assemblies. The company expanded its facilities to produce the Hamilton Standard propellers to become the largest manufacturer of this type of propeller with more than 158,000 units made with an additional over 85,000 spare blades, assembling nearly 17,000 Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp 18-cylinder, air-cooled aircraft engine, making the newly introduced Sikorsky R-6 helicopters, and becoming one of the largest suppliers of binoculars in the world with over 200,000 delivered to the US Army. Starting in late 1944, the company began to work on new car designs and by 1945 it completed new proving grounds in Wisconsin. In 1955, Kelvinator introduced the Kelvinator Food-A-Rama Side-by-Side Refrigerator, one of the earliest modern side-by-side frost-free refrigerators. Kelvinator consumer products, before and after the merger with Nash, were considered an upmarket brand of household appliances.