Fleetwood — Where Cadillac Got Its Name
Near Reading, Pennsylvania
The word Fleetwood means something very specific in the world of automobiles. For generations it identified the pinnacle of the Cadillac line, the name stamped on the most luxurious cars the company produced. That name came from right here, from a small Berks County borough in Pennsylvania.
The Fleetwood Metal Body Company was established in nineteen oh nine by Harry C. Urich, and it quickly built a reputation as the finest custom coachbuilder in the country. When wealthy clients ordered a Duesenberg, a Packard, a Rolls-Royce, or a Mercedes-Benz and wanted something truly individual, they often came to Fleetwood. The craftsmen here designed and fabricated bodies by hand, combining engineering precision with a jeweler's attention to detail.
General Motors took notice. Its Fisher Body subsidiary purchased Fleetwood in nineteen twenty-five. Six years later, GM moved fabrication operations to Detroit. The Pennsylvania workshops went quiet, but the name traveled with the craft. Cadillac used the Fleetwood designation for its flagship models for another sixty years, making a small Pennsylvania town's legacy synonymous with American automotive luxury.
