Cross Outboards
History
Cross Engine & Gear Company, located in Detroit at 12 Atwater Street, on the waterfront, began operations in 1898, and was headed up by Milton O. Cross Sr. Typical products that they manufactured then included brass marine accessories such as steering wheels, props, and lamps. Before very long, they migrated into the building of marine engines for inboard use. Soon afterwards, Cross-built transmissions, engines and differentials were being used to equip many American automobiles. The Cross Company became known for many of the innovations that they implemented during the course of doing their business, including Milton Sr. building his own gear-making machines around 1912. Cross engines were the first to ever be built using overhead valves and helical gears. Milton Sr. also built his own car using a Cross-built engine, transmission, and differential, he did this in or about 1906. Milton was known to be involved in boating, hence his nickname of “The Skipper”, and this enthusiasm probably served as a catalyst for the formulation of the outboard designs. Business was very good, and in 1908 the company changed locations and moved to Bellevue Avenue. By the time WWI broke out, Cross was making gears for British tanks.
In the mid-1920’s, Cross Gear & Engine decided to venture into the design and building of outboard motors. These engines operated on the four-stroke principle. The first offering was their wonderful 5-cylinder Radial engine with a displacement of 73.35 cubic inches and a horsepower rating of 35 hp. Reportedly the radial design stemmed from Miltons love of rebuilding aircraft engines to be used for high-speed boating applications. The Radial motor was the only Cross outboard engine offered from 1928 to 1931, when along came the two-cylinder Sea Gull 29, which was produced for only 2 or 3 years, depending on which story you hear or which literature you deem more reliable. Regardless of which is correct, what we know for a fact is that Cross Gear & Engine gave up building outboards in the early 30’s, and eventually sold the manufacturing rights for the outboard line to the Detroit Outboard Products Corporation, which revived the Sea Gull as the 1940 “Detroiter”. “The Skipper” turned responsibility of the business over to his two sons Milton Jr. and Ralph, who focused on building machinery instead of engines. This turned out to be a smart move, as eventually the business grew to three plants which ended up being consolidated and moving to Fraser, MI in 1956. The Skipper passed on in 1954, and Milton Jr. left us in 1967. Ralph E. Cross passed away in 2003.
Comparing the Seagull to the Detroiter
Cross Seagull Comparison to Detroiter
Images of the Cross factory
CategoryCross
CategoryDetroiter
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| winner page 1.jpg | 592.79 KB | 3/15/2009 11:27 am | |
| winner page 2.jpg | 609.19 KB | 3/15/2009 11:27 am | |
| winner page 3.jpg | 713.45 KB | 3/15/2009 11:29 am | |
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| winner cover.jpg | 952.05 KB | 3/15/2009 11:34 am | |
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| winner page 16.jpg | 809.01 KB | 3/15/2009 11:49 am | |
| winner rear cover.jpg | 874.91 KB | 3/15/2009 11:50 am | |
| business in 1898 edited and shrunk.jpg | 569.2 KB | 3/15/2009 11:54 am | |
| Cross plant 1907 flipped.jpg | 1.21 MB | 3/15/2009 11:55 am | |
| early C-Gull flyer welded.jpg | 1.4 MB | 3/15/2009 11:57 am | |
| Japanese page welded and shrunk.jpg | 421.09 KB | 3/15/2009 11:58 am | |
| Gar Wood boat ad merged and shrunk.jpg | 448.99 KB | 3/15/2009 11:59 am |
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