Joseph Ledwinka

Joseph V. Ledwinka (December 14, 1870 – November 26, 1949) was an automobile engineer.

Early life Joseph V. Ledwinka, a distant relative of Hans Ledwinka, was born in Vienna, and emigrated to the United States in 1896.

Career Ledwinka was employed in his first job as carriage trimmer (upholsterer) at the Chicago Coach and Carriage Company where he developed his first patented design for a four-wheel-drive electric vehicle with four-wheel brakes, several of which were built by Westinghouse. Later he became a chief engineer for the Chattanooga Railroad of Tennessee, where he designed special drives for electric trolley cars. In 1912, they established their own factory, the Edward G. Budd Manufacturing Company, in Philadelphia where they formed automobile panels by drop pressing and power hammering later followed by drawing and stretching of panels. He married Laura B. Leidy in 1906. He had four stepsons. He was a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers and the Franklin Institute.

Death Ledwinka died on November 26, 1949, at Presbyterian Hospital in Philadelphia.