Frederick Morrell Zeder
{{Short description|American scientist (1886–1951)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2023}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Frederick Morrell Zeder
| image = Fred Zeder 1922.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Zeder in 1922
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1886|3|19}}
| birth_place = Bay City, Michigan, U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1951|2|24|1886|3|19}}
| death_place = Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
| resting_place = Holy Sepulchre Cemetery
| nationality = American
| spouse = {{marriage|Lucille Monroe|1919}}
| children = 4
| alma_mater = University of Michigan
| occupation = {{hlist|Engineer|scientist}}
}}
Frederick Morrell Zeder (March 19, 1886 – February 24, 1951) was an American scientist and engineer who was one of the Studebaker engineers known as The Three Musketeers.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hotcars.com/looking-back-at-the-chrysler-airflow/|title=Looking Back At The Chrysler Airflow|date=March 15, 2021|website=HotCars|accessdate=June 19, 2023}}
Early life
Frederick Morrell Zeder was born on March 19, 1886, in Bay City, Michigan, to Rudolph John Zeder.{{Cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-fred-m-zeder-64-di/127399806/ |title=Fred M. Zeder, 64, Dies in Miami Beach |date=1951-02-25 |newspaper=Detroit Free Press |page=12 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=2023-07-01}}{{Open access}}{{cn|date=July 2023|reason=father's name}} At the age of eleven, Zeder worked at a box factory. He then worked as a railroad call boy, car checker and machinist apprentice. He attended Bay City High School. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 1909 with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering.{{Cite web|url=https://digitalcollections.detroitpubliclibrary.org/islandora/object/islandora:212153|title=Fred M. Zeder | DPL DAMS|website=digitalcollections.detroitpubliclibrary.org|accessdate=June 19, 2023}}
Career
After graduating, Zeder worked as an apprentice at Allis-Chalmers in Milwaukee. In 1910, he became an erecting engineer at the firm. Later in 1910, Zeder joined E-M-F Company and became a leader in the company's engineering laboratories.
In 1913, Zeder joined Studebaker as a consulting engineer and later became chief engineer. He left Studebaker in 1920.{{Cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-miami-herald-f-m-zeder-car-design/127400591/ |title=F. M. Zeder, Car Designer, Dies At Beach |date=1951-02-25 |newspaper=Miami Herald |page=1 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=2023-07-01}}{{Open access}} In 1921, he joined Skelton and Breer in forming the Zeder-Skelton-Breer Engineering Company, a partnership that would later be known as The Three Musketeers. They were involved in the founding of the Chrysler Corporation, and were hand-picked by Walter Chrysler, then with Maxwell Motor Corporation, to come with him when he started the new company in 1923.{{cn|date=July 2023|reason=additional cite needed}} He helped design the original Chrysler car in 1924.{{Cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-f-m-zeder-dies-in-m/127399649/ |title=F. M. Zeder Dies in Miami Beach |date=1951-02-25 |newspaper=Detroit Free Press |page=1 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=2023-06-30}}{{Open access}} Zeder served as vice chairman of Chrysler's board of directors and vice president of engineering until his death.
Zeder served as special consultant to the Chief of Army Ordnance in World War II. In 1941, Zeder became president of the Detroit Area Council of Boy Scouts of America. He served as director of the Grand Opera Society, director of the United Foundation and as a member of the state advisory board of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis. He was a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Engineering Society of Detroit, the Franklin Institute and the American Society for Testing Materials.
Personal life
Zeder married Lucille Monroe in 1919. They had one son and three daughters, Fred M. Jr., Dorothy June, Priscilla Ann and Margaret Lucille. He lived at 17500 E. Jefferson in Grosse Pointe.
Zeder died while on vacation on February 24, 1951, at St. Francis Hospital in Miami Beach. He was buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.{{Cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-final-rites-held-for/127400965/ |title=Final Rites Held for Fred Zeder |date=1951-03-01 |newspaper=Detroit Free Press |page=23 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=2023-07-01}}{{Open access}}
Awards
Zeder received a honorary master's degree in engineering from the University of Michigan in 1933. He was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 1998.{{Cite web|url=https://www.automotivehalloffame.org/honoree/fred-m-zeder/|title=» Fred M. Zeder | Automotive Hall of Fame|website=www.automotivehalloffame.org|access-date=June 19, 2023}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://fcagroup.pl/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Three-Musketeers.pdf Biography]
- [https://viaf.org/viaf/70629409/ Official Website]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Zeder, Frederick Morrell}}
Category:People from Bay City, Michigan
Category:Scientists from Detroit