Australia , Australia
Freeman Cobb (1830–1878), born in
Brewster, Massachusetts, joined express agents Adams & Co in 1849. In 1853, he was sent to
Melbourne, Australia, with George Mowton, a senior employee, to establish a branch. Cobb had taken over to Australia two Concord thoroughbrace wagons for Adams & Co, and in July 1853 they began a carrying service from Melbourne to its
port. The carrying venture was unsuccessful largely because of very bad weather and, like Wells Fargo, Adams & Co withdrew from Australia. On January 30, 1854, the new firm, having mounted seats in the former Adams & Co Concord wagons, started a stagecoach service running the or so between
Bendigo and Melbourne through
Castlemaine, then named Forest Creek. This service proved
very profitable. The following advertisement appeared in
Melbourne's Argus in October 1857: "For Sale: Lord & Co., No. 30 King Street, (Melbourne) have on SALE: Coaches. 3 superb concord stage coaches, with seats for 25 passengers." At the end of 1857, the first of these Concord coaches was put into service by Cobb & Co carrying 21 passengers (it later carried 30 passengers), and the other two coaches soon joined it. Francis Boardman Clapp (1833–1920), American founder of the
Melbourne Tramway & Omnibus Company and an early partner in Cobb & Co, advertised himself from 1867 as "Victoria's Sole Agent for Abbott, Downing & Company's Coaches, Carriages and Buggies". His office and showroom was at 65
Little Collins Street, Melbourne.
Local manufacture In 1862, Cobb & Co left Melbourne and established headquarters in
Bathurst, New South Wales, including new coach and harness factories which built them coaches "in the manner of" Abbot & Downing. Most Australian-made coaches were 12 and 25 passenger vehicles. A coach for 60 passengers was built at Bathurst but proved a failure. Other coachbuilding factories were established at
Goulburn,
Bourke,
Castlemaine,
Brisbane and
Charleville.
Chile In 1855, Adams & Co ran daily express Concord coaches from
Valparaiso to
Santiago.
South Africa Mail and Passenger Service, inauguration of route
Salisbury to
Umtali Freeman Cobb lost money in banking investments and returned to Adams & Co to manage their Boston agency. In 1871, he took his family and settled in
Port Elizabeth, South Africa where he operated a coach service to the diamond fields at
Kimberley under the name Cobb & Co. His health failed and his profitable business suffered and became insolvent in 1878 a few months before he died in Port Elizabeth. His family returned to Brewster. ==See also==