4 HP Clift engines waiting for final assembly at the Clift factory. An educated guess places this photo at about 1918, when Clift's small engine sales were booming. Brass nameplate for a Clift engine. This plate is stamped 5 HP, even though that size engine was never listed. The engine for this plate, if it ever existed, is long gone. Another view inside the Clift factory.

Clift Motor Company
Bellingham, Washington
By Chuck Zeiger and Earl Bower

As collectors of stationary and marine engines are well aware, small, low production engine companies abounded across the U.S. in the first half of the 20th century. As the knowledge and usefulness of gasoline engines expanded, so did the number of companies making a bid to enter a potentially profitable industry. Most of these companies, however, were not only low production operations but were short lived, as well.

The Clift Motor Company of Bellingham, Wash., was one such small-scale organization, but it was somewhat remarkable in terms of its longevity. From its beginnings in 1913 and through the 1930s, the firm turned out a variety of marine engines ranging from 4 HP to 100 HP, building as many as 5,000 to 10,000 engines, although the exact ..tions, an occasional Clift appears in a marine museum or at an engine show. The usual problems associated with salt-water deterioration have, no doubt, cut down on the number of running examples. Interestingly, many of the original casting patterns were only recently discarded by the Union Foundry of Bellingham, Wash., which did casting work for Clift Motor Company. Some of these were owned and displayed periodically by a local maritime heritage group.

Contact engine enthusiast Earl Bower at: 417 E. Hemmi Road, Lynden, WA 98264, or e-mail: res1tazc@verizon.net