T.W. Lane Concord Buggy

Thomas Warren Lane was born in Hampton NH on December 1, 1840 and he died January 3, 1935. He established the T. W. Lane carriage company in 1874. Lane’s son – E. Lewis Lane – joined the firm in 1886, eventually serving as manager.

The firm was initially located at 80 Elm Street. By 1880 it had relocated to a new building on Rich’s Court with the company “repository” (or showroom) nearby on Elm Street. In 1890 the firm moved to a newly-built and larger factory on Chestnut Street where it remained until closing around 1926. T.W. Lane was known as the last company to manufacture a carriage in Amesbury.

In 1880 the firm employed 20 workers who made 420 carriages a year.

T.W. Lane patented the Lane “Cross Spring” in 1879 – a feature that was included in many of the T.W. Lane carriages. Lane specialized in light buggies or carriages, and in this way was typical of the Amesbury carriage industry.

Around 1975, Ken Terry purchased the carriage from Paul Lemieux (1933 – 2012), an expert automobile restorer who lived on Haverhill Road. Mr. Terry purchased the carriage for $1,000.

Mr. Terry wanted to keep the carriage in Amesbury. For a period of time, it was on display with other vehicles in the barn of Margaret Rice.