J. Harwood Cochrane
| J. Harwood Cochrane | |
|---|---|
| Born |
James Harwood Cochrane November 16, 1912 Goochland, Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | July 25, 2016 (aged 103) Richmond, Virginia, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Trucker, businessman, farmer, philanthropist |
| Known for | Overnite Transportation |
James Harwood Cochrane (November 16, 1912 – July 25, 2016) was an American businessman and philanthropist, as well as inductee into the Automotive Hall of Fame.
Cochrane and his six brothers and sisters grew up in humble circumstances. Their rural Goochland County home lacked both plumbing and central heating. His father died of pneumonia when Harwood was 16 years old, and his mother ran a soup kitchen in Richmond, Virginia.
He met his future wife of eight decades, Louise Odell Banks, on a blind date (each with another person) and they wed in the parlor of the pastor of Tabernacle Baptist Church in 1934. His mother fixed their wedding dinner, and their honeymoon was a movie at the Loew's theater in downtown Richmond. Harwood and Louise celebrated their 80th anniversary at the same location, although the location had become the Carpenter Theater (a national historic landmark since 1979), and their 1000 guests listened to Steven Smith conduct the Richmond Symphony Women's Chorus, Richmond Ballet and various soloists.
In 1929, the teenaged Cochrane quit Goochland High School and began delivering milk for the Virginia Dairy Company, Incorporated (1912-1978). He long remembered those years of starting work shortly before 2 a.m. He, his brother Calvin and Charlie the Horse were "Cochrane Transportation."
The brothers established separate trucking companies in 1933, splitting up routes. In 1935, despite the Great Depression and having married Louise only about a year earlier, Cochrane quit the part-time dairy delivery job and formed Overnite Transportation. The name arose because a Baltimore company already was called "Overnight Transportation." Cochrane later told tales of eating frugally on the road, sometimes pawning his watch or other items to buy gasoline to return home, and even for nine months in 1934 driving a truck lacking both brakes and fourth gear.
Overnite Trucking nonetheless grew both internally and by acquiring other trucking companies. It relied on establishing a system of terminals to facilitate short-haul deliveries. The development of the Interstate Highway System helped business, and the Interstate Commerce Commission also began regulating the industry in 1935. Overnite Trucking's stock became publicly traded in 1957 despite a bruising unionization effort by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Cochrane later treasured a copy of the $359,000 check written in 1963 by then Teamsters president Jimmy Hoffa to Overnite to settle a legal judgment against the Union.
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