Talbert Manufacturing, whose founder invented the mechanical detachable gooseneck trailer, is celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2018.
Austin Talbert started the company in 1938 in Lyons, Illinois, as a heavy-haul, crane rental and construction equipment business. Nine years later, he patented the detachable gooseneck, which brought much-needed safety and convenience to loading and hauling equipment, eliminating the need to drive equipment up and over the trailer’s tires during loading.
In 1957, Talbert sold the crane rental and heavy-haul divisions and moved the company’s operations to Rensselaer, Indiana, to focus on manufacturing trailers. The name was changed from Talbert Construction Equipment Company to Talbert Manufacturing.
Talbert died in 2010 at age 97, but his company continues to grow. Its headquarters remains in Rensselaer where it designs and builds its products.
The company has had several other “firsts” over the years:
In 2014, it acquired Feree Trailers in Liberty, North Carolina, which gave the company a closer distribution site to the East Coast and also allowed it to expand its trailer offerings.
Talbert offers a variety of base model trailers, including 10- to 30-ton tag-a-longs, hydraulic tails, oilfield, heavy hauls and traveling axles. It also builds custom trailers, including those to address bridge laws and overheight and overweight issues. The company takes prides in its products’ reliability, saying that 92 percent of its trailers built since 1985 are still on the road.
