Henderson County Historical Society

On display, in the agricultural building, at the Henderson County Museum, is a restored Velie buggy owned by Charles and May Harden of rural Raritan, in the early 1900s.  The buggy was restored by their great-grandson, Monty Waddell of Stronghurst, in 1976 for the nation’s Bicentennial celebration in memory of Charles and May and their son, Robert J. Harden, Waddell’s grandfather.

Willard Lamb Velie, born in 1866, was a grandson of John Deere, founder of Deere & Company of Moline. As a young man, Velie worked as secretary and a director of the family company. He then decided to start his own business manufacturing horse-drawn wagons and carriages. The Velie Carriage Company incorporated in January 1902, and in no time was one of the largest carriage factories in the West. The company went on to supply much-needed farm wagons and carriages to thousands of farmers and small businessmen.  In 1908, Velie transitioned the company to automobiles and operated until 1929.

Pictured is the Velie buggy today and a picture of the Harden Family with the buggy in the background hitched to a team of horses.

Fun Fact:  This buggy was used to carry Henderson County’s Belle of ‘76, Brenda (Harden) Brokaw, in the Bicentennial parade in Raritan on July 4th, 1976.  Brenda, a cousin to Monty Waddell, is a great-granddaughter of Charles and May Harden and granddaughter of Robert J. Harden.