Oshkosh Corporation, formerly Oshkosh Truck, is an American industrial company that designs and builds specialty trucks, military vehicles, truck bodies, airport fire apparatus and access equipment. The corporation also owns Pierce Manufacturing, a fire apparatus manufacturer. Based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, the company employs 12,000 people around the world. It is organized in four primary business groups: access equipment, defense, fire and emergency, and commercial.
Founded in 1917 as the Wisconsin Duplex Auto Company, the company was created to build a severe-duty four-wheel-drive truck. After the first prototype was built, the company began to develop rapidly. This first four-wheel-drive truck, known today as "Old Betsy", is still owned by Oshkosh Corporation and housed in one of its assembly plants in Oshkosh. The vehicle still runs and is used frequently in demonstrations and parades.
The Model 50-50, introduced in 1955, was the first truck created specifically for the hauling of concrete. The first ARFF built by Oshkosh was a W Series truck delivered to the U.S. Coast Guard in 1953. Oshkosh has also produced aircraft tow tractors, and in 1968 the company designed and built the U-30, 45 of which were built for the U.S. Air Force to tow the Lockheed C-5 Galaxy transport aircraft.