American Motors Corporation (AMC) was an American automobile company formed by the 1954 merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation

Nash-Kelvinator Corporation

Nash-Kelvinator Corporation was the result of a merger between Nash Motors and Kelvinator Appliance Company. The union of these two companies was brought about as a result of a condition made by George W...

 and Hudson Motor Car Company

Hudson Motor Car Company

The Hudson Motor Car Company made Hudson and other brand automobiles in Detroit, Michigan, from 1909 to 1954. In 1954, Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator Corporation to form American Motors. The Hudson name was continued through the 1957 model year, after which it was dropped.- Company strategy...

. At the time, it was the largest corporate merger in U.S. history.

George W. Mason

George W. Mason

George Walter Mason was an American industrialist. During his career Mason served as the Chairman and CEO of the Kelvinator Corporation , Chairman and CEO of the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation , and Chairman and CEO of American Motors Corporation .- Early life :George W. Mason was born in Valley...

 was the architect of the merger to reap benefits from the strengths of the two firms to battle the much larger "Big Three" automakers (General Motors

General Motors

General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...

, Ford

Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...

, and Chrysler

Chrysler

Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....

). Within a year George W. Romney

George W. Romney

George Wilcken Romney was an American businessman and Republican Party politician. He was chairman and CEO of American Motors Corporation from 1954 to 1962, the 43rd Governor of Michigan from 1963 to 1969, and the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 1969 to 1973...

 took over, reorganized the company and focused the future of AMC on a new small car line.