GM's history doesn't involve just cars and trucks. The company also was involved heavily in rail transportation . . .
1930: GM acquired Winton Engine and Electro-Motive Engineering.
1934: Burlington Zephyr used GM diesel in Denver-Chicago dash.
1938: Electro-Motive opened plant in LaGrange, Ill.
2005: GM sold Electro-Motive Division.
. . . and aviation
1919: GM bought airplane maker Dayton Wright Co.
1929: GM bought stake in Bendix Aviation and Fokker Aircraft.
1933: GM acquired control of North American Aviation.
1934: Air Mail Act passed by Congress.
1948: GM divested Bendix and North American Aviation.
To view General Motors as just a car and truck maker is to overlook important chapters in its history — and some crucial turning points for the U.S. aviation and railroad industries.
