Lincoln Motor Company
The Lincoln Motor Company was founded in August 1917 by Henry Leland and his son Wilfred. Among the founders of Cadillac, Leland had sold the company to General Motors in 1909, remaining on as an executive until 1917, when he left over a dispute with GM President William Durant. Naming Lincoln Motor Company after Abraham Lincoln, the first President for whom he ever voted (1864), Leland financed the company by securing a $10 million contract to build Liberty V12 aircraft engines, breaking ground on the Lincoln Motor Company Plant. To build the Liberty engines, Lincoln sourced parts from other manufacturers; along with cylinders produced by Ford, other parts were sourced from Buick, Cadillac, Marmon, and Packard. In total, 6,500 Liberty V12 engines were produced by Lincoln before the end of World War I ceased wartime production.
Lincoln Mark series
In 1958, the Continental Division was integrated into the Lincoln-Mercury Division, which managed the Continental as a separate marque within the division. The division introduced the Continental Mark III, IV, and V to replace the Continental Mark II; they served as the flagships of the Lincoln-Mercury Division. For 1961, Lincoln was pared down to a single model line. The Continental name was suspended as a marque as the Mark series vehicles were discontinued and Continental became the sole Lincoln model name.