Johnnie Mais was born on June 11, 1888 on the banks of the Rhine River at Coblence (now “Koblenz”) in the Prussian state of Germany and his 1st regular employment was in the Mercedes automobile factory in Germany. He emigrated from Bremen, in northwest Germany, to America aboard the “S. S. Kaiser Whilhelm Der Grosse” arriving in New York City on January 26, 1909. From there, he traveled directly to Indianapolis, Indiana as it was then the center of the American automobile industry. He found work with the Hudson Motor Car Company while he designed trucks and, with the help of some investors, formed the Mais Motor Truck Company in Rochester, Indiana late in 1909.
