The International Travelette arrived in 1957, and several histories credit it as the first crew-cab pickup. It put a second row of seats behind the driver, so a work crew could ride inside with the tools in the bed. Dodge did not offer a crew cab until 1963, six years later.

Today, crew cabs fill pickup lots. However, the idea started as a work truck built to haul a job crew, and International Harvester offered one before any other American truck maker.

Still, “first” needs some care here. So here is what the Travelette was, how it changed, who followed it and where the competing claims come from.

What the International Travelette was

International launched the Travelette in 1957, according to Jalopnik, which calls it the world’s first crew cab truck. The 1957 trucks had two rows of seating for up to six people, the outlet says. As a result, a truck could carry a full job crew in the cabin.

The first crew-cab models were part of International’s all-new A-line, introduced in early 1957, according to Sports Car Market. At the time, International’s advertising called it a “six-passenger pickup.” In addition, Jalopnik says the 1957 truck rode on the A-120 4×4 platform.

Three doors first, then four

The first Travelette did not have four doors. Instead, the 1957 version had three, Jalopnik says: one for the driver and two for the crew. Sports Car Market also notes that the two crew doors sat on the curb side of the truck.

Then, in 1961, International revised the truck. Specifically, that year’s C-series brought a four-door cab, according to Sports Car Market. Jalopnik also dates the four-door crew cab to 1961.

Even so, not every historian uses the same label for the early truck. Curbside Classic calls the 1957 Travelette a “double-cab.” It also notes that a 1961 brochure referred to a crew cab. That’s why the claim reads “credited as” rather than as a settled fact.

Why the International Travelette counts as first

Sports Car Market puts the claim in specific terms. It says “International was the first to offer a crew cab as a regular option built in their factory.” In other words, buyers did not need a body shop to add the extra doors.

Greg Zyla’s “Cars We Remember” column agrees. It says International Harvester built the first crew cab truck in the U.S. in 1957 and called it the Travelette. According to Zyla, crew cabs of that kind could seat up to six full-size adults.

Dodge, Chevrolet and the other claims

Dodge joined the crew-cab ranks in 1963, according to Curbside Classic. Jalopnik also dates the Dodge D200 crew cab to 1963. Curbside Classic suggests government contracts may have been the main target, since its featured Dodge wore an Air Force-style blue.

By contrast, Chevrolet and GMC came much later. GM introduced a crew cab for its new 1973 Chevrolet and GMC pickups, Curbside Classic says. Jalopnik adds that the 1973 C/K Series brought the industry’s first crew-cab dually. Notably, each of the Big Three first offered its crew cab on a three-quarter-ton or heavier chassis, according to Curbside Classic.

Overseas, though, the picture is murkier. Some sources credit the 1962 Toyota Stout as the first crew-cab pickup, Curbside Classic notes. Similarly, the same article says Mazda had a two-door “double-cab” in 1961. Volkswagen, for its part, offered a double-cab Transporter through the coachbuilder Binz from 1953, and from the factory from 1959.

How long the idea took to catch on

For decades, crew cabs stayed a heavy-duty option. In fact, Jalopnik says the 2001 Ford F-150 is widely considered the first proper light-duty crew cab. The Chevrolet Silverado crew cab joined in 2004, according to the same report. Finally, the Dodge Ram got its first “real” crew cab in 2009, Jalopnik adds.

That timeline puts the Travelette in perspective. International offered a factory six-passenger pickup 44 years before the F-150 that Jalopnik calls the first proper light-duty crew cab.

The Travelette’s later years

Meanwhile, the name lasted well beyond the first trucks. Zyla recalls his sprint car team arriving at central Pennsylvania tracks in an IH Travelette from around 1970. Those tracks included Williams Grove, Selinsgrove, Lincoln and Port Royal.

Later trucks also grew more comfortable. For example, Sports Car Market profiled a 1972 International 1210 Travelette 4×4 with a 345-cubic-inch V8, an automatic, power steering and air conditioning. It also had locking hubs and dual gas tanks. It listed for $4,410 when new. Then, at Barrett-Jackson in Palm Beach on April 7, 2017, it sold for $32,450 including buyer’s premium.

The story ended in 1975. That year, International Harvester discontinued its light-duty trucks, except for the Scout, according to Sports Car Market.

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This article was created with the help of AI and was reviewed and edited by Fast Lane Only editors before publication.