Auto industry / Business & brands
Lawrence P. Fisher
1888–1961 · president of Cadillac, Fisher Body co-owner
The Fisher brother who ran Cadillac and discovered designer Harley Earl, bringing him to Detroit to style the 1927 LaSalle.
- Born
Norwalk, Ohio- Died
Detroit, Michigan- Birth name
- Lawrence Peter Fisher
- Also known as
- Larry Fisher
- Detroit years
- 1910s–1961
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Lawrence was one of the seven Fisher brothers from Norwalk, Ohio, who joined Fred and Charles in Detroit and built Fisher Body into the nation's largest maker of car bodies. After General Motors bought Fisher Body, he became general manager and then president of Cadillac in 1925. On a tour of dealers he visited Don Lee's Cadillac shop in Los Angeles, where he saw Harley Earl shaping custom bodies with modeling clay, and hired him to design the 1927 LaSalle, Cadillac's companion brand. The car's success led GM to create its Art and Colour Section under Earl, the start of modern car styling in Detroit. Under Lawrence Fisher, Cadillac also launched its V-16 in 1930. He built a lavish riverfront mansion on Detroit's east side in the late 1920s; it later became the Bhaktivedanta Cultural Center, a Hare Krishna temple. He is buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield.
Highlights
- President of Cadillac from 1925
- Hired Harley Earl to design the 1927 LaSalle
- Cadillac V-16 introduced under his leadership (1930)
- His Detroit River mansion is now a Hare Krishna cultural center
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 2
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Lived here · late 1920s–1961
Fisher Mansion
His ornate riverfront mansion, later bought by ISKCON with help from Henry Ford's great-grandson Alfred Ford; now a temple and cultural center.
Buried here · 1961
Holy Sepulchre Cemetery
The Catholic cemetery in Southfield where he is buried.