Fred Duesenberg, German-American businessman, co-founded the Duesenberg Company (born 1876)

Frederick Samuel Duesenberg was a German-born American automobile and engine designer, manufacturer and sportsman who was internationally known as a designer of racecars and racing engines. Duesenberg's engineering expertise influenced the development of the automobile, especially during the 1910s and 1920s. He is credited with introducing an eight-cylinder engine, also known as the Duesenberg Straight-8 engine, and four-wheel hydraulic brakes, a first for American cars, in addition to other mechanical innovations. Duesenberg was also patentholder of his designs for a four-wheel hydraulic brake, an early automatic transmission, and a cooling system, among others. Fred and his younger brother, August "Augie" Duesenberg, shared the patents, filed in 1913 and renewed in 1918, for their "walking beam" four-cylinder engine and the Duesenberg Straight 8.

Duesenberg Automobile & Motors Company, Inc. was an American racing and luxury automobile manufacturer founded in Indianapolis, Indiana, by brothers Fred and August Duesenberg in 1920. The company is known for popularizing the straight-eight engine and four-wheel hydraulic brakes. A Duesenberg car was the first American car to win a Grand Prix race, winning the 1921 French Grand Prix. Duesenbergs won the Indianapolis 500 in 1922, 1924, 1925 and 1927. Transportation executive Errett Lobban Cord acquired the Duesenberg corporation in 1926. The company was sold and dissolved in 1937. It was the only automotive company to go bankrupt in the Great Depression and not be rescued by the US Government of the time, largely a political move due to New Deal policies avoiding imagery of helping the richest, despite Duesenberg being the largest employer in Indianapolis at the time.