A Driving Legacy: Knauz Autopark
Reflecting on the company's modest beginnings, Knauz Autopark is celebrating its 78th year in the automobile business.
In the depths of the Great Depression, Karl Knauz and his wife Emmy began working a “couples job” for a well-to-do Lake Forest family in the early 1930’s. Karl was the butler/chauffer and Emmy was the cook. But Karl was a forward thinker, and an entrepreneur at heart. He took a chance and risked his entire life savings, and by 1934, he had opened a car service station on Western Avenue in Lake Forest. From there, he joined forces with Chrysler and opened a DeSoto Plymouth dealer in 1935, then became a Chrysler franchise in 1940. Since then, Knauz Autopark has expanded to 30 sprawling acres in Lake Bluff at Route 41 and Rockland Road. Karl and Emmy’s son Bill worked at the dealership throughout his childhood and began full-time in 1947. He…
lidia devonshire
7:52 pm on Saturday, October 27, 2012
The only place where I feel safe taking my car for repairs and service. The Knauzes and Maddens and are outstanding members of our community, and we are fortunate to have them helping out our local charities- Allendale Shelter Club and the U of Chicago Cancer Research Foundation just to name a couple more. Thank you for publishing this interesting story. more ›