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Jeep started out as an all purpose military vehicle, but has grown into the king of SUV’s and 4-wheel drive automobiles. In an ironic twist in history, no one is really sure how Jeep was given its name. The most popular story is that the vehicle derived its name from its "General Purpose" designation, but many experts dispute this idea. There does exist a WWII-era Army manual that describes the Jeep as a "General Purpose" vehicle, but that manual was printed two years after the name Jeep entered the popular lexicon, as the known name of this vehicle.

According to Maj. E. P. Hogan, in a history of the vehicle for an issue of the U.S. Army magazine, Quartermaster Review, the term "jeep" was first commonly used during World War I (1914-1918) by soldiers as a slang word for new recruits and for new unproven vehicles. The article also indicated that the slang word "jeep" was used in this manner as late as the early years of World War II.

R. Lee Ermey, of Mail Call fame, suggested that the likelier origin of the word jeep, as it applied to this vehicle, refers to the character Eugene the Jeep in the Thimble Theater (Popeye) comic strip. Most soldiers in WWII were at least familar with comic character Eugene the Jeep, so that explanation seems at least plausible. Most experts agree with Ermey's version of the story.

Whatever the origin of the name, when the first "jeeps" arrived at Camp Holabird for testing, the vehicle had not yet been named. The vehicle was called several things by the soldiers who worked with it, but Jeep was the term that stuck in more people's minds. Then in 1941, syndicated columnist Katherine Hillyer wrote a news caption to accompany an image of one of the early Jeep designs, for the Washington Daily News. In her caption, Hillyer mentioned that soldiers called this four-wheel drive vehicle a "Jeep". From that day forward, this 4x4 truck would forever be known as a Jeep.

In a further twist in history, there are three car companies associated with the origin of the Jeep. The Ford Motor Company was beat out by American Bantam Car Company, due to a better design. But, Bantam Car was a small company and the U.S. Government was afraid that they could not meet the production requirements of the Army's contract. All three companies were allowed another chance to design the Jeep, and Bantam's competitors are believed to have been able to see the Jeep in action and to see Bantam's designs, before they submitted their new designs. Ford Motor Company was beat out again by Willys-Overland, who underbid Ford's price. After Willys-Overland won the contract, the U.S. Army decided that Willys one factory was not enough to ensure the safety of the project going forward. The Army was concerned first about the ability of Willys to meet the production requirements, and they were concerned about sabotage of Willys-Overland's one lone factory. Having been beat out by two different competitors, Ford Motor Company ended up getting the contract anyway.

In 1941, Willys-Overland owned the Jeep brand name and after the war, Willys produced the first Civilian Jeep with the designation CJ. Willys owned the brand name until 1953 when they sold it to Kaiser. American Motors (AMC) purchased the Jeep operations in 1970. In 1987, AMC was purchased by Chrysler shortly after AMC replaced the Jeep CJ with the Jeep Wrangler or YJ. And finally in 1998, Chrysler merged with Daimler-Benz to form DaimlerChrysler.

Car enthusiasts everywhere recognize the Jeep brand as being innovative and a leader in four-wheel drive (4WD) dependability.

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