After parting ways with his brother Charles at the Duryea Motor Wagon Co., J. Frank Duryea set off on his own to form Hampden Automobile & Launch Co. in Springfield, Massachusetts. Soon after setting up shop, with the very first prototype just completed, the J. Stevens Arms & Tool Company acquired a controlling interest in the business and the Hampden car was renamed Stevens-Duryea. The original Hampden prototypes were simple, 2-cylinder runabouts with tiller steering, and once they were refined for production, sold for about $1200 under the Stevens-Duryea name. Rapid development saw the Stevens-Duryea range gain a 20hp four-cylinder engine with unique three-point engine mounting system in 1905, which the company touted as providing superior protection to the drivetrain on rough roads. Period advertising boasted their success at hillclimb events against cars of twice the horsepower output and claimed _"In order to get all of your engine power to the rear wheels, you must have a STEVENS-DURYEA THREE POINT SUSPENSION"._