Sylvanus Bowser

Sylvanus Freelove Bowser (August 8, 1854 – October 3, 1938) was an American inventor who is widely credited with inventing the automobile fuel pump.

[2] Bowser's invention operated with a manual suction pump, which dispensed the gasoline into the car through a flexible hose.

The 50-gallon metal storage tank, housed in a wooden cabinet, could be set up at the curbside in front of a store.

Bowser opened branches around the world, and bowser became a generic term for fuel dispensers, then fuel tankers (especially on airfields),[3] then finally for any kind of self-propelled liquid tanker with the ability to dispense direct to consumers.

The vacuum oil purification side of the business was divested by Keene in 1978, subsequently trading under the name Enervac.