Diamond Coach

In 1957 Eldo J. (Bud) Coons and his brother were building campers in Pomona, CA, with distributors nationwide. To expand the business, Bud relocated to Southeast Kansas to open a midwest branch of Coons Custom Coach; the first “Dreamer Coach” for pick-up trucks was manufactured in Oswego, KS, in May 1959.

Through the 1960s the company grew coast-to-coast — a new Oswego facility in 1960, the purchase of the Scottsman Trailer Company and construction of a Radford, VA plant in 1962, and the first fiberglass motorhome in 1965. The company was purchased by Borg-Warner Corporation in 1968, changed hands twice, and was bought back by Coons in 1973. A 1976 fire destroyed over half of the plant that houses Diamond Coach Corporation today, but operations were suspended for only days during restoration.

Gas prices in the ’70s prompted diversification from campers to Diamond people movers. Ashley Ward purchased the company in 1984, then sold it to owners Dick Seybolt and Wayne Lowe in 1988; by 1989 Diamond produced buses exclusively. Additional payload, superior strength, increased efficiency, and lower operating cost than competitors result in higher retained value as well.

Today, Diamond Coach models vary in design and size accommodating 14–32 passengers with optional lift and wheelchair options. From hotels to hospitals, nursing homes to churches, casinos to military bases, ever-increasing numbers of Diamond customers attest to the quality, comfort, and efficient operation of the Diamond Difference.