The dump truck is thought to have been first conceived in the farms of late 19th century western Europe. Thornycroft developed a steam dust-cart in 1896 with a tipper mechanism.The first motorized dump trucks in the United States were developed by small equipment companies such as The Fruehauf Trailer Corporation|), Galion Buggy Co. and Lauth-Juergens among many others around 1910.Hydraulic dump beds were introduced by Wood Hoist Co. shortly after. Such companies flourished during World War I due to massive wartime demand. August Fruehauf had obtained military contracts for his semi-trailer, invented in 1914 and later created the partner vehicle, the semi-truck for use in World War I. After the war, Fruehauf introduced hydraulics in his trailers. They offered hydraulic lift gates, hydraulic winches and a dump trailer for sales in the early 1920s. Fruehauf became the premier supplier of dump trailers and their famed "bathtub dump" was considered to be the best by heavy haulers, road and mining construction firms.