Galion Godwin Truck Body Co. was named after its founding city of Galion, Ohio and was founded as early as the 1870s. Originally known as Galion Buggy Company, the business was born from demand for horse-drawn transportation. A short time after its founding, Galion Buggy Company found a market for retrofitting hauling boxes onto existing buggies. Galion soon exited the competitive buggy manufacturing market for the more lucrative aftermarket hauling beds and dump boxes. Around 1910, Galion Buggy Company changed its name to Galion Allsteel Body Company as horse-drawn buggies were gradually being replaced by motor vehicles.