In 1936, Thomas Car Works secured part of a bid to produce 500 school bus bodies for North Carolina. As the company was only financially able to acquire materials for 200 bodies, North Carolina split the bid between Thomas and Hackney Brothers. Dependent on length, Thomas offered wood-bodied school buses for $195 to $225. Following the completion of its second school bus bid in 1937, the company focused nearly all production on school bus bodies. In what is a long tradition that continues to the present day, Thomas remains the primary supplier of school buses to North Carolina.