SAHJO THE SOCIETY OF AUTOMOTIVE HI STORI ANS, INC .

September-October 1989 Issue Number 122

EDITORIAL COMMENT SILENT AUCTION And now we are twenty. Coll ecti vely that is. October ll , Bid forms for thi s year's silent auction of automotive liter­ 1969 was the date of the first meeting of the Society of Automotive ature and memorabilia should have been postmarked no later th an Hi storians, and can be considered the day on which the Society for­ September 18th in order to in sure incl usion in the bidding. Final, in mally commenced to exist. But most of us are individually a good person or hand-delivered bids will be accepted at the Hershey Hospi ­ deal older that that , and given to reflection all too often. We pause tality Tent , Spaces BY 43-45 on the Blue Field, until 4:00 PM on -in thi s issue, and refrain from advancing the cause of hi story, to Thursday, October 5th. The li st of winners will be posted at the consider where we've been , to sum up what we' ve accomplished in annual meeting and banquet on Friday ni ght, and winners may pick twenty years, and just plain reminisce. up their purchases at the Hospitality Tent on Saturday. Winners not Marshall Naul and Di ck Brigham, whose friendship and at Hershey will be notifi ed by mai l, and items will be shipped upon correspondence sparked the formation of the Society, have put together receipt of the purchase price plus postage. th eir recollections and reflections, and you will find them farther on Bid on as many items as you choose, and the hi ghest bid in this issue. For my part, being a card-carrying hi storian of a mere wi ll win , with drawing of the winner to take place in case of tie. Al l eight years standing (although I suspect th at my aut omobile and hi story bids shoul d be in US dollars. This was a major fund raiser for the genes were at work even before birth), I have delved into the earl y Society last year, and we expect it to be even bigger thi s year. Newsletter reports to see how we thought of ourselves then, and what we th ought our directi on was. My reports and commentary can be AUTO HISTORY SEMINARS AT HERSHEY found fo ll owing the messages from our founder . Last year' s automoti ve hi story seminars were very success­ This outpouring of soul -searching and nostalgia will , no ful , so the feature will be repeated this year. There will be seminars doubt, engender some comment from many of you: the recall of on both Thursday and Frid ay afternoons, at 2:00PM at the Hospitality anecdotes many of us have forgotten , or additi onal perspecti ves on Tent. Thursday's seminar, a questi on-and-answer session on the hows, the past. I'll be glad to share them with the membership in future whys, and wheres of researching automotive hi story wi ll be entitled SAH Journals. But lest we get transfixed with our past and neglect ·'Automotive Hi story: Where to Find It and How to Get It." Friday's our coll ecti ve mi ssion , let us remember that despite the fac t that we confab will be all fun , featuri ng a learned tri via game inspired by have moved mountai ns of information in twenty years, there remain s Di ck Brigham 's occasional feature in SAH Journal. Borrowing Dick's at least another nine-tenths of the iceberg to be exposed. To borrow title " Who's on Fi rst?", the program will draw on years of meticulous from Robert Frost: "But I have promi ses to keep, and miles to go research by Hayden Shepley to offer documented answers to partici­ before I sleep .... And miles to go before I sleep." pants' recollections of who was first with what. Seminar leaders both - Kit Foster days wil l be Beverly Rae Kimes and Kit Foster; join us.

ANNUAL MEETING AND BANQUET NEWS The SAH Annual Meeting and Banquet will be held on MICHAEL SEDGWICK MEMORIAL TRUST Friday evening, October 6, 1989, at the Harrisburg Marriott Inn , 4650 The Michael Sedgwick Memorial Trust was established in Lindle Road, Harrisburg, Pennsylvani a . Just a few minutes ride from 1984 to honor the memory of th e late motoring historian and former the Hershey festivities , the Marriott is located at the intersection of SAH director by sponsoring the publication of books on lesser known Interstate 283 and Route 44 1, and is the same location used for the motor transport subjects. Since that time, fo ur works have been pub­ last several years. li shed , HRG - The Sportsman 's Ideal by Ian Dussek, Malvemia, the There will be a reception with cash bar beginning at 6:30 story of the Santler car by Dr. R.A. Sutton , Am1strong Siddeley by PM ; dinner, offering an extensive buffet menu , will be served at 7:30. Robert Penn Bradley, and MG Y-Type Sa loon and Tourers by John The Society's Cugnot, Benz, Friend of Automotive Hi story , and James Lawson. J. Bradley awards wi ll be presented, and results of the s il ent auction These works are to be fo ll owed by the History of Humber will be posted. As always, thi s wil l be an excell ent opportunity to by Brian Demaus to be published this year. Researched by John vis it with old fr iends and meet new ones. Tarring, thi s hi story covers the company from its fo unding until its Tickets for the banquet are $ 16 .00 per person , and reserva­ absorption by the Rootes Group in 1933. tions should be made by September 25th. Make checks payable to Future projects under consideration include the marques of Society of Automoti ve Historians and mail to Robert J. Gary, Trea­ Voisin and Elva, a hi story of roadsigns, a book on the automobiles surer, 13 16 Fourth Avenue , Stevens Point, WI 54481 . Should you of Mother Russia , a hi story of wheeled transport from the beginning let thi s slip beyond September 25th for any reason, pl ease call Bob of time up to Carl Benz, and a history of the Crystal Palace motor at (7 15) 34 1- 1085 at the earliest possible moment. racin g circuit. Contributi ons to the Tru tare welcome and may be directed to the Honourable Secretary G.B. Heath at Spring Cottage, 20 Hi gh HERSHEY HOSPITALITY Street, Milford-on-Sea, Hampshire S041 OQ D ENGLAND. The Society will offer the customary Hospitality Tent for members and their guests at Hershey, T hursday , October 5th through AUTOMOTIVE LITERATURE CATALOG Saturday, October 7th. The tent will be at spaces BY 43-45 on the Heritage Books, in association with Sindell and Company, Blue Field (same location as last year) and will offer shade, seating, are offering a catalog of rare automoti ve pamphlets and brochures and li ght refreshment. SAH publicati ons, stati onery, and decals wi ll whi ch they are able to suppl y. The catalog may be obtained free by be on sale , and there will be the opportunity for enrolling new mem­ writing to Heritage Books, 866 Palmerston Avenue, Toronto, Ontari o bers. All members are encouraged to stop by during the weekend. M6G 2S2 CA ADA. SAH Journal No . 122 September-Octobe r 1989

Volunteerism is the bedrock of the Society. To lead our important new program in the preservation of automobil e hi story (both oral and written) is Howard Applegate. Coordinating the SAH ational Conference to be held in Detroit in 1992 is Leland Chapter di rector Tom Deptulski. You' ll be hearing lots more about these projects in the months ahead in this publication. And, on the subject of the SAH SAH Journal i published six times a year by the Journal (and our Automotive History Review) , I have just two word s Society of Automoti ve Historians, Inc. Copyright 1989. for editor Kit Foster: great job! And I shall exercise presidential C HRISTOPHER G . FOSTER. EDITOR prerogati ve now and insist th at he not edit them out. I I 02 Long Cove Road. Gales Ferry. CT 06335 Among the programs that our new president will be over­ ROBERT M. HALL Ill seeing is one to advance the SAH cause on an intern ati onal level. Chairman of Publicati ons Specifically, we are trying for more awareness of our organi zation in EDITOR IAL BOARD Europe. SAH members Griff Borgeson in France and Raymond Vaes in Belgium have been assisting me in thi s regard , and we have estab­ Ri chard B. Brigham, Editor Emeritus li shed a di alogue with Alessandro Columbo and Vittorio Fano, pres­ Beverl y Rae Kimes Robert J. Gary ident and secretary respectively, of the Associazione ltaliana per Ia George B. P. Ward . Jr. Storia dell' Automobile regarding a coll aboration that woul d benefit OFFICERS both our organizations. PR ES IDENT Beverl y Rae Kimes So, the state of SAH is really fine . For this , to all of the aforementioned, I add tribute to the board members who served with VICE PRESIDE T Henry Austin Clark , Jr. me, committee chai rmen Bob Hall , Jim Wren and David Lewis, and SECRETARY Shelby C. Applegate to Austin Clark for hi s stalwart support as vice president. It 's been TREASURER Robert J. Gary an enormous privi lege for me to serve the Society as president. But BOARD OF DIRECTORS this i not a valedictory. To tum another farewell remark on its ear, Through Oct. 1989 Through Oct. 1990 Through Oct. 199 1 I plan to be kicking around the SAH for a long time to come. - Beverly Rae Kimes Matt L. Joseph William T . Cameron Helen J. Earley Z. Taylor Vinson Keith Marvin John A. Gunnell Jack L. Martin Strother MacMinn James K. Wagner THE ORIGINS OF THE SOCIETY Subscription to SA H Journal is by membership in the Society of Automotive Histori ans. Dues $20.00 per year. The beginning of the SAH is a date lost to history because Membership inquiries and re newals should be sent to of my inability to locate the carbon copy of the initial letter to Dick the Secretary at P.O . Box 501 , Mt. Gretna, PA 17064. Brigham , and to hi s clean desk policy which precluded his retaining of the original letter. At any rate, it was an idea which was ripe in the spri ng of 1969: to establish a sort of clearinghouse for the many automoti ve his tori ans with whom Di ck and I independentl y maintained a rather steady correspondence. Di ck immediately responded to my suggesti on with the re ult that a questi onnaire was sent to a large PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE number of persons whom we both thought would be int erested in a national or intern ati onal o rgani zati on devoted to maintaini ng interest would suspect th at th e percentage of retiring presidents in th e hi story of the automobile. Respo nse to th is questionnai re was whose exeunt is accompani ed by comment like " it's hard to believe at least sixty percent, with most in favor of th e proposed organi zati on . . . . the time went so fast" is appreciably hi gh. I'm not fond of cliches. Somehow it was decided th at an organi zational meeting take Still , it is hard to believe th at my time as SAH president is nearing pl ace during the Antique Automobile meet in Hershey, Pennsy lvania , an end . Some sort of speed record must have been set. in October 1969. Bill Jackson, then editor of A ntique Automobile Among the reasons my presidency has seemed so fleeting generously made avail able to us hi s office in the Hershey Mu eum , is all that has happened in SAH over the last two years. And for th at ne xt to th e coliseum. I, by default, was selected to chai r thi s very I must extend my appreciati on to all of you. Any organi zati on is onl y informal get-together, on October II , 1969. After the meeting, which as strong as its members . In th at regard , we are very special. So many was qui te successful , a photograph was taken of the very di stingui shed members have said to me that, of all the organi zati ons to whi ch they group which attended that organi zational meeting. Of the eleven per­ belo ng, SAH is the most supporti ve. We truly enjoy helping each other. sons shown, ten became SAH members and seven of these have The help that I have had as president has been monumental. cont inued as members. Thi I feel is an indicati on that the organi zati on And we have accomplished a lot in j ust a short time. Our antequated has over the years adequately fu lfilled the needs and expectati ons of by- laws are now hi story, courtesy of Taylor Vinson who so arduously the members. and expertl y drafted new ones; Matt Joseph and hi s team, through It was Dick Brigham. wi th much assistance from hi s wife their careful deliberations, have brought increasing renown to our Grace, who put th e major effort into getting the SAH started through Cugnot! Benz awards, which are the most coveted in the fie ld . On pri nting and mai ling of the initial questi onnaire and of the subsequent th e regional level, the Southern California and Wisconsin chapters Newsletter. This in addition to being the editor of the ewsletter. are thriving, new vitality is being enj oyed by the Leland Chapter, the A mid-season meeting was held in February 1970 to coincide Pioneer Chapter has an exciting ongoin g project on the hi story of with th e winter meeting of the AACA in Philadelphia. This February Mid-Hudson-built cars and, across the Atlantic, ick Baldwin is the meeting was also held in February 1971 but rather poor attendance superb coordinator of the United Kingdom Chapter. at both indicated that th ere was too much competition from concurrent Our fi nances, hard-working treasurer Bob Gary informs me, AACA meetings to warrant scheduling another. are salutary thank s to our annual Silent Auction , as well as the donation And so the SAH is about to begin it s third decade with a program which was Shelby Applegate 's idea. To Shelby, who is very stable membership consisting in part of the better-known names retiring thi s year, go multitudinous thanks for her half decade of in the automobile journal world, as well as the mass of interested service. She moved our Society into the computer age, a gargantuan amateurs. We should be sati sfied that thi s endeavor has been so suc­ undertaking. Taking over membership now will be long-time SAH cessful and there seem to be no reasons it should not continue to be member David Babb of Belvidere, Illinois. We are most grateful to a successful organi zati on with international recognition . him fo r volunteering to assume th is most vi tal post in our organi zati on . - G. Marshall Na ul 2 SAH Journal No . 122 September-October 1989

REFLECTIONS ON OUR PAST or advertising matter publis hed by the Society should be li mi ted to items of interest to the hi storian. Although we must occasionall y It can be interesting to compare your preconceived notions remind ourselves, these precepts remain in force today. of a new venture with the way it actually turns out. Some things seem There was a di scussion on th e defin ition of a "make" or to come about in precisely the way you thought th ey mi ght , and some '·brand" of automobile, and what mi ght constitute same, by Marshall happen very much differently . So it is with th e SAH . Naul , conclud in g that " it woul d not be out side the purpose of the In the beginning, I thought that the Society would be primar­ organi zati on to forn1 a set of rules to govern the acceptance of a brand il y a correspondence exchange, that there would be lots of letters of vehi cle as a ' make'." That , to my knowledge, we've never been changing hands, that virtually all members would be corresponding able to do. There began in that issue a checkli st of US automobile with each other and sharing those letters and fini shed projects in our pe ri odicals, there were some research questi o ns posed by Harry Pulfer publications . I was surprised on two counts. First, a good porti on of and Marshall Naul , and the Newsletter concluded wi th its first fu ll our membership did not correspond at all. I presume they felt well arti cles on automoti ve hi story , a short treati se on the GN by lrv served by the Society, because many of th em are still members, but S il verman and a somewhat weighti er work by Di ck Bri gham entitled we seldom heard from them, then as now. But a significant minority "The Shad-Wyc k and the Shadburne Brothers." did write, and th ey more th an made up for the silence of the rest. By December, the Society was we ll and trul y launched. The The Australians, particularl y, half a world away, kept in constant first meeting had been held, 53 members were enrolled , and th e • touch via the mail , and they're still at it. Even recent members are organi zati on was considering the establishme nt of committees. The familiar with contact from th at part of the world , for hardl y an issue principal tas k undertaken at this time was the compilati on and publi sh­ of the Journal goes by without some comment or questi on from Max ing of the "roster," not a membership li st but a defini ti ve listing of Gregory . the worl d's automobiles from the very beginning. The humble begin­ I'm always am azed , too, by the subjects which generate the nings in those early issues reached onl y to the middle of the As, but most response. A few years back, we had some controversy on th e a trend had been started which woul d result in th e publishing, years source of the Hupmobile bodies, and I was virtuall y deluged with later, of the several edit ions of the Standard Catalog o f American mail. The one I least expected was the enlargement of a portion of Cars 1805- 1942. The Standard Catalog is, in spirit if not in fact, the the ten dollar bill I printed with a query as to which car was portrayed lineal descendant of that earl y roster project of the Society, and one thereon . The mail came in for months , much of it contradictory , and wonders if any of us ever envi sioned th at a single work coul d be so I tried to print it all , though due to sheer volume I had to screen out all -encompassin g: not just a list but an encyclopedi a with capsul e some of the duplicate suggesti ons. hi stories of each of tire cars, photos of most, and speci ficati ons of There are many fri ends in whose work I' ve shared over the th e more prominent . Some will say that th e Catalog obviates the need years, who are no longer with us. Frank Snyder and Harry Pulfer fo r the Society's roster, but in many ways it is the roster, having been immedi ately come to mind . They were continuall y sending me things , publi shed (albeit commercially) by a Society member, compiled and most of which I still have. But one thing di d not surprise me, and wri tten by two others, and researched by other members almost too that is th at the Society has continued to grow and attract new gener­ numerous to count. And still the work goes on, for new in forrnati on ati ons of hi storians . It's difficult to predict now just how the Society and correcti ons are already accumulating fo r the third editi on of the will evolve over the next twenty years , or the twenty after that , but catalog. With out a doubt , had there never been a network of histori ans we can be sure that it will continue and it w ill grow. The past has li ke the Society, th e Catalog would be nowhere near as complete or demonstrated that . as valuabl e. - Richard B. Brigham What might th e nex t twenty years brin g? We ll , there's a worl d to cover, and although a fo urth edition of ick Georgano 's encyclopedia is in the work s, we have not coll ecti vely applied the THE WAY WE WERE same th oroughness to vehicles produced outside the United States. Can you envision an exhausti ve world-wide encyclopedi a found in Marshall and Di ck have related fo r you how the Society three or more vo lu mes, with extensive photo coverage of every signi f­ came about, and how we have developed both in accord ance with icant model? And then, can we turn th e same sort of attention and and apart from their visions. The earl y issues of th e Ne wsletter also scrutiny to non-passenger ve hi cles? And no doubt th ere are some give much insight into those early days of our ord er, and I think it 's pre-war American machines which have, despite all our efforts, slipped worth extracting from them here. through the nets, and will have to be fo un d by tomorrow's hi stori ans. Ne wsletter number I appeared in September 1969 , and T he lessons fro m our past will propel us to the future. reported on the results of a questi onnaire that Marshall and Di ck had - Kit Foster di stributed . An enthusiasti c response was indicated , and many of the comments were printed in that issue . Most of the ori ginal precepts laid down at that time endure to the present day: th at the publicati ons refrain from reporting social events and meetings of oth er clubs, th at they not be used to adverti se materi als oth er th an books, photos, catalogs , and other items havin g to do with automoti ve hi story. Dues were set at $7. 50 annually. Of particular interest are the stated obj ec­ ti ves of the gestating Society: the preservati on of automoti ve hi story; the rectification , as far as possible , of th e errors in compilati ons exi sting at that time; the ex pl orati on and recording of th e hi story of all types of automotive vehi cles, especiall y the many obscure makes of which little or nothing was kn own ; and the sharing of th at inforrna­ ti on with all members. Issue number 2 of th e Ne wsletter, carrying an October date , announced the first meeting , which Marshall has described above. Of interest to us twenty years later are the precepts on whi ch the organi ­ zation was to be based : that membership would be open to anyone Th e firs t meeting or the Society or Automotive Historians: (Lefi to with a genuine interest in the hi story of aut omoti ve vehi cles and a right ) Bill Jackson. All.\tin Clark. John Peckham. Bruce Ba ldwin willingness to share inforrnation with oth ers, that the scope of the Moh.\ (who ror some reason neverjoined). Herman Smith . Marshall Society's research should include self-prope ll ed vehi cles of any sort Naul. Charles Bishop. Guy Seeley. Grace Brigham. Dick Brigham. (from the origins of the species to th e latest models), and that editori al and Glenn Baechler.

3 SAH Journal No . 122 September-October 1989

NEWS EARLY AUTOMOBILING IN GEORGIA

BEAUTIFUL WEATHER AT LITERATURE FAIR SAH member Steve Gurr has been awarded a $5,000 match­ ing grant by the Georgia Humanities Council to be used to mount an The seventh annual Automoti ve Literature Fair & Exchange exhibit and seri es of programs dealing with " Earl y Automobiling in sponsored by The Southern Cali fo rni a Chapter of The Society of Georg ia. " Co-sponsored by Gainesville Coll ege, Gainesville, Georgia, Automotive Historians, Inc. was held June 25th on the grounds of where Dr. Gurr serves as dean, th e ex hibit and programs will be held Pasadena C ity Coll ege. during September in Gainesville (50 miles north of Atlanta) and during With over 90 vendors offering mountain s of literature, art, November in Valdosta, Georgia, which is 30 miles north of Tallahas­ and small coll ecti bles of automotive motif (no car parts were permit­ see, Florida. ted), it was easily the largest event of its kind ever held in the far The ex hibit and programs will use graphics and objects west. In fact, this fair has been the onl y specialty event of its ki nd along with interpretive narrati ves and panel presentations to highlight he ld west oT the Great Divide for the past seven years. three aspects of earl y motoring in the Peach State: "The Machine," The abundance of o ld black-and-white and color vehi cle a look at the art, craft, and technology of the autos in pre-1930 sales catalogs available this year was parti cularly noteworthy. All America, "The Business of the Machine ," a glimpse at the related peri ods and types of cars and trucks from modern back through the industries and regulatory functions which grew up in the shadows of • classic and brass eras were represented . Books, peri odicals and old the automobil e boom, and " Peopl e and the Machine ," a view of the automobile photographs were on hand with some dating to before the users and uses of earl y autos. turn of the century . Vintage racing and sports car material , as well No indi vidual automobiles will be included in the ex hibit, as sales, service and maintenance publications covering domestic and but photos, photo murals, old advertising, and brass-era accessories foreign automobiles from pre-first world war to modem time, were wi ll convey the th emes. In each community, local antique automobile avail able from a number of ve ndors. owners are being invited to "parade" to the programs. Those interested Original, period artwork , as well as current paintings reflect­ in details of the project are in vited to cont act Dr. Gurr at Gainesville ing many facets of automotive related history drew admirers and Coll ege, P.O. Box 1358, Gainesvill e , Georgia 30503. customers alike to a number of displays. Accurate , limited edition or sin gular hand crafted scaled models, along with vintage collectible toy vehicles, were observed changin g ownership throughout the day . The onl y " life-sized vehicle items" permitted at this meet are radiator PACKARD BOOK PUBLISHED badges and mascots, license plates, and current and historic motoring Automobile Quarterly's book publishing division has just club badges which complement the paper hi story of moto r car. released Packard: The Pride by SAH member J. M . Fenster, an appreci­ Foreign and domesti c motoring peri odical titles spanning ation of America's luxury car. Presented as individual hi stories of 32 90 years were observed in unusual quantity along with many hundreds cars covering the era from the first 1899 model to 1956, the volume of out-of-print motoring books. Vendors, hailing from 42 California features color photography by Roy Query and is the first new book cities between the Mexican border and San Francisco and six cities on Packard in a dozen years. The book may be ordered from out of state , provided many tons of automoti ve-related printed matter. Aucomobile Quarterly at P.O. Box 348, Kutztown, PA 19530 or found Coll ector acquisitions ran good to bri sk throughout the day. at better motoring bookstores everywhere . - Bill Lewis

LETTERS THEFAGEOLSUPERSONIC My current research project concerns the 1949 Fageol "Supersonic," a custom "Bonneville Racer" type streamliner. Origi­ nall y a Joel Thome (of Indy fame) dream car conception, it was refined and built by Lou Fageol (now deceased), president of the Twin Coach Company of Kent , Ohio, and shown at the 1949 Indianapolis "500." Wilbur Shaw drove the car around the track on May 16 , 1949, and it was on display during the race. We have now acquired this hi stori c "Supersonic," a one-of­ a-kind dream car, and are restoring it to its pure , ori ginal Indy showcar design, including reacquiring a Fageol "Twin Coach" engine. Research covers this streamliner (which was twice altered by Fageol, including modifying it into a dream car for Hudson in 1950), Lou Fageol 's A discerning buyer examines some of the offerings at the Southern racing career, the Fageol brothers (Frank R. and William 8 .) history Ca lifornia Chapter ·s seventh annual Literature Fair in Jun e. Photo by from their first hand-constructed automobile in 1900 (in Iowa) to the Bobbie'dine Rodda. grand Fageol touring car of 19 16 and 1917 (built right here in Oakland, California), and the Fageol and Fageol Products Truck and Bus Companies . I recently vi sited the Indy Hall of Fame Museum, and Kent , BROWNELL NAMED CO-CORPORATOR Ohi o (home of Twin Coach) and have interviewed some Fageol family Former Society president David W . Brownell of North Ben­ members, including Ray Fageol, Lou's son, in San Diego. I especiall y nington, Vermont, has been named a corporator of the Museum of seek early photographs of the "Supersonic" (ex teri or and interi or) or Transportation in Brookline, Massachusetts. As reported in the last magazine articles from 1948 to 1955 to help with the restoration. SAH Journal, Browne ll jo in s SAH director Keith Marvin and 35 other If any SAH hi stori an can fu rnish infom1ation , it would be indi viduals on the museum's body of corporators. He is also editor greatly appreciated. You may telephone me at (4 15 ) 655-8373 or of Special Int erest Autos magazine, and the other aut omoti ve titles (415) 655-7123, or FAX to (415) 655-0368. Robert DeMars, 989 publ is hed by the Hemmings Publishing fi rm. 40th Street, Oakland, CA 94608. 4 SAH Journal No. 122 September-October 1 989

CONSERVING CANEWORK A SOURCE OF PHOTOS At the Museum of Transportation, located in Larz Anderson In SA H Journal No. 120 I read the lett er by Mr. Walter Park , we have initiated a conservati on program for the unrestored cars Wray. Since I have written about 25 books on cars. I have come in th e Anderson coll ecti on. Among the aims of the program is the ac ro ~s hi ~ problem many tim e~ myself. For thi s reason I am qu ite duplication of materi als and processes used at the time of manufacture , w illing to help my fe ll ow authors in ca~e they can use photograph' or the use of a method of repair appropriate to the period during which from my files. At the mo me nt I have approximate ly 100.000 factory the car was operated. black-and-whi te,. some 50.000 n ega ti ve~ . and about the same number We are working on a 1912 six cylinder Renault body by of color slides. They arc mostl y of European cars: I ne ver coll ected Vanden Pl as, built for Larz and Isabe l Anderson. The body pane ls pictures o f commerc ia l ve hi c l e~ or motorbikes. have a cane pattern material which, in some cases, is in need of Of course I am always trying to enl arge my coll ecti on repl acement. I am hoping that SAH members might help with some th rough buying or exchang in g . Rob. d e Ia Rive Box, Gersauerstrasse hi story about this type of body fini shing process. 78. CH-6440 Brunnen. Switzerland. I am e nclosing a sketch of a cross secti on of the material as observed through a 300 power microscope. A description of the THE ONE WHEEL TRUCK COMPANY layers is as follows: I read the items on the Imern ati onal Motor Whee l in SA H Journal numbers 11 8, 11 9, and 120. ot mentioned is th e O ne Wheel Truck Company of St. Loui s. Missouri, which built units prett y much amouming to the same thing, in design and constructi on , th ough at a later date . The One Whee l was primaril y a device made by use of a one wheel power unit at the front o f a vehic le to convert a forme rl y animal-haul ed vehi c le into a self powe red one: things like old fire pumpers , ladder outfits . garbage wagons and such. The firm operated prett y much from 1907 to 1911 or so, and I understand it was a predecessor of the Trailmobile firm . Tra ilmobile was once part o f Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company, best known for it s ra ilroad cars but who also built some hi ghway vehic les . self-prope ll ed rail vehicles, steel (it was once owned by the Wisconsin Steel Com­ First layer: Light grey, .003 in. thick , broken edge rough. pany) and products such as the Standard motor car. In later years the Second layer: Brown, .010 in. thick, broken edge rough. finn built e lectric trolley buses in Massachusett s. This probably tell s Third layer: Grey , .003 in . thick, broken edge rough. us th e interest of Trail mobile in th e Intern ati onal Motor WheeL which Mesh layer: (This is the layer that forms the cane pattern ) Bl ack , no doubt led to the One Wheel de,ign and production. More th an one .003 to .010 in. thick, broken edge rough and appear One Wheel was built. probabl y over a hundred. The unit was some­ to be carbon. times hooked up to what amounted to a tra il er pu ll ed ny a swiveling Top layer: Translucent amber, .005 to .0 I in . thick, broken O ne Wheel power unit. and the dri ver actuall y rode on the trailer edge has smooth glassy appearance. This layer seems to portion . Elliott Kahn, 58 Verbena Street , C learwater Beach, FL have been poured over the rest of the composition as a 34630. heavy, slow flowing liquid. LEVAVASSEUR NOT LEVASSEUR Looking at the top surface, cracks can be seen forming , have just received SAH Journal number 12 1. and noti ce with crystalli zed amber material oozing out. The composite material th at you have included my letter. May I enter a correcti on (and th e is very brittle and breaks along the cracks quite easil y. The top surface error was mine): Where I stated "The earlier engines of Mr. Levasseur is g lossy with shallow craters (dry spot ) at the top of some of the did have indi vidual fu el pumps ... " I should have said 'T he earlier pattern intersections. The three lower layers are evenl y applied. engines o f Mr. Levavasseur. .. " (the first name of Mr. Levavasseur The sample was infrared-analyzed , with the following was Leon). These two gentle men were indeed separate indi vidua l> . results: the mi xture consisted of a phenoli c resin similar to the type Al so there is th e name Levassor (as in Panhard-Levassor). but th at is developed by Leo H. Baekeland in Belgium in 1909. The object another matter entire ly. So sorry. it was my mistake. Tom C rotty, of Baekeland's experiments was to obtain a shell ac substitute. It RRI Box 61 , Beecher, IL 60401. seems fi tting that it would find it s way into an automoti ve fini shing applicati on. A TGA analysis told us that it had 39.17% polymer, 14 .78% carbon fill er, and 46.05% inorganic residues . We suspect that the polymer was the pheno li c resin , the carbon filler wa the portion used for the cane pattern, and the inorganic residues may have been fillers to thicken the undercoat. Our current scenario is that the second core layer was applied first. After that, a layer of adhesive was applied . Next, a mesh con­ sisting of natura l fiber string was pressed onto the adhesive. The Baekelite was poured over the mass. The botto m adhesive layer would have been applied for attaching to the panels. This may or may not be th e process in volved. Certainly it is one of the fi rst uses of Baekelite (plasti cs other than cellulose) in automoti ve body building. Uni on Carbide, who presentl y hold the manufacturing ri ghts, inform us that at this time there is no compo und that resembles the o ri ginal coal tar mixture. They are, however, send­ ing us product in fo rmati on on their modem petroche mi cal-based phenolic resins. We would appreciate any further info m1 ati on on the o ri gin a l material and process. Richard T. Friedman, Head of Col­ A period photograph of the 1912 Vanden P/as-bodied Renault of Larz lections, Museum of Transportation, IS Newton Street, Brookline, and Isabel Anderson. now in the collection of the Museum of Trans­ MA 02146 portation. Brookline. M assachusetts. 5 SAH Journal No . 122 September-October 1989

SAN DIEGO AUTOMOTIVE MUSEUM LIBRARY All of this Heal has finally put together in this outstanding book. It is a volume internati onal racin g enthusiasts and hi storians The San Diego Automotive Museum, which opened to the will place on their bookshelf next to the half-dozen recogni zed "class­ public in December 1988 , plans to open its library/ research center in ic" works on the subject, being ever th ankful that there is finall y onl y September of 1989. The library has already received several significant one book to reach for when searching answers to Sunbeam questi ons. donations, including the entire collection of the Horseless Carriage While not intended to be a biography of Louis Coatalen, Foundati on, Inc., and th e Mitchell Information Services collection . Heal's book gives many interesting insights on th e man responsible Mitche ll is a publisher of automoti ve repair data, and the material fo r Sunbeam's competiti on efforts. As chi ef engineer for the firm features service and repair data on automobil es produced from 19 12- since 1909, Coatalen was one of the true believers in the dictum 1955. The library will be located in the Automotive Museum, which "racing improves the breed." Before the term " industrial espi onage" is adjacent to th e Aerospace Hi storical Center in San Diego's Balboa was coined, he finagled the most noted designers and engineers to Park . produce "state-of-the-art" racing automobiles to represent Sunbeam The library committee would like to locate individuals who in international competition. He had the further insight to send these are qualified to appraise coll ecti ons of literature and are familiar with cars across the Atlantic to events in the USA with far greater consis­ the IRS guidelines covering donations of this type. SAH members tency than other European manufacturers. Thus there is much in the having experience in this area are urged to contact library committee book directed to those only in terested in the history of American chairman Art Ball antyne at the San Diego Automotive Museum, P.O. racing. For instance , it is helpful to learn that there were three of the ~ Box 127088 , San Diego , CA 92 11 2. David M. Woodhouse, 8898 191 3 GP Sunbeams racing in the USA during the 19 14 season. Al so Calliandra Rd. , San Diego, CA 92126. covered in detail are Sunbeam's Land Speed Record attempts at Day­ tona Beach. One could go on and on with praise. Books such as this do not come around very often and seem to vanish quickly from e ller's lists when they do. My advice is to grab one; you will be pleased and forever grateful that you have the ·'end all" Sunbeam racing book. And it 's so beautifully presented, too. - Frederick A . Usher

SPORTING RILEYS: THE FORGOTTEN CHAMPIONS, TANGLED WEB: THE LEGACY OF AUTO PIONEER by David G. Styles. 288 pages. 476 B&W illustrations. Hardbound. JOHN F. DODGE, _ by Jean Maddem Pitrone. 320 pages. 29 8W' x 9W'. ISBN 0-90/564-70-2. Dalton Watson pic .. London. and B&W photographs. Hard covers, 6" x 9". JSB 0-910977-05-4. available in the US from Motorbooks lntemational. P.O. 2. Osceola. Avenue Publishing Co., 11473 Soieski, Hamtramck , Michigan 482 12. Wis. 54020 ( 1-800-826-6600). $59.95. $ 19.95. SAH Member David G. Styles is no stranger to anyone The Dodge Brothers, John and Horace, were among the interested in British cars or racing machines. Hi s previous book , As more interesting persons connected wi th the early automobile industry , Old as the Industry: Riley 1898-1969, won an SAH Cugnot Award and their deaths in 1920, (not coincidental but close together) and a few years ago for hi s definitive treatise on the make which had a resulting wills opened a double Pandora's box of trouble. Fami ly colorful career building power bikes, motorized tricycles and quadri­ keletons exist everywhere but the Dodge Brothers, it would appear, cycles before settling down into the business of building a very fine had far more than their share. road car. The firm even ventured, unsuccessfull y , into the luxury car This isn't merely a run-of-the-mi ll account of a family and market with its ill-fated Autovia in the 1930s. its foibles. It is a winner as in the "whodunit" variety of literature, Now, Styles gives us the account of the prowess shown by in which it might well vie with Agatha Christie or Dorothy L. Sayers. those Rileys built for the racing circuit , and an enviable record it is. Everything i going for it- marriage, marital bliss, fami ly sq uabbles, Not th e least of the pluses in this work is Styles ' great talent as a line separations, divorce, settlements, deaths, and resulting fight over the arti st, and hi s sk ill in that field is evident here with many fine line wills . drawings of the racin g cars which carried the Riley badge over the In Tangled Web, we have a sequel to the author's earli er years. 1981 book, The Dodges: The Auto Family Fortune and Misfortune, This book has been many years in preparation . It comes to and here we have the unexpected . The unexpected appears to center th e top Dalt on Watson standard in printing and also shines as an on the first birth to John and Matilda Dodge, and this is the cru x of in-depth study of a subject which otherwise mi ghtn 't have seen th e the tale itself which rivals the Land of Oz. light of day. It appears that there may have been a multiple birth the first This is an excellent pi ece of racing history and is recom- time around and there are many esoteric and arcane aspects to the mended wi th out reservati on. - Keith Marvin story, for example, falsified birth certificates, including the difficulty in obtaining access to them over the years . But the claim (and with a capital C) is that th e fi rst child , SUNBEAM R ACING CARS 1910-1930, by Anthony S. Heal. 384 Frances, just wasn't the only child born and there are the legal papers gilt edged pages, over 500 illustrations, hardbound (with case), II x attestin g to this. Based on the current litigation, which has been fo ught 9-!4 inches (horiz.). ISBN 0-85429-773-1, a Foulis book published for the last four years in the Michigan courts, the birth involved twins, by Haynes, Somerset UK!Calif. USA , 1989. $89.95, available from one of which was given away and dul y raised in a lower middle cia Albion Scott. Detroit household. And if this isn't intri guing in itself, there is the This magnificent book has been a long time coming but , a claim that the two girl s were Siamese twins, separated at birth , a the saying goes, has definitely been worth the wait. For over half a possibility where vital organs aren't involved. century Anthony Heal has been the authority on Sunbeam racing and It isn't a pretty family tory. Frankly, it 's a mess of what the cars this noted English firm produced for that purpose. Long a family can become with all the dirty linen exposed for all to ee. before old racing cars were the " investments" they are today, a small , This is the sort of book I hate to read and a review I hate to write. hard-core group appreciated them as works of art , but also to be But it could be so. The case has been pending, as yet unde­ enjoyed on the road and track. For some it was Bugatti, for other cided by the court, and one wonders about the outcome. Bentley or Alfa Romeo; for Heal it was Sunbeam. He sought out Jean Pitrone hasn't left a stone unturned in her quest fo r the surv ivi ng racing cars and owned several of them; he talked to the men answer. I doubt whether she's very popular with the Dodges. Do I who made them, collected old photographs and documents pertaining want to know the answer? You bet I do and if you read it , I think to Sun beam's racing activities and , along the way, he wrote numerous you wi ll too. arti cles and generously gave his knowledge to other historians. And then I want to forget all about it. - Keith Marvin 6 SAH Journal No. 122 September-October 1989

A PICTORIAL HISTORY OF AUSTRALIAN AMBULANCES SINCE 1880, by Brian Nelson. 97 pages. Pro fu sely illuscraced . Sofr covers, 8 !12 ·• x II ". Th e M orariscs Bookshop, P. 0 . Box 383. Surfers Paradise, Queensland 421 7, Auscralia . $ 19.95 (Auscralian) plus $4.80 (Auscralian) surface mail poscage. One of the interesting aspects in the study of automoti ve hi story is the tremendous variety of vehi cles which one is likely to encounter from time to time . Notable examples in thi s regard are the professional vehi cles: fire apparatus, hearses. ambulances and the like. A book on the ambulances of Austra li a certain ly constitutes a departure from the more common type of vehi cle, but they have the ir own interesting history , and this work should find favor with those whose interests fall in this specia lt y fi eld. The author, who has been associated with ambulance trans­ port for the last 18 years, has produced, almost single handedl y . thi s interesting survey of the Australian ambulances which takes th e reader back to the horse-drawn days of the continent up to the present time, AUTUMN MYSTERY illustrating the various types and designs whi ch have bee n used through What can you te ll us about the car in thi s photo? We know the years. Australia is singul ar in that , like it s passenger-cars , it knew who th e peopl e are , fo r it says "Sadie and Ernest Me e il ey, Ada in an especiall y wide number of makes through the years including bac k seat with ?" on the back. It 's actuall y a postcard produced by we ll -known and obscure ones imported both from Great Britain and Drummond Photo in orton. Kansas. and is fu rther marked "about the United States. A large number o f them appear in the pages, 19 15" in pe ncil. So if you can furn ish any informati on , the card's in cluding the hi ghl y attractive specia lty line built by W . & G . Du owner T aylor Vin so n would like to hear about it and we would . too. Cros, Ltd., o f Acton , Eng land , which carried on its radiator badge Taylor d idn ' t say whether he knew anything about the Me eil eys. the a rn1 s o f the Metropo litan Asylu ms Board for which the first exam­ At press time. the sole response to the mystery in the last pl e were built. One o f these survives to this day. A parti cul arly issue was inconclusive, so get out that issue again, supersleuths, and interesting aspect of most ambulances hown in Australi a is the pre­ give it another try. ference o f using a Maltese cross as an in igne rather than the straight type. ine chapters review the ambulance hi story of Australi a's six states ew South Wales, Queensland , South Australia, Tas­ mania , Vi cto ri a and Western Austra li a; it s two territo ri es - the BlLLBOARD Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory, plus one o n The Order of the Ho pita! of St. John o f Jerusalem . Thi~ may be a highly specialized book in a limited field , Adveni;,ing in thi> col umn " offered lrcc to SAH member;, on a ;,pace but it is at once both in fo rmati ve and unusuall y well il lustrated . ava il abl e ba'i'. Ad' for information. hi,torical automoti ve book;, and - Keich Marvin literature. photograph,. drawing,. etc .. arc welcome. both for 'ale and wa nted. Ad' for automnbi lc' or parh arc not accepted. OBITUARY BILLBOARD WILLIAM GOTTSCHALK WA TED: Origin al Cadillac-LaSallc fac tory photographs of production William Gottschalk o f Parkton , Maryland pa sed away on models. mock-ups. styling model,. etc. Also. any other manufactu rer's photos July 3 after a lingering illness. He was the husband of Lillian of Cadi ll ac-LaSalle cars. Am updating a collecti on which dates from 1902-70 Gottschalk , member number 925 . Mrs. Gottschalk is the author of inclu sive. Have some duplicates for trading. Alw want 24" x 36'' color trans­ American Toy Cars. SAH Journal extends the deepest sympathy of parencies (as used in dealer showrooms) of Cadi ll acs from 1953-64 inclusive . the Society to Mrs. Gottschalk. Grayson Nichols, 717 West G lenoaks Bl vd ., G lendale, CA 91202. (818) 242-6615. WA TED: We Remember Rockne by John McCallum & Paul Castner 1975. SAH DECALS This book is about otrc Dame star Knute Rockne. Also wanted U. S. Po;,tage stamps featuring Knute Rockne. As bjorn Rolseth , Rypesnaret 7, -2044 SAH decals are available in either inside or outside mounting Frogner, ORWAY. fonnat - for car window, briefcase, car bumper or wherever. Three inches round , with the SAH Cugnot logo printed in bl ack on a background of gold. WANTED: By Jupiter. the biography of Sir Roy Fedden, Chief Engineer of Decal s are $2 .00 each, plus $ .25 postage per order. (U K members inquire the Bristol Aircraft Company who made the single sleeve va lve engine such about special Sterling rates.) Specify how many of each type (inside or outside a success. The Life of Sir Henry Royce by Sir Max Pembenon, prefer deluxe mounting). Send check (U.S. funds) made out to the Society of Automoti ve first edition. j ames D. C rank, 1621 Palm Ave., Redwood City, CA 94061 , Hi stori ans to Kit Foster, 1102 Long Cove Road, Gales Ferry , CT 06335. (415) 365-2005 Ans. Mach. 24 hrs.

DIRECTORY UPDATE NEW MEMBERS Jeal , Malcolm . .. 1380 NEW ADDRESSES 53 Oak Lane Janicki, Gregory J...... 1378 Easternton, Devizes Kennard, Anthony . 1249 44151 Lantern Lane No. 4 Wiltshire SN I 0 4PD 471 Dubo is Sterling Heights, MI 48078 ENGLAND Beloeil, Quebec J3G 2K4 CA ADA Tulis, Jan , Dr. 1379 REINSTATED Svatoplu ka Hei tz, James A. 1279 Cecha 42 DeMars, Robert T . 255 % Import Consulting Services 6 12 00 Brno 989 40th Street 7480 Re li ance Street CZECH OS LOY A KI A North Oakland , CA 94608 Worthington, OH 43085 7 Th e British Ensign Six, with Torpedo dual cowl phaeton body by H.J. Mulliner. The British Ensign was built in many form s during the years 19 I 3-23 by Ensign Motors Ltd. , Willesden , London W 10. The Six, appearing here, wa their top-of-the-line produ ct in I 920-22, and boasted a 6. 7 liter ohc engine. Ensign Motors later built cars using the Entz magnetic tran mi ion, sold as Crown Magnetics and Crown Ensigns. But what, pray tell, is going on in the background of thi photo fro m the Worthington- Williams Collection?

FIRST CLASS U.S. Postage PAID Marietta, GA Permit No. 112 FIRST CLASS r PRINT ED BY: Brigham Press, Inc. 1950 Canton Road Marietta, Georgia 30066 .S.A. September-October Issue No. 122 FIRST CLASS MAIL PLEASE FORWARD