Need Very Old Marmon Club Roster

[dpeeler]

Does anyone have a Marmon Club roster from the early 1970's or late 1960's?

I am trying to chase down the previous ownership history of my 1917 34A and have the following names mentioned:

Bill Blackaby (Ontario, Oregon) - roughly 5 years in the early 1970's
Gus Mozart (location?) - 1 or 2 years around 1970
Dr. George N. Hosford (San Francisco) - many years up to 1970

I know sometimes these chases end up with no results, but this one seems intriquing given the particular car. Bruce S. Williams (son of the last Marmon Company President) owned the car for a long while after Blackaby.

Any leads will be appreciated.

Thanks,
David

[nickelroadster]

The Marmon club was not active for all of the time you were asking about. There may not be a roster for the time you are looking for . You might have better luck if you go to the Marmon Club website and ask there. Someone there may know something of the history of your car. At the present time, any information on any Marmon car is wanted. Consider joining the club as the club is not real large but there are people who can be very helpful.

[sambarn]

If Bruce S. Williams owned your car, call Bruce S. Williams. He will remember the car and give to you a litany of information about the car. Great guy.

[dpeeler]

Sambarn,

Unfortunately, Bruce passed away in February of 2010. I do have a file of his records, but it is sparse on the two names mentioned. I also have a copy of a letter to Mr. Blackaby from Russ Stadt (then President of the Marmon Club) dated 1971 referencing a roster of members. That led me to believe that someone might have one stashed away.

Thanks,
David

[twin6]

The AACA roster from 1954 lists two 1917 model 34's, and there are 3 listed in the 1957 roster, showing each car's serial number and owner. Hosford's name is not listed.

[dpeeler]

Twin6 - Could you reply with the serial numbers shown for the 1917 Model 34's from each roster? If they list any 1916 models, please show them too. Maybe it will lead to an owner previous to Hosford. I have an owner's manual with Hosford's name handwritten on the inside cover with the date 1958, which makes me wonder if that was when he first owned it. Thank you!

[twin6]

I've sent you a PM about getting the info to you directly.

[sambarn]

I am such a fool. I once again transposed Bruce S. Williams and Bruce R. Williams, two of the founding members of the Marmon Club. Have you contacted the AACA library? They have all of the Russel Stadt collection of papers and may have a bit of data that would help. As far as the old serial numbers, please share so I can cross reference with current rosters and share a bit of history with the current owners through our Marmon News.

[dpeeler]

Sam - I understand the confusion between the Williams names occurred often! I bought my Marmon from Bob Leibensperger last month (right after the muster) - it is the green cloverleaf roadster (numbers are listed in the Club Roster). Bob was kind enough to give me his files and they included a letter from Russ Stadt dated 1971 with details on the car. Since then I have traded emails with Twin6 and he sent a scan of a 1957 AACA roster that had an earlier owner listed that we knew nothing about. Chasing it down further, that owner (from the mid 1950's) passed away in 1984 but his widow is still alive in CA at the age of 108! I plan to contact AACA and continue the search with them as best I can. If you know my car, it has certain features that lend themselves to a "Renew" with 1923/1924 upgrades by the factory, or at least that's what I think. I'm trying to determine how far back those upgrades go along with the ownership history. Do you know if Russ Stadt is still living?