StanleyRegister

Wow, it's like a 1.15-sized Mercer Raceabout.

2 more of this beautiful car. The collection at the Detroit Public Library is a national treasure.

Same license plate, happier times.

Suddenly I wish I wasn't slung so under.

A couple of period photos of a one-off Jaguar XK-120, built in late '54 by Pininfarina. Question is, who had it in '58? It had already been repainted and re-bumpered. People did a lot more harm to it in the '60s and '70s, but now it's back in England and gone through a farication-intensive restoration to its original build. I'm helping the owner figure out who owned it in the '50s and '60s - any clues would be appreciated.

I'm the roster keeper for Stanleys, and have a lot of photos of that car over the years. It's one of the most desirable Stanleys in existence. Sort of a muscle car, the biggest Stanley powerplant ever built, stuffed under not much more than a pair of seats. Melton loved this car, he picked it up in the early '40s and it was one of the few he still owned when he died.

@coachJC, that's James Melton's 1908 Model K Stanley #4161, at his museum in Hypoluxo, Florida. I've never seen a photo of it without either a CT or an FL plate - this is pretty cool. Thanks!

You're welcome Pacewagon. Best of luck with your research and I hope you reach a satisfactory conclusion.

There's a fair amount of recent auction history on this object. There are some fine auction companies who are intent on making sure that their sale descriptions contain no falsehoods or suppositions. They do their own research and fact checking, especially when there are claims of famous events or famous personal associations. Other auction companies copy and paste what they get from the consigner. Aug 27-31, 2014 https://rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/af14/auburn-fall/lots/r8042/569980 Actual bid results for lot N840 are on page 10 of this document - https://www.allfordmustangs.com/forums/attachments/classic-talk/378834d1410209914-gas-monkey-64-1-2-mustang-auburn-2014.pdf Jul 29, 2018 https://www.proxibid.com/Art-Antiques-Collectibles/Collectibles/Henry-Ford-Buck-Wagon/lotInformation/43200311 Dec 18, 2019 https://www.biddergy.com/Listing/Details/141377859/Late-1800s-Buck-Wagon-Owned-by-Henry-Ford Here's the golden provenance rule - Only period documents are proof. Do not accept a modern document as proof. It may contain accurate facts, and it may serve as a guide for finding period documents. And it most definitely may not. Do not accept quoted reminiscences as proof. The most recent speaker's sources, or their sources' sources, may have been deceived, no matter how honestly and faithfully the most recent speaker reports a conversation.

Maynard Leighton's Stanley #4031 in the first video at 1:31, Louis Biondi's Stanley #1163 in the second at 0:20 and 1:33 .

B. John Ford was born in 1919 and died in 2001. He owned Bob Ford in Dearborn. I'll definitely have an improved understanding in the future about the reliabillity of statements made by Mr. Linn and Mr. Yagoda, as well as the statements of those who quote them without research.

The Bill Shekooley car is in Michigan now, driven quite a lot. The wood-framed car that left Orcas Island was built by Don Bourdon in 1979 - a very nice car. I think Dan will have a great time with it!

I'm guessing summer 1956, in Albert Lea, Minnesota. This is from the June 29 paper.

Hmm, maybe neither of the owners would be that interested... it's not really a photo of their car. It would be an interesting story about why they chose to make 2 Duesenbergs out of 2 Duesenbergs. Sure looks like one humdinger of a long chassis! If it got a roadster body it must be pretty impressive.

Freshly-discovered photo of a Duesenberg supercharged convertible sedan. The back says "1934 Duseenberg 1934 supercharged, John Seelinger, owner, sold at time of photo for $1500." Skirted front fenders that come low over the tires, sidemounts, flat windshield, no vent windows, center door handles, unskirted rear fenders, integrated trunk - I can't find one like it in a quick internet search.

Can't resist adding one of my favorite shots, that barn find Stanley after it was restored by John Ray Lyman, being driven by then-owner Zacheus Cande on the 1963 Glidden. The car was lately in the automobile collection at the Grandson Castle, in Switzerland. That museum closed very recently - has anyone heard what happened to the cars?

This 1967 photo shows H. D. Thompson, left, and Bill Carmichael, center, involved with a 1923 Stanley that they owned. (A 7-passenger touring, presumably a Model 740B.) They lived in Jackson, TN, and the car was scheduled to participate in the Mid-America Old Time Auto Association meet there on June 15-18, hosted by the West Tennessee Antique Car Club. The car was said to have been found in Florida, where it had "been left by a retired gentleman from the east." The car sold out of Mrs. H D Thompson's estate in 1983. Any ideas who may have had it before & after Thompson?

I see a couple of other little telltale differences, too, now that I look again. Darn... Did discover that the Rhinehart car was bought around 1967, by Vernon Unger of Winchester, VA. He advertised it for sale in 1992, still looking very much like the 1956 photo, above.

Looks like it was former AACA Director and President Len Rhinehart. The 1968 AACA register shows him owning a 1927 343 7p touring, fully restored. He restored it in 1955-56, and apparently drove the car a lot - 870 miles to the 1958 Lake Forest meet, and a 2,600 mile round trip through Greensboro, NC and Daytona in 1965. Certainly could have driven it to Dearborn. (Don't know what happened to the sidemount.)

This photo was taken on Feb. 20, 1949, at an old car gathering in Florida. It's a beautiful print - if you could send me a good scan, I'd really appreciate it. Best I have is this grainy shot, taken at almost exactly the same time. The two Stanleys, at least, are still in the same place. The condensing car has been in the family since new. The non-condenser has the curious "upgrade" of Ford wire wheels. Melton happened to attend this meet, as well as Bill Spear. Both are shown here in the 10hp car. The White was also bought new by the family, from the local White agent, who was Melton's uncle. (!)

A nice hot Baker burner should certainly be adding to the fun!

This article says it was painted the light color in the early '50s. Photos are unfortunately distorted (at least for me). https://www.oldcarsweekly.com/features/supercharged-duesenberg-model-sj

Couldn't resist adding this. A few years later, a bunch of guys thought it would be fun to recreate this Peter Helck painting in real life.

My dad's been into antique cars since his teens in the early '50s. My mom has never been that interested. In all those years, she admitted to liking one old car - this one. Henry Yeska owned it at the time this photo appeared on the back cover of the Antique Automobile, 1973 #1. It's one of the most beautiful cars I've ever seen. Somehow the Packard stylists took the contemporary cues and synthesized something very special. (I don't mean to drag the thread away from old photo detective work - sorry.)

Well, here's a 1005 convertible sedan that had a light green interior at one time - does that ring a bell? The listing even shows a VIN. https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1933-PACKARD-1005-V12-SEDAN-CONVERTIBLE-180274 Here's a different one, a few years ago - https://www.news-press.com/story/life/style/grandeur/2015/03/07/piece-of-the-past/23896189/ And a third - https://rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/hf12/auction/lots/r128-1933-packard-twelve-convertible-sedan