October 11th 2015 Premier Automobile Sale
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/10/2015
The Pope empire had its beginnings in Boston shortly after the Civil War. The Pope Manufacturing Company was established in 1876 by Colonel Albert A. Pope for the production of small patented articles. A bicycle of its own design followed in 1877; however it was manufactured by the Weed Sewing Machine Company in Hartford, Connecticut. Weed was taken over by Pope in 1880 and by 1899 Pope created the America Bicycle Company which consolidated some 45 bicycle manufacturers. Pope was in the bicycle business in a big way while laying the fortune for what was to follow. Its first automobile called the Columbia (the trade name of the original Pope bicycle) arrived in 1901. It was produced in collaboration with the Electric Vehicle Company with other Pope vehicles to follow including the Pope-Toledo, Pope-Robinson, the Pope-Tribune, and the Pope-Waverly. The only car to be built in the firm’s hometown was the Pope-Hartford and testing of the prototype began in the summer of 1903.The Pope-Hartford debuted at the New York Auto Show in January 1904. First to market was the Model A Runabout designed by Colonel Pope’s nephew, Harry Melville Pope. It was immediately followed by the Model B with Rear Entrance Tonneau. Both shared a 78-inch chassis and 10hp single-cylinder engine with a spur gear transmission with two forward speeds plus reverse and single chain drive. The Model A was priced at $1,050.00 and the Model B at $1,200 – both priced well-above established competitors such as the Ford Model A and the Curved Dash Oldsmobile. Pope-Hartford built just 146 cars in 1904. Production of cars continued until 1914 with the firm never producing more than several hundred cars per year. The four-passenger wood-bodied car sat on a frame of angle steel while weighing in at 1,600 pounds. It was available in red, blue, olive green, and sage green with yellow gear, if desired. To aid entry and exit, the steering wheel includes a tilting post. This incredible car was once part of the extensive Henry Austin Clark collection. A letter to Fred Woods of Evergreen Park, Illinois from Clark dated December 3, 1962 documents the car’s age as a 1904 model. Clark’s bill of sale to Woods dated November 28, 1962 for $3,000.00 is included as are an original factory brochure and period articles about Pope-Hartford automobiles from the January 16 and August 6, 1904 issues of The Automobile and the April 27, 1904 Horseless Age. Postcards showing the car from the Clark Museum are also provided. Clark notes in a letter to prior owner Woods that the car is capable of 30mph when touring.This is an important piece of early motoring history and a very rare and significant automobile.As a 1904 model, it is eligible for the annual London to Brighton run as well as a host of Brass Era tours and events. What a star it will be at any vintage event featuring Veteran automobiles!As this vehicle has been part of an estate collection, the purchaser has been advised that it will require some degree of mechanical recommissioning before being placed into routine service. Offered at no reserve.• Believed to have once been in the collection of Henry Austin Clark.• London to Brighton eligible.• Older restoration with incredible patina that has the appearance of an original vehicle.• Original factory brochure included in sale.• Extremely rare automobile and one of only 146 Pope-Hartfords produced in 1904.