Kurtis, any info on this picture was it taken in the uk at the Factory ?? my father worked there around 1937-44 thanks Keith
Well, I checked the trusty Champcarstats.com and it answered my question #1 American Grand Prize San Francisco World's Fair Course 3.905 Mile Road Course 104 Laps/406.12 Miles February 27, 1915 Finish 29 Start 19 John Marquis car #27 Bugatti Bugatti Bugatti 6 laps-Ignition
Buildy, The first photo is from the 1915 American GP at San Francisco. John Marquis. DNF. Lasted 6 laps due to ignition problems. Great photos. Here's another.
Keith, This was at Brooklands in the 1920s. One of my favorite photos. It's got everything, from the chap smiling at the little one's to the rider about to jump on his Douglas. What are the four hand pumps used for?
Buildy wrote: "This one says Maques at Playa Del Rey 1915 which of course is impossible since Playa Del Rey burned to the ground in 1913. Could this be part of the Pan-pacific course? Looks like the same car/driver as the first photo despite the caption." Gary Faules has pix of the SFO board track, maybe he can post them for comparison.
He was in two races at the Pan Pacific. Here is the Vanderbilt. William K. Vanderbilt Cup San Francisco World's Fair Course 3.849 Mile Road Course 77 Laps/300.685 Miles March 6, 1915 He was 26th in this one. Could account for same car same # but driver wearing different outfits. 26 24 John Marquis 27 Bugatti Bugatti Bugatti 16 Broken spring I`m checking Champ car to see if he raced at other tracks in 1915. Only one other race is found-at Providence RI-but he was car #8 there.....
Kurtis thanks for the Sunbeam pic of Toodles V. This was the car they off sold to Packard and later was driven by DePalma. Did not have that pic thanks much. The other pics are great as well. Sometimes the history is more important than the framable quality of the photo-Jim
I'm interested in that boardtrack photo. I wonder if that is at Sheepshead Bay. Here's a couple more of Marquis at San Francisco and the Vanderbilt Cup.
I can say with almost certainity that it isn`t at Sheepshead. Thanks for the photos again. I love this stuff. I look at Champcarstats and wonder about what some of those cars looked like. Many I`ve never seen before. Puente Pronto,Ono,Californian,and on and on.......
Anyone recognise these cars or drivers? 1927 DATONA BEACH. JOHN BOLSTER. BLOODY MARY SPL. @ CRYSTAL PALACE. 1930s.
Today`s finds.. 1916 Sheepshead Bay-Pete Henderson Maxwell. Kurt Hitke-Roamer. Kurt Hitke at Indy in 1919 Kurt Hitke
The Monaco-Trossi is considered one of the most original cars in the world. It reportedly only ran once (or MAYBE a couple times...testing for a race in Italy) and was then donated to the Biscaretti Museum by Count Trossi...original air in the original tires, probably original oil still in the motor. Never restored, never run again. When people claim their car is "original" the Monaco-Trossi is the benchmark they have to measure against. Cris
that 1936 Monaco-Trossi is a beautiful work of craftsmanship. id love to go see that in person someday.
Today`s find. These photos were found in the Splitdorf Company papers. Who is this? When? What car? The driver looks like Caleb Bragg to me. Any ideas on this one? How about this one? It looks like a 1910(Caleb Bragg?) era driver and Mechanician are posed in an earlier car for some reason. They are the same ones from the other photos. The car looks to be a 1903-4 or so to me. Splitdorf also had this nice portrait of Barney Oldfield in their papers.
Bob and Buildy, This is a Simplex from around 1911... I got to work on one JUST like this! If I remember, it was owned by one of the Vanderbilts and used to drive the family during the week and race on the weekends. IF this is THE car, and it can be verified, that would be awesome!
Willie Haupt. Chadwick 6 cylinder. Looks like the American GP and the other looks to be from a Hillclimb.
kurtis, There have been a few recreations that have emerged of the Grey Wolf (and I've had the great pleasure of reading Jim's info on it- thanks!!!). The reason I asked was because my old employer mentioned something about doing some restoration work on a "Grey Wolf" that the owner insisted was the real deal, but my boss Bob had serious doubts (Bob specialized in early Packard- it's a true passion of his).
Thanks Tank! First time i've seen those two photos. I've seen both "Grey Wolfs" and the repo is more correct.
1909 Downtown Cheyenne, WY NY to Paris -The Great Race courtesy LOC Memories View of automobiles with passengers in Cheyenne (Laramie County) Wyoming; on left is a 1907 Thomas Flyer and winner of the New York To Paris Round The World Race. On right is probably a Studebaker-Garford. A saloon and a brick building are in background. Some more complete information on the photo in post #806 by Carl S. This is indeed the New York-Paris Thomas Flyer and it is absoulutely Cheyenne, WY. However, this great photo wasn't taken during the Great Race in 1908. In 1909, mining heir Robert Guggenheim decided to sponsor an endurance race as part of the hoopla surrounding the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in Seattle. He planned for many contestants, but few signed up, 6 or 7 cars total, I think, including a pair of Model T Fords. Guggenheim hired the Around-the-World Thomas Flyer to act as an advance pathfinder to lay out the route to Seattle. The Flyer had a crew of Thomas factory men - L. W. Reddington, Manager; George Miller, Driver; and C. W. Eaton, mechanic. A hired photographer, J. Elsey aslo went along and probably took the photo. Even though the race didn't start until June, the old Flyer again crossed the continent in the bad conditions of early spring. The driver, G. Miller is the same Miller that went to Paris with Shuster in 1908. The photo was taken in Cheyenne on April 15, 1909. Newspaper accounts identify the pilot car as a large Oldsmobile touring car, driven by W. B. Bennett of the Denver Auto Club. The planned route for the race went through Denver. The Thomas Flyer is configured as it was when it completed New York-Paris in 1908 and it remains in that configuration today at the National Motor Museum in Reno. As far as the race goes, the win was awarded to a Shawmut. Bob.
While doing my daily early racing web search,I typed in the word Vanderbilt Cup,as I often do. Well,to all my friends on the HAMB who love Early racing,click on this link for some top rate images! Click on the thumbs to see what I mean. http://www.emercedesbenz.com/Aug08/...s_Career_Of_Racing_Driver_Ralph_de_Palma.html When you are finished with that,click here and be prepared to spend hours on this site. http://www.vanderbiltcupraces.com/
Some more complete information on the photo in post #806 by Carl S. This is indeed the New York-Paris Thomas Flyer and it is absoulutely Cheyenne, WY. However, this great photo wasn't taken during the Great Race in 1908. In 1909, mining heir Robert Guggenheim decided to sponsor an endurance race as part of the hoopla surrounding the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in Seattle. He planned for many contestants, but few signed up, 6 or 7 cars total, I think, including a pair of Model T Fords. Guggenheim hired the Around-the-World Thomas Flyer to act as an advance pathfinder to lay out the route to Seattle. The Flyer had a crew of Thomas factory men - L. W. Reddington, Manager; George Miller, Driver; and C. W. Eaton, mechanic. A hired photographer, J. Elsey aslo went along and probably took the photo. Even though the race didn't start until June, the old Flyer again crossed the continent in the bad conditions of early spring. The driver, G. Miller is the same Miller that went to Paris with Shuster in 1908. The photo was taken in Cheyenne on April 15, 1909. Newspaper accounts identify the pilot car as a large Oldsmobile touring car, driven by W. B. Bennett of the Denver Auto Club. The planned route for the race went through Denver. The Thomas Flyer is configured as it was when it completed New York-Paris in 1908 and it remains in that configuration today at the National Motor Museum in Reno. As far as the race goes, the win was awarded to a Shawmut. Bob.
The Jalopy Journal
