Asking $49,500.00
Reasonable Offers Encouraged
Packard was founded by brothers James Ward Packard , William Doud Packard and his partner George Lewis Weiss in the city of Warrne OH. James Ward believed that they could build a better horseless carriage that the Winton cars owned by Weiss (An important Winton stockholder) and James Ward, himself a mechanical engineer, had some ideas how to improve on the designs of current automobiles. By 1899, they were building vehicles. The company, which they called the Ohio Automobile Company, quickly introduced a number of innovations in its designs, including the modern steering wheel and years later the first production 12-cylinder engine.
While Ford was producing cars that sold for $440, the Packards concentrated on more upscale cars that started at $2,600. Packard automobiles developed a following not only in the United States, but also abroad, with many heads of state owning them.
In need of more capital, the Packard brothers would find it when Henry Joy, a member of one of Detroit's oldest and wealthiest families, bought a Packard. Impressed by its reliability, he visited the Packards and soon enlisted a group of investors that included his brother-in-law, Truman Newberry. In 1902, Ohio Automobile Company became Packard Motor Car Company, with James as president. Packard moved its automobile operation to Detroit soon after and Joy became general manager and later chairman of the board. The Packard's factory on East Grand Boulevard in Detroit was designed by Albert Kahn, and included the first use of reinforced concrete for industrial construction in Detroit. When opened in 1903, it was considered the most modern automobile manufacturing facility in the world and its skilled craftsmen practiced over eighty trades.The 3.5 million ft plant covered over 35 acres and straddled East Grand Boulevard. It was later subdivided by eighty-seven different companies. Kahn also designed The Packard Proving Grounds at Utica, MI.
Throughout the nineteen-tens and twenties, Packard built vehicles consistently were among the elite in luxury automobiles. The company was commonly referred to as being one of the "Three P's" of American motordom royalty, along with Pierce and Peerless. Packard's leadership of the luxury car field was supreme.
This car was built on a Packard 127” WB I903 chassis by custom coachbuilder Rollson of New York City for Miss Frances Ethel Wickham, who was apparently an elderly and successful antiquities dealer at that time. It is Rollson body #702, and believed to be one of the last custom bodied Packards built by Rollson before they re-tooled for fabrication of ship fixtures for the US Navy during World War II. The “high hat” (Rollson body style #1963) design allegedly allowed male passengers to wear a top hat when riding in the car to and from formal affairs. The design may also have allowed elderly passengers to get in and out of the car without too much bending. There was evidently only one Packard of this style built for the model year 1941
The engine (#D503526) is Packard’s famed 356 cubic inch 160 horsepower straight eight with 9 main bearings. The car is also equipped with a radio and deluxe heater/defroster. The interior was correctly reupholstered in camel color wool broadcloth. The exterior was finished in ural green, an original 1940 Packard color, although research indicates that the car was originally painted entirely black.
This car was a part of the Harrah Automobile Museum in Reno, Nevada from the mid 1960’s to early 1980’s. Since then it has been meticulously restored and was used as part of an antique limousine fleet in Minneapolis in recent years. A great Running and Driving car, this is the perfect candidate for the CARavaner who wants to stand out amongst the group, yet make it to the dinner every evening without incident.
