0 Trivia Time!

by Derik Price
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

Two of the most common questions we are asked by museum guests are, “Where did you buy all these vehicles?" and “Who did you buy them from?” The short answer is, we’ve traveled all over the United States and bought them from individual collectors, auctions, and museums alike. One vehicle was even purchased in the U.K. and flown to Alaska. Do you know which one?  If not, here’s a refresher… 

But being interested in the history of these vehicles, I’ve often wondered where they were all produced. It was a rainy summer, and I had some extra time on my hands so I decided to map it out. I made an iPhoto album containing one photo of each vehicle in the collection and assigned each one its original place of manufacture.  You might notice a few things about this map.  First off, it’s not weighted, meaning, there is only one pin drop in Detroit, Michigan, even though a full 27 of our vehicles were produced there. These include the manufacturers Ford, Cadillac, Cartercar, Hudson, Chalmers-Detroit, Everitt, Dodge, Chrysler, Fordson, Hupmobile, and Packard. And in case you’re curious, the runner up is Indianapolis, Indiana, with eight vehicles produced there, including the nameplates American (Underslung), Premier, Henderson, and Stutz. Rounding out the top three is Cleveland, Ohio, with five vehicles in the collection made by Peerless, Rauch & Lang, White, Cleveland (motorcycle) and Owen Magnetic.

Not coincidently, you may also notice the outlined pin drops almost precisely define the area traditionally known as “The Rust Belt" (from the Dictionary of American History, Encyclopedia.com) 
----  The 1984 Democratic presidential candidate, Walter Mondale, is generally credited with coining the term. During the campaign, Mondale, the former vice-president from Minnesota, attacked the economic policies of incumbent Republican president, Ronald Reagan, stating that the president was "turning our great industrial Midwest and the industrial base of our Country into a rust bowl."  The media, however, repeated and reported the notion as "Rust Belt," and the phrase stuck as a good description of the declining industrial heartland, especially the steel and automobile producing regions in the Northeast and Midwest ---  

And finally, for your quiz, there are two vehicles in the Fountainhead Collection whose birthplaces are not shown on the map, as they were produced outside the boundaries of this area. Can you name them? I’ll give you a hint, the two States they were produced in are each known for their rich ‘Gold Rush’ history.  

Coming to Fairbanks to see the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum and other area attractions? Support the museum by staying right here at Wedgewood Resort. All guests receive half-price admission to the museum!

Detail: Trivia Time!

0 Museum Cars - Then and Now

by Nancy DeWitt

© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

It's been a busy week at the museum, so we thought we'd treat you to some flashbacks. Here are some before-and-after restoration photos of a few of our cars.

At right is our 1914 Moline-Knight Model MK-50 7-passenger touring car, after it was acquired by J. Parker Wickham of Mattituck, New York. That's Mr. Wickham at the wheel.

 

Mr. Wickham restored the Moline-Knight, but we had it repainted before shipping it to Alaska.

Our 1918 Biddle town car, after Henry Austin Clark recovered it in 1952 from a collapsed garage on Long Island in New York.

The Biddle after restoration by Allan Schmidt of Horseless Carriage Restoration.

Our 1904 Buckmobile, after Walt Meyer disinterred it from a barn in New York in 1937.

Previous owner Joe Whitney performed a meticulous restoration on the Buckmobile.

The 1898 Hay Motor Vehicle. It was discovered in a Connecticut barn in the 1940s, but we assume this photo was taken much later than that.

The Hay after an extensive restoration spanning several owners, including the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum.

The 1921 Heine-Velox Victoria Sport Touring as it looked during Parker Wickham's and William Harrah's ownership.

The Heine-Velox after restoration by Allan Schmidt and Horseless Carriage Restoration. It is such a big and imposing car that we chose a dark paint for it. The light paint reminded us too much of a battleship!

Our 1933 Hupmobile Series K Victoria when it was purchased by Parker Wickman.

 After restoration by Mr. Wickham. Women expecially love this paint color!

And finally, our 1919 McFarlan Type 125 Type Sport Touring, as it looked while William Harrah and Parker Wickham owned it. Like with the Heine-Velox, we thought such a large car called for a darker paint job.  

Here's the McFarlan after Al Murray of Murray Motor Car restored it. First in Class winner at the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance and the 2012 Kirkland Concours d'Elegance!

Detail: Museum Cars - Then and Now

0 Our Handsome Hupmobiles

by Nancy DeWitt
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

In 1908, the first automobiles began arriving in Fairbanks, among them a Pope-Toledo, Pierce Great Arrow, Franklin and White Steamer. Like all automobiles here until the mid-teens, they were shipped in on sternwheelers via the Yukon and Tanana Rivers. It would take almost two decades and a railroad, however, before any Hupmobiles made it to this frontier town.

The first mention of the marque appeared in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner on May 8, 1926 under the headline “Brisk Market for Automobiles here.” The Fairbanks Exploration Company was noted as having purchased three six-cylinder Hupmobiles. A Hupmobile Eight was apparently due on the next train, and in 1927 dealer L.W. Rogge ran a series of ads for Hupmobile Sixes and Eights. What became of these cars is a mystery, but fortunately our museum has been able to acquire two lovely "Hupps."

After arriving here from Seattle in the early 1970s, our 1928 Century Series A opera coupe (# A77315) passed through three Fairbanks owners before we purchased it in 2007. The car’s whimsical but authentic color scheme--a red-orange body highlighted with black fenders and trim of mint green and dark brown --draws a lot of praise (and a few raised eyebrows) from museum visitors when we have it on display. 

The museum’s 1933 K-321 Victoria (# K8170) attracts a lot of attention, especially among women visitors. The sweeping lines and metallic turquoise paint job on this beauty really stand out. Few people walk by this car without exclaiming, "Wow!”

Considered one of the most beautifully designed cars ever produced, the Series K-321 Hupmobiles had the distinction of being the first automobiles designed by famed industrial designer Raymond Loewy together with stylist Amos Northrup. These Hupps introduced dramatic style features such as a V-shaped radiator grille, sharply raked windshield, extra-long streamlined running boards, swan-like taillights and a flying H hood ornament. The most striking new features, though, were the “cycle fenders” that tightly hugged the curves of the tires.

This 1933 Victoria features eight hand-operated ventilation doors in the hood, dual trumpet horns, suicide doors (hinged at the rear) and an artificial leather roof panel. The car is powered by a six-cylinder in-line L-head, 90-horsepower engine with a displacement of 228 cubic inches. It has a unique “free wheeling” three-speed transmission, which allows the car to coast when the driver’s foot is lifted from the accelerator. 

Only seven 1933 K-321 Victorias are known to still exist. We were pleased to exhibit ours at the Vernon L. Nash Antique Car Club show this past weekend, although it and our crew overheated in the 80-degree heat!

Photos of  fender/spare and suicide door by Ronn Murray Photography.

Detail: Our Handsome Hupmobiles

0 Busy Times

by Derik Price

Sorry our post this week is a little late.  We're half way through the summer season already and it has been a blur at the Museum.  It's fair to say we've exercised more cars this summer than I can remember.  Willy even had to write a list on the shop blackboard to keep track.  (So far) they include - '05 Olds, '04 Buckmobile, '14 Woods, '12 Premier 4-40, '14 Grant, '09 Hudson, '29 Model A, '25 Stutz, '08 Brush, '09 Olds, '04 Rambler, '11 Oakland, '12 Premier 6-60, '13 Argo, '23 Ford, '03 Columbia, '99 Hertel, '10 Whiting, '10 Stanley, '20 Argonne, '28 Pierce-Arrow, '33 Hupmobile, '34 American Austin, '32 Cadi, '09 IHC, '06 Cadi, '11 Ford, '27 Stutz, plus today and tomorrow the '14 Moline-Knight and the '18 Stutz. Wow!  30 cars out and running in the last 2 months.  It's been tough to keep up with Willy - he and the crew have just been 'cranking' them out.  :-)   I've had the opportunity to shoot LOTS of video this summer and we have been posting new clips each week or so to our YouTube Channel so do check it out.



After the long winters here we sometime forget - there is just nothing that brightens up your day like the sparkle of brass in the summer sun.

So thanks again Willy, Ethan, Steve and the whole docent crew for working so hard to get the cars exercised in our very short summer season.

Derik

Detail: Busy Times

0 1933 Hupmobile: A Fish Story

by Ethan Lundy

This 1933 Huppmobile Victoria coupe is one of our "newer" cars here at Fountainhead Antique Automotive Museum. This gorgeous car is quite spectacular and has an interesting paint history. Hupmobiles of this era were among the first with metallic paints. In the 1930s the metallic sparkle was achieved by adding fish scales to the paint. Apparently, fish scales prevented the newly sprayed paint from running. Our Hupp was more recently painted with modern metallic flake

I was excited to have the opportunity to work on this car. Its new running boards were recently refinished, and we had to make rubber spacers to put between the end pieces and fenders.

The sloped roof, new running boards, stylish fenders and suicide doors really give this car an old-time "Gangster" look that I find appealing. We hope you can come see this beautiful car on display.

Detail: 1933 Hupmobile: A Fish Story