0 Another Book! Alaska's First Automobiles

by Nancy DeWitt
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

Our latest exhibit, "Extreme Motoring: Alaska's First Automobiles and Their Dauntless Drivers" has been very popular, and many visitors have asked us to publish the stories about these men and their machines. So, I've spent the winter writing a book with the same title, which we hope to have printed by July of 2015. Local author, journalist, and historian Dermot Cole has agreed to edit it.

Alaska has a rich and colorful automotive heritage, but it has largely been overshadowed by its more charismatic aviation history. Yet our pioneering motorists certainly deserve recognition for the important role they played in Alaska's transportation history and improving life in the Last Frontier.

This book will feature stories about the very first automobiles in the far North, how they got here, what they were used for, and who drove them. I am also including sections about Alaska's early motorcycles, buses, trucks, snow machines, "boat cars," and automobile racing. The vehicles are interesting, but the pioneering motorists behind the wheels are the heart of the stories. Their adventures, innovations, and trials were quite remarkable, and in some cases, very entertaining.

The book has taken much longer to write than I predicted, partly due to the wealth of information I kept discovering, and also because a lot of fact checking has been required. I was surprised at how much contradictory information I found among newspaper articles and interviews. For example, multiple cars were credited as being the first to arrive in several towns, including Fairbanks, Juneau, Skagway, and Dawson. Some newspapers contradicted what they had written just months earlier. Sorting through these mysteries was both maddening and a fun challenge.

I have been able to find photographs of most of Alaska's first automobiles, and will include these and many other wonderful photos in the book. I am very grateful to the various archives and people who have made their photo collections available to me. I am also grateful to museum owner Tim Cerny for investing in this publication. We look forward to sharing it with you.

Detail: Another Book! Alaska's First Automobiles

0 Fageol Coach Update

by Willy Vinton
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

We finally started working on the ca. 1924 Fageol safety coach that belonged to the Mt. McKinley Tourist and Transportation Company. This once-upscale coach carried tourists on sight-seeing excursions in what is now Denali National Park. After the Park ended MMTTC's concession, the Fageol was brought to Fairbanks and parked outside where it set deteriorating for over seven decades. You can read more about it here. 

Last fall, we rescued what's left of the Fageol and moved it into the carpentry shop at Fountainhead Development. Last week Brad, Pete, and I began the task of pulling off all the remains of the body to evaluate what was left.  We found very few surprises. Most of the wood was pretty well rotted away, but the aluminum sheeting was still in decent condition. The roof is long gone.

We don't plan to restore the coach to its former glory. Instead, we are going to turn it into a historical exhibit that will be displayed outside the Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge. The Lodge is situated near the entrance to Denali National Park, and it will be nice to return this artifact to its original "territory."

The Fageol's interior and mechanical components will be left as is for now, but we will restore/rebuild the side panels and top. Stay tuned for progress reports.

Detail: Fageol Coach Update

0 Charles Bunnell's Excellent Adventure

by Nancy DeWitt
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

This photo was taken in Chitina, Alaska, on September 11, 1914. Robert Sheldon is standing on the far right. Next to him is Charles E. Bunnell, who had recently been appointed U.S. District Judge of the 4th Division by President Woodrow Wilson. Bunnell had hired Sheldon to drive him north from Valdez to Fairbanks so he could campaign for Alaska's Territorial delegate seat in Congress.

Photo courtesy of Frances Erickson

Notice that the car 's body has been removed, and that two wooden chairs have taken the place of the regular seat. Sheldon was concerned that they wouldn’t be able to make it to Fairbanks because of deep mud, so to lighten the load he removed the car’s body and seats, and then strapped two barroom chairs to the chassis. 

“I’ve never sat in a barroom chair before,” growled the judge, “but I suppose there’s always a first time.” 

By the time they reached Paxson, Sheldon and Bunnell had endured two days and nights of steady rain. Five inches of snow greeted them in Isabel Pass. In places the mud was so deep that they had to be pulled through by a team of horses. They didn't arrive in Fairbanks until the evening of September 17. Bunnell lost the election to Judge James Wickersham, but later served as the first president of the Alaska Agricultural College and School of Mines (now the University of Alaska). While there he played a pivotal role in bringing Sheldon's homemade runabout to the University's museum.

Imagine riding on a wooden chair in an open car--for seven days in crummy weather! The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner wrote this about Sheldon's and Bunnell's drive:

Big Trail Has No Terrors for The Auto Driver and His Little Ford. It's Stripped for Action.

The weather may storm and threaten, rain and snow, all of which it did this trip. Mud may get axle deep, bridges may break down, creeks may overflow their banks, all of which was true this time. But Sheldon seems to beat the game any way it is played. He dismantled his machine before leaving Chitina, saving several hundred pounds of weight, and all roads have to give way to him.

Detail: Charles Bunnell's Excellent Adventure

0 Replica of Alaska's First Winning Race Car

by Willy Vinton
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

The replica we've been building of Bobby Sheldon's first race car is almost finished, and the crew that has been working on it took it out yesterday for a spin.

Most of the parts that we used to build this replica were ones I gathered from around the state, so all the parts are of Alaska origin. A good portion came from the Nome area. Nome had a Ford dealer in the early days, and had lots of unsold new parts as well as a large assortment of used items. 

Long-time Fairbanks resident George Clayton flew for Wein Airlines, and he would collect and haul all kinds of items back to town from various villages. George always kept a good inventory of what and where the items originated. He would love to talk about them but would never sell any! Prior to his passing, though, he held an auction and a good amount of his Ford parts were sold to Bruce Campbell in Anchorage. Bruce passed all his collection of Model T parts on to me, and this is where most of the pieces came from for this project. We are grateful that George Clayton collected and saved these parts, and also thank Bruce for allowing me to be able to keep them in circulation to help others with their projects. If you need any T parts, let me know.

Photo of Bobby Sheldon before winning the first
automobile race in Fairbanks in 1917.
Photo courtesy of Frances Erickson

We still need a hood from a Model T to complete the replica, so if you have an old “rough” one, please get in touch with me.

Many thanks to the gang of docents that have been involved in the building of the replica from old and sometimes rusty pieces that I hauled in to the museum. Watch for this fun car driving around Wedgewood Resort this summer.




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: Replica of Alaska's First Winning Race Car

0 A Fageol Safety Coach is Rescued

by Nancy DeWitt
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

Earlier this year Frances Erickson, daughter of Alaska automotive pioneer Robert Sheldon, loaned me some of her family photos to scan. Among them was this one of a most unusual-looking bus, resembling a stretched-out limousine. Frances recalled that Bobby used it to transport tourists into Mt. McKinley National Park and that it was very upscale and dependable. 

Naturally, I was curious as to what kind of bus this was. I found a second photo of it in Snapshots from the Past: A Roadside History of Denali National Park and Preserve, and it clearly showed the name “Fageol” on the radiator. Thus began some internet research, which led me to John Fageol (pronounced “fadgl,” rhymes with “fragile”), a descendent of one of the brothers who founded Fageol Motors Co. in Oakland, CA. John identified it as a ca. 1924+ Fageol “Intercity” Safety Coach with a cast aluminum cowling and Gruss shocks in front. It had a seating capacity of 22 and a wheelbase of 218 inches. Each bench seat had its own door, disappearing wide window, interior light, and adjustable side and ceiling vents. A “parlor” model carried movable wicker chairs, attached to the floor by suction cups. One of these can be seen at the Museum of Bus Transportation in Hershey, PA.

It turns out the Fageol Safety Coach, the first bus built from the ground up, was quite revolutionary. Until its introduction in 1921, most buses were built on stiff-riding truck chassis, and their poor ride quality, high centers of gravity, and low-performance engines made them unsatisfactory for transit use. Fageol coaches had a double-drop frame and underslung axles, which lowered the floor to 21 inches above the ground and an overall height of just 76 inches. Power was initially supplied by a Hall-Scott single overhead cam 4-cylinder engine designed by Fageol. Each one came equipped with all-weather tread cord tires, with duals on the rear. An extra-wide tread of 72 inches between the wheels provided extra stability on turns. Beginning in 1923, Fageols were equipped with air brakes, the first use of such on a motor coach. The interior was heated by hot water from the engine, run through pipes along the floor.

Frances told me that Bobby and his partners were forced by the Park Service to close their transportation concession in 1941, and the bus was sold to the Alaska Railroad. The ARR brought it to Fairbanks, where it sat rotting in a lot on Davis Road. When I mentioned this to Willy, he said, “I remember seeing it there!” In fact, a number of people in Fairbanks remembered seeing it, but no one seemed to know of its history. Willy and I went by the lot Frances described, but it was fenced and we could see no sign of the old coach. Willy left a note on the gate, and several months later he finally heard from the owner.

Not only was the Fageol still there, but owner Diane Dawson said she would donate it to the museum! I had assumed it was black, but red paint is still present on the aluminum panels. The distinctive ventilation louvres on top of the hood—a key Fageol design feature—are intact. The Hall-Scott  engine (#44) and Brown-Lipe 4-speed gearbox with an overdrive top gear are still under the hood. The high-grade leather seats are long gone, except for some seat frames. Much of the wooden framework has rotted and the side panels have collapsed. The running board, which sits just 16 inches above the ground, is still fairly intact.

Around 2,500 Fageol Safety Coaches were built, and there are only five known survivors in addition to this one. Clearly, ours is in bad shape, but a rare artifact like this deserves to be saved. We moved it to the Fountainhead Development headquarters earlier this month, and will work to stabilize and preserve its remains, rather than try to restore it.

The Fageol buses manufactured for Safety Coach Lines of Muskegon, Michigan, were nicknamed "greyhounds" because of their gray paint and sleek appearance. One legend says this inspired the name of what became America’s most well-known bus line. 

Who would have thought an old rusty bus could be so interesting?

Sources:

 Calloway, Dick. “Fageol: A Higher Standard.” Wheels of Time (American Truck Historical Society), July/August 2013.

“Fageol Motors Co., Fageol Truck and Coach Co., Fageol Motors Co. of Ohio.“ Retrieved on 5 September 2014 from http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/f/fageol/fageol.htm

Herman, Gene. “ The Fageol Safety Coach: A Breakthrough in Bus Design.” The Old Motor, 15 January 2014. Retrieved on 5 September 2014 from theoldmotor.com /?p=111779

Juneau, Bud. “Safety Coach: Fageol’s Innovative, Trendsetting Coach of 1927.” Special Interest Autos, September/October 2001.

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: A Fageol Safety Coach is Rescued

0 Australian Builds Reproduction of Alaska's First Car

by Nancy DeWitt
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

Don Langley of New South Wales, Australia, recently finished building a replica of Robert Sheldon's 1905 runabout. The Sheldon car was the first automobile built and driven in Alaska, and is on display in our museum,courtesy of the University of Alaska Museum of the North. Don's story is a fun one, and we appreciate that he allowed us to share it.

In 2012, Don had just finished building a Daimlan motorbike and wanted to build a four-wheeled vehicle. He found the story about Bobby Sheldon's car on the internet, which piqued his interest. "He was my kind of guy," said Don. "And to make that car, without ever having see a car--only pictures--far less driven one, was a marvelous achievement. I figured I could do that also. I would make a replica of his car using only a picture.

"Being an old chippy (woodworker), the chassis and engine compartment presented no problems and I made those components as close to possible to the dimensions given to me by Willy (Vinton). The engine is a Tecumseh 13 HP from a ride-on-mower and the differential, with the built in gear box, likewise. The axle assembly incorporated a four forward and reverse gears, a disc brake component and a main drive pulley for a V belt. To the engine (it had a vertical shaft) I fitted a centrifugal clutch, with V belt drive pulley.

"In the engine compartment I fitted a vertical steering column in a steel frame, a fuel tank, and battery compartment. The steering tiller works well and it is light to steer when moving. As for carbide lamps for headlights, I found such items impossible to acquire with having to mortgage my home, so I found some gas headlights which looked similar.

"The seating was a bit of a problem. Bar stools of satisfactory shape were not available. So I made a frame and upholstered it myself. It does not conform exactly to the original one but it was the best I could manage.

"The wooden wheels I designed and made myself, although I have no lathe, so a friend turned the spokes for me on his. I fitted steel rims to the perimeter, shrinking them on, and then glued solid rubber to the steel rim. The wheels look a bit chunkier than on the original car but I did that on purpose."

The project took Don over eight months to complete, and he drove it just prior to his 80th birthday. He named the car Isabella in honor of his wife Isabel, who graciously agreed to all the time and costs involved. We have never been able to determine the name of "the girl" for whom Sheldon built the car to impress. But, there was a girl in Skagway back then named Belle Everest and Sheldon did mention his girl was "the belle of the town," so maybe Don is on to something here!

Don admits the car isn't an exact replica and refers to it as a "Mark II Sheldon." A lack of information on details like the original transmission, locating items such as the same barstools and buggy wheels Sheldon salvaged, and limitations of time and money make building an exact replica impossible. Plus, Don enjoyed doing what Bobby Sheldon did--scrounging for local and readily available materials and adapting them to suit or making them himself.

Still, Don has built a great reproduction of the Sheldon car--AND it runs! Don sent us a video of it being driven and we will post it on our YouTube Channel soon. Many thanks to Don for letting us share what we think is a "marvelous achievement."

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: Australian Builds Reproduction of Alaska's First Car

0 In the Shop: Building a Replica Race Car

Photo courtesy of Frances Erickson

by Willy Vinton
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

Our latest project in the museum shop is to build a replica of the car that Bobby Sheldon drove in the first organized car race in Fairbanks, held on July 5, 1917. The rules required that the cars be stripped down and carry both a driver and mechanic. Sheldon won that race and the $500 prize in a Model T Ford. That was a lot of money at the time--more than the factory price of a new Model T.

Our replica of Sheldon's race car will use parts collected in Alaska from 1916-1925 Model Ts. It will be a nice example of an early race car--and it will run! We've gathered parts from all over for this project, and owe special thanks to Bruce Campbell of Anchorage for helping gather several, including the frame.

The frame we're using is from a 1925 Model T. The major difference between it and the frame from a late-teens model is that it has a wider rear cross member. We aren't going to restore the parts for the replica, but rather, put them into safe operating condition. In fact, they'll probably be in better condition than the parts were in Sheldon's car when he raced!

This project is being performed by our "pit crew" volunteers that come in every Tuesday for a day of fun and work in the museum. I can't say enough great things about these guys. Their enthusiasm and dedication is greatly appreciated.







Here are the front and rear axles we're using for the replica. We'll rebuild them to make them operable and safe for speeds under 50 mph (although we probably won't exceed 20 mph). We haven't decided what wheels to use yet, but will probably go with 30-inch wood.

We are building the engine from several we gathered for usable hard parts. By the time we finish the project the pit crew will have a full understanding of how a Model T operates. Then, we'll move on to a full round of driving lessons so they will all be able to drive a "pedal car" (Model Ts have several pedals to master). When you come to the Midnight Sun Cruise-In in June you should see the Sheldon racer being driven by one of the volunteers and a "mechanic" riding in the passenger seat. If you visit the museum on Sunday, be sure to look through the shop windows to follow our progress.

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!

If you would like to view the first installment of our video series on the build-up, visit our Fountainhead Museum YouTube Channel. 

Detail: In the Shop: Building a Replica Race Car

0 Early Snow Vehicles in Alaska: Part 2

by Nancy DeWitt
© Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

Last week I wrote about several of Alaska's first "snowmobiles," including some air-propelled contraptions (see Part 1). Like a lot of inventions designed to conquer the north's winter terrain, the first two featured here never actually made it to Alaska. The Burch Auto Sleigh at right sat upon skis and two revolving augers, similar to what would be used on the Fordson Snow Motors covered below. Brothers Charles and Frederick Burch made successful runs with it in the Atlin, B.C. district in 1909 and intended to use it to haul passengers between Cordova, Fairbanks and Nome. As far as I know, it never made it across the border.

Frank Horner of Ruby, Alaska (and the namesake for Horner Hot Springs), patented the unusual vehicle above in 1916, which he was sure would replace the dogsled. The Horner Motor-Sled did borrow a few traits from dogsleds. It was long and narrow like a toboggan and had a hickory frame, mounted on runners and reinforced by flexible rawhide. The similarity ended there. Two driving wheels were mounted at the rear and two "idler" wheels near the front, all pneumatics. Two cleated belts connected the font and rear wheels, so it ran somewhat like a caterpillar tractor. The front steering wheel could be raised and lowed depending on the snow's depth and consistency. Horner tested two prototypes of his machine in Ohio, Washington, and Canada, but never brought one to Alaska.

Meanwhile, Alaska automotive pioneer Robert Sheldon's auto stage business was booming and he began modifying his Model Ts to run on snow. In 1914, he cut down the width of the axles so the wheels would fit in sleigh tracks on the trail to Valdez. He also planned to patent an invention he called the "snowshoe wheel." I don't know if it resembled the snowshoe wheels at right, made by an Idaho inventor in 1912. I have doubts he found much success with his creation, as by 1915 he was simply wrapping chains around his rear tires and strapping skis under the front ones for driving on snow. Still, he was always looking for a better way to get from point A to B. In early 1918 he built a caterpillar tractor automobile that was patented by a Mr. Chambers of Salcha. Nicknamed "Sheldon's Tank," I could find no mention of it after its first few runs.

Three Fordson Snow Motors were shipped to Alaska in 1926 for the Wilkins transpolar flight attempt. Two were brought in to haul trains of sledges loaded with supplies and fuel from Nenana to Barrow. The first day was a disaster. After sitting through the night at -25 F, both motors were damaged while trying to start them. Once going, they covered less than three miles the first day due to the machines and sleds bogging down in snow drifts, while several members of the crew suffered frostbite. Two days later, after covering only 65 miles and burning through their fuel supply, the Fordsons were declared failures and dog teams were organized to move the supplies north. You can see one of these Snow Motors on display outside our museum.

In the 1920s and 30s a series of production vehicles adapted for snow began appearing in Alaska. These included two Eskimobiles shipped to Nome. These were typically built on Fords, but the company would modify any car with the tracks.



I found this photo, labeled "Gawne Motor Sled in Nome," on eBay, but know nothing about it. Perhaps one of our readers has some information? It appears to be a Model T mounted on a dogsled-like toboggan, driven by two ridged wheels in the rear and stabilized by side runners.





The vehicle below is equipped with a kit similar to our Snow Flyer, as was the rig I discovered in Valdez several years ago (below right). There were probably a number of these ski-and-track kits sold after the mid-1920s, and I imagine there are more than a few of them slowly deteriorating around Alaska. There was even a Super Snow Bird in Dillingham!

Finally, there was Roaring Boring Alice (a play on Aurora Borealis), a modified Ford Model A that was built by Stanley Morgan of the U.S. Army Signal Corps in Point Barrow in the early 1930s. You can see a video of Alice in our museum. Alice initially carried skis under her front wheels, chains around the rear ones, a second set of skis attached to the rear axle, and a canvas box for a cab. Morgan later replaced the rear assembly with a track from a Ford Snowmobile kit. At one point Morgan became stranded in Alice on an ice floe drifting near Barrow for two months. In 1937, he used Alice to rescue pilot Harold Gillam, who had been forced to land on the tundra during a "Santa Claus" flight to Barrow. I'm told that Alice is still in Barrow. Can anyone out there confirm that?

References:

• "At Army's Most Isolated Outpost in Arctic A Lone Soldier Wins Renown." The Weekly Kansas City Star, 9 October 1935.
• Allan, Chris. "Auto Sleighs and Iron Malamutes: The History of Alaska's Earliest Snow-Machines." In Alaska History, Vol. 26, No. 2. Fall 2011.
• "Auto Sleigh To Make It In 2 Days." Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, 19 May 1909.
• Cole, Terrence M. "Klondike Contraptions: Inventions in Transportation." Northern Review, No. 3/4. Summer/Winter 1989.
• Gaulois, George. "The Motor Sled Versus the Dog Sled." Scientific American, Vol. 124. 29 January, 1921.
• "In 1924, Ford Plus Tracks Plus Snpw Equaled 'Eskimobile.'" Best of Old Cars Weekly
• Prosser, W.T. "New Auto for Snow Travel." Technical World Magazine, Vol. 11, No. 1. March 1909.
• "Tough Going for Snow Motors on Pt. Barrow Trek.: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, 16 February 1926.
• "Utah Sergeant Goes to Aid of Arctic Pilot." Salt Lake Tribune, 14 December 1937.
• "Wilkins Motor Expedition Stranded First Day Out." Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, 13 February 1926.

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: Early Snow Vehicles in Alaska: Part 2