Fascinating history and a seven-time finisher in London-Brighton. One of approximately 35 surviving Motorettes. A charming and enjoyable horseless carriage, eligible for veteran car events worldwide.
This exceptionally rare 1904 Pierce Motorette Model 8M Stanhope is a marvelous, well-preserved early motorcar that is VCC dated and a proven veteran of the world-famous London-Brighton Veteran Car Run. It is one of just 600 Pierce Motorettes produced from 1901-1905 and one of approximately 35 known survivors. In addition to its rarity, it has a fascinating provenance. In the early 1950s, it is understood that the Pierce was part of the Autorama Museum in Hypoluxo, Florida. Founded by the famous tenor opera singer and entertainer James Melton, the Autorama Museum showcased his impressive collection of important motorcars.
After departing the Autorama collection, the next owner was A. Atwater Kent, Junior, son of the founder of the Atwater Kent Manufacturing Company. His family business manufactured high-quality radios, and his father held patents for automobile ignition systems, including the so-called Unisparker. Mr. Kent later donated the Pierce Motorette to the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission, where it was put on display in their museum in Harrisburg, PA. In the late 1990s, the little Pierce was sold out of the museum, journeying across the pond to England where it got a new lease on life at the hands of a dedicated enthusiast, Mr. Charles Brown. Brown, along with Alan Hancock who maintained the car, carefully preserved the Pierce and painstakingly prepared it for acceptance into the VCC, with the goal of running it in veteran car tours and events.
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