Without Reserve
Chassis: 181117853
Salesroom Addendum
According to Brewster Society records now on file, this vehicle was previously owned by singer Al Jolson. Please also note that this vehicle is titled as a Ford.
An Upscale, Low-Production Automobile Built by Brewster on a Ford V-8 Chassis
One of Just Eight Known in the Sporting Coupe Roadster Body Style
One of the Rarest, Most Distinctive, and Exclusive Automobiles of Its Day
221 CID L-Head V-8 Engine
Single Downdraft Carburetor
85 BHP at 3,800 RPM
3-Speed Manual Gearbox
4-Wheel Drum Brakes
Front Solid Axle with Transverse Leaf Spring
Rear Live Axle with Semi-Elliptical Leaf Springs
Brewster & Co. rightfully enjoys highest honors for its history of quality and innovation. Founded in 1810 as a carriage manufacturer, the company expanded quickly and was successful from its outset. Transitioning to automobiles in 1905, Brewster bodies soon graced the finest chassis built in the US and Europe, including Mercedes and Panhard et Levassor. In the ensuing years, Brewster would pioneer such innovations as crank-controlled windows, stowable folding seats, clear-vision windshield posts, and hand-painted canework. The first Brewster-bodied Rolls-Royce was completed in 1908, and the two companies’ association would span more than two decades, producing some of the most beautiful and desirable automobiles ever built.
At the conclusion of its association with Rolls-Royce in 1934, Brewster’s director J.S. Inskip conceived a new direction for the company. That year, Inskip ordered about 135 V-8 chassis from Ford and used them as the basis of his project. The body designs were of the highest quality, distinctively stylish, and angular in detail, and were set off by the company’s unmistakable heart-shaped radiator shell and sharply sloped front fenders. Although formal body styles made up the bulk of production and sales, a scant eight of the chassis received sporting Coupe Roadster coachwork, including the example offered here. Essentially a scaled-down version of Brewster’s Henley Roadster design for Rolls-Royce, it features the complex, beautifully formed access door for the rumble seat that was common to both the Rolls-Royce Henley and York Roadsters. Priced at $3,500, about five times the cost of a standard Ford, the Brewsters remained out of reach to all but the wealthy. According to the Brewster Society, it is believed that this open Brewster was first owned by the immortalized singer Al Jolson, however, this is not substantiated in the car’s file.
In 1976, William Harrah purchased this Coupe Roadster from noted collector and dealer Russ Jackson and it became part of his diverse collection. In the late 1980s, when the Harrah collection was dispersed, it was acquired by noted collector General William Lyon in Southern California. Soon thereafter it caught the attention of Mark Smith who, recognizing its rarity and significance, approached General Lyon with the goal of acquiring the car. Finally, after 21 years of effort, General Lyon relented and Mr. Smith purchased the car.
Exclusive, expensive, and a bit eccentric even when new, today, the few surviving Brewsters are proof of J.S. Inskip’s realized vision, and a fanciful example of the style of the era. This Brewster Coupe Roadster can rightly be considered the rarest of the rare of this fascinating, if short-lived, marque.
*Please note that this Lot, like all vehicles in this Auction, has been in long-term static storage and may not be currently operational. It will require mechanical attention prior to any road use.
Gooding & Company presents and conducts the Estate of Mark Smith Auction under the authority of John J. Rendemonti, Executor of the Estate of Mark J. Smith, duly appointed by the Circuit Court of the State of New Hampshire, Probate Division, Case Number 312-2022-ET-00072. The Estate has compiled available title and/or registration paperwork for the Vehicles offered in the Auction and will provide such paperwork to the Buyer if it is available. However, as set forth more fully in the Conditions of Sale, neither the Estate nor Gooding makes any representation or warranty with respect to any existing certificate of title or registration with regard to any Lot in the Auction. Any Lot may be sold on a Bill of Sale. By participating in this Auction, all bidders and buyers recognize that Estate and Gooding have expressly disclaimed all such warranties concerning the availability or sufficiency of any title or registration documentation.