Coachwork by J.M. Quinby & Co.
Chassis: 799
Engine: 247-140
Among the Finest and Most Desirable of All Antique Automobiles
Powerful 50 HP Chassis with Lightweight Open Coachwork by Quinby
Offered Direct from 111 Years of Single Family Ownership
Extraordinary Documentation Includes Original Sales Contract and Correspondence Dating to 1911
Awarded the Briggs Cunningham Trophy at the 2013 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance®
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity to Acquire a Genuine, One-Owner Simplex
597 CID T-Head Inline 4-Cylinder Engine
Single Updraft Carburetor
50 HP (ALAM Rated)
4-Speed Manual Transaxle with Chain Drive
2-Wheel Mechanical Drum Brakes
Front Solid Axle with Semi-Elliptical Leaf Springs
Rear Live Axle with Semi-Elliptical Leaf Springs
Originally called the S & M Simplex after its builders, the New York City automobile import firm of Smith & Mabley, the Simplex Automobile Company came into being in 1907 when Herman Broesel, a wealthy textile importer, bought out S & M.
Among the assets he acquired were S & M’s factory on East 83rd Street in Manhattan and the services of their chief engineer, Edward Franquist, who had been working on a design to meet and exceed the very best that European manufacturers had to offer.
This new car used a T-head engine of 597 cid capacity, developing 50 hp, running to a four-speed transaxle with final drive by dual chains – very much in the spirit of the best racing cars of the time. Valves were nearly 3" in diameter, and the cylinder blocks and piston castings were made of gun iron. It was a car of impressive dimensions and superior quality in all respects.
The new Simplex’s performance potential was immediately tested on the racetracks of America with numerous firsts at the Brighton Beach 24-hour endurance grinds and an outright win at the 1909 National Stock Chassis Race. In 1908, when a 50 HP Speed Car finished a full 70 miles ahead of its nearest competitor in a 24-hour marathon at Brighton Beach, the 1,177 miles the car completed established a new world record for a day on the track.
Even equipped for the road rather than the track, a Simplex 50 HP could easily exceed 80 mph. It was indeed a true thoroughbred, offering a combination of elegance, comfortable touring, and formidable high-speed motoring. The marque immediately attracted an elite clientele comprised of the wealthiest families in America, and Simplex’s robust Krupp steel chassis were mounted with custom coachwork by such respected firms as Brewster, Quinby, Healey, and Holbrook.
The Simplex 50 HP was built in limited numbers through 1913, but in 1914 a significant change to the company and its cars occurred. When Herman Broesel died in 1912, his sons agreed to sell the company to a Wall Street investment group that included the heirs of B.F. Goodrich. The new owners replaced the mighty 50 HP engine with a long-stroke unit, and the Simplex factory was moved from Manhattan to New Brunswick, New Jersey. In 1915, Henry M. Crane was hired to design a new Simplex automobile and the result was the Simplex Crane Model 5, a superbly built car in all respects, but a far cry from the original 50 HP.
Following America’s entry into WWI, Simplex’s New Jersey factory was acquired by Wright-Martin for Hispano-Suiza aero engine production, spelling the end for the brief but brilliant Simplex marque.
In the end, the Simplex Automobile Company built approximately 1,460 chassis between the years 1907 and 1915. These magnificent cars, which represent the apogee of this great American manufacturer, have been admired, lusted after, and treasured by collectors for the past century. Famed collector Henry Austin Clark Jr., who owned several Simplex cars, said this about his first drive in a 50 HP:
“With the cutout open, the sound of the engine being started is something like a minor disaster in an ammunition factory. The sound of the engine idling is enough to terminate all conversation for some distance. I was invited to take the wheel and drive the car out onto the street for its first trip in many years. The clutch action was smooth but heavy, and the steering gear responded only to a solid pull. The engine was entirely capable and had an enormous feeling of power. As I reached second gear and accelerated, the entire car shook itself like a wet dog and took off down the road. By the time we reached fourth we were making considerable speed and I had just begun to realize why people used to pay over $5,000 for one of these cars in 1910.”
Among the lucky few who could both admire and afford a new Simplex in the period was William P. Snyder Jr.
Born in 1888 in the affluent Pittsburgh suburb of Sewickley, William P. Snyder Jr. was the son of William Penn Snyder, who, in 1906, established the Shenango Furnace Company. The business mined iron ore, operated Lake Vessel ore carriers, and produced iron, coke, and ingot molds used to manufacture steel. With this foundation, the Snyder family, descendants of Pennsylvania’s first governor of German descent, Simon Snyder, would become one of the most influential names in the American steel industry.
In spring 1911, not long after he graduated from Yale University and joined the family business, William Snyder Jr. decided to order a new Simplex 50 HP. He wrote to the Pittsburgh branch office of J.M. Quinby & Co., the New Jersey-based coachbuilder that produced lightweight, high-grade aluminum bodies for Simplex automobiles. On June 26, he received the following reply:
“We propose to furnish you with the latest model 129 inch wheel base, 50 H.P. Simplex Chassis, equipped with a Bosch dual system and four volt battery, Solar Eclipse headlights, oil side and tail lamps, Presto Lite tank and Chassis work, less the rear fenders for the sum of Forty-nine Hundred and Sixty ($4,960.00) Dollars and to be delivered three weeks or as much sooner as possible.”
In February 1912, Mr. Snyder Jr. placed his official order, requesting a shorter 124-inch, 50 HP chassis with a Runabout body – a strict two-seater with a folding canvas top. The Quinby order sheet records the minimal equipment: fenders, toolbox, Prest-O-Lite tank, Klaxon horn, and a Warner speedometer. The body was to be painted in Munich Lake with a medium red chassis, maroon leather, and his monogram – W.P.S Jr. – applied to the coachwork. On March 11, 1912, Mr. Pepperday of J.M. Quinby & Co. sent Mr. Snyder Jr. the following update: “Dear Sir, your chassis arrived here today, and I was not in at the time of its arrival, but was informed that the tester said it was an extra fast one. This afternoon I am going over to the Simplex factory and will find out exactly what speed it did make.” The completed Simplex 50 HP Runabout, chassis 799, was delivered to its first owner a short while later. The young Mr. Snyder Jr. greatly enjoyed its astonishing power and speed, until it proved to be too much of a good thing. Following an accident, the elder Mr. Snyder insisted that his son’s Simplex 50 HP ought to be fitted with more conservative bodywork, something that might temper his enthusiastic driving style. Later in 1912, the Simplex was returned to Quinby, where it was fitted with the Toy-Tonneau coachwork it wears today, body no. 3038.
A letter from the coachbuilder, dated December 27, 1912, simply states: “Dear Sir – We propose to equip your present Simplex chassis # 799 in accordance with the attached specifications, for the sum of $600 and your present equipment now on your chassis.”
The original Quinby order sheet on file notes: “Four-passenger touring like drawing without doors, front seats to be fitted to Mr. Snyder.” Like the Runabout, this body was finished in Munich Lake with black accents and carmine pinstriping. The seats were upholstered in maroon leather and the body was supplied with a top, side curtains, storm covers, glass, trunk rack, and tire carrier.
In the years that followed, this Simplex featured prominently in Mr. Snyder’s life. While traveling aboard the Long Island Ferry, he met his wife-to-be, Marie Elise Whitney, who was driving her own Simplex 50 HP. Mr. Snyder proposed that they race upon arrival, and it is said that he lost the contest. Nevertheless, it was 799 that carried the newlyweds on their honeymoon some years later.
Car no. 799 remained in Mr. Snyder’s hands until the 1940s, when it was passed down to his son, William P. Snyder III. Under his care, the Simplex was sympathetically restored and participated in several VMCCA events, including the popular Glidden Tour.
In 1953, the Snyder Simplex appeared in a famous advertisement for Gulfpride H.D. motor oil, in which a photo of the car is accompanied by the following copy:
“‘Remember when this 1912 Simplex was one of America’s foremost sports cars?’ asks William P. Snyder, III of Sewickley, Pa., shown here with Mrs. Snyder. ‘This rare old beauty, with its all-aluminum body and chain drive, has been a pampered member of our family since the day my father bought it in 1912.’”
Continuously maintained and exercised over the decades, the Simplex was eventually passed down to the latest generation in 2011. Two years later, 799 was invited to the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance® to be displayed in a class celebrating the Simplex marque. A testament to its originality and historical significance, this glorious machine, last restored in the 1950s, not only completed the 50-mile Tour d’Elegance, but earned Second in Class as well as the prestigious Briggs Cunningham Trophy, a special award given to the most exciting open car present.
Arguably the finest motorcars produced in the US prior to WWI, Simplex automobiles have been sought-after by connoisseurs since the earliest days of the collector car hobby. The roster of former Simplex owners is a veritable who’s who of early car collecting: Art Austria, Charles Chayne, Henry Austin Clark Jr., Bill Harrah, James Melton, Richard Paine Jr., D. Cameron Peck, Dr. Sam Scher, and George Waterman. Today, the few examples extant are fixtures in the most esteemed private and museum collections, including those of the Smithsonian Institution, Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum, Museum of Science & Industry, and The Revs Institute.
Of the various Simplex models, the classic short-stroke 50 HP is arguably the most famous and sought-after. Approximately 20 examples have survived in varying states of originality, and the opportunity to acquire one is a rare occurrence indeed. Consider then the special nature of this offering.
Since it was delivered in 1912, this Simplex 50 HP has been cherished, preserved, and passed down among three generations of the Snyder family, spending its entire existence on the family’s property. Not only is it the sole Simplex automobile that remains in single family ownership, but it is also a sensational and genuine motorcar – wearing its original Quinby Toy-Tonneau coachwork and accompanied by an extraordinary file of original documentation, photos, and correspondence dating back to 1911.
An irreplaceable heirloom that has been treasured by one of America’s most prominent families for 111 years, this Simplex 50 HP is among the most significant and historic antique automobiles ever offered at public auction.