Colonel Albert A. Pope made his fortune producing bicycles just before the turn of the century. However, Colonel Pope saw a tremendous future in the budding automobile industry, and by 1903 the Pope Manufacturing Company was building automobiles. By 1906, the company was manufacturing a wide range of automobiles of different types, each through different regional factories: the Pope-Waverly was an electric car, and the Pope-Tribune was a lower-priced automobile. The Pope-Toledo, (made in Toledo, Ohio) and the Pope-Hartford, (made in Hartford, Connecticut) occupied the upper segment of the luxury market.

Pope-Hartfords were revered for their impressive performance and quality. Their overhead valve, four-cylinder engines, with just under 400 cubic inches of displacement, proved to be very efficient and powerful. These 50 HP Pope- Hartfords could easily and comfortably tour all day long in excess of 60 mph.

This Model W 50 HP Five-Passenger Touring was discovered in unrestored, but remarkably complete, condition circa 1950 by collector Whitney Snyder of Sewickley, Pennsylvania. The Snyder family are noted for having owned multiple Simplex 50 HPs from new and owned the 1909 example in the Stan Lucas Collection in later years. Under Snyder’s ownership, the Pope-Hartford was restored in Purple Lake paint with bare-wood wheels, and was photographed by Henry Austin Clark Jr. as part of his Long Island Auto Museum postcard series.

Following Snyder’s ownership, the 50 HP was in the care of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum, then Pope authority E.R. Bourne of San Diego, followed by collector Joel Naive, and later in 1990 by collector Doug Magee of Middlefield, Connecticut. Under Mr. Magee’s ownership, the wheels were correctly refinished in the color of Purple Lake, an electric starter was added for ease during tours, the seats and top were retrimmed, and the engine and gearbox were rebuilt. Magee used the powerful car on many Brass Era tours, including the 1995 running of the 3,500-mile Can-Am Transcontinental Reliability Run.

Acquired by Stan Lucas in 2000, this 50 HP Pope-Hartford is particularly significant as one of just two surviving examples in this body style that retain their original coachwork – and the only five-passenger example. This car is further distinguished by its provenance, having been in the hands of passionate Pope collectors for three-quarters of a century.

Held in high regard by early car enthusiasts, these high-horsepower Pope- Hartfords are some of the finest, best-performing American automobiles of their period. In consideration of its event eligibility, rarity, originality, and known ownership history, this 50 HP Pope-Hartford presents an exciting opportunity to collectors of the most significant antiques.