1911 Pope-Hartford Model W 50 HP Seven-Passenger Touring

This Model W 50 HP Seven-Passenger Touring was sold new to Philo S. Grant of St. Helena, California. Mr. Grant was the owner of Grant’s Auto Stage Line, a chauffeur business that provided regularly scheduled service to the main rail line connecting the Napa Valley to San Francisco. Mr. Grant purchased two seven-passenger Pope-Hartfords new for his business in 1911 and kept this car until 1945, when he sold it to Joe Sala of Oakland, California. Mr. Sala retained the Pope-Hartford for four years, during which time he participated in multiple early HCCA tours. In 1949, Bud Catlett acquired the Pope and later that year sold it to famed casino magnate and pioneering automobile collector William “Bill” Harrah of Reno, Nevada.

During Mr. Harrah’s ownership, the 50 HP was a favorite among his vast collection and was used on HCCA tours across the western US from 1950 through 1958. The car was restored twice by Harrah’s in-house restoration department: first in white in 1950, and then in the correct Pope- Hartford factory shade of “Purple Lake” with black fenders and running gear from 1961 to 1962.

The Pope was always such a great running tour car that it continued to be used for tours throughout the 1960s, including one instance when it was chosen by Henry Austin Clark as the car he would borrow from the Harrah collection and use on the 1962 Reno Tour. He chronicled this event for an article in volume 1, issue 3 of Automobile Quarterly.

After Harrah’s death in 1978, the Pope was acquired at auction by Newt Withers in 1985 and subsequently by Doug Magee of Middlefield, Connecticut, in 1997. During Magee’s ownership, the car suffered some damage to the radiator and front fenders while being transported in a single-car trailer. Magee entrusted respected Enfield Auto Restorations with returning the Pope to a highly presentable tour car, including replacing the radiator and repairing the fenders, while disturbing as little as possible of the preserved nitrocellulose lacquer paint applied in 1962.

John Konwiser of Scottsdale, Arizona, an avid collector and founder of the Pure Pope Tours, purchased the 50 HP in 2000 and participated successfully in multiple tours across the US for the next two decades. Under current ownership, this 50 HP has continued to see use on multiple Pure Pope Tours.

This Pope-Hartford is believed to be one of as few as four 50 HP Tourings that retain their original coachwork. 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. Given its event eligibility, rarity, originality, and known ownership history, this Pope-Hartford 50 HP presents an exciting opportunity to collectors of the most significant antiques.