260ci SOHC Inline 8-cylinder Engine
88bhp
3-speed Manual Transmission
Front and Rear Semi-Elliptical Leaf Spring Suspension
4-Wheel Hydraulic Drum Brakes

*"The Grand Prix Car," developed from Duesenberg racing designs
*Documented history back to the original owner, Colonel Daniel Cowal Jackling
*Recent complete restoration, including rebuilt original engine
*Classic Car Club of America (CCCA) Full Classic

THE MODEL A DUESENBERG

The car upon which the Duesenberg reputation for swift roadgoing automobiles was built, the Model A was independently produced by Fred and August Duesenberg, and was their own pure creation, unlike the E.L. Cord-influenced Model J that followed. Among the most advanced American automobiles of the early Classic Era, it featured an overhead cam eight-cylinder engine and four-wheel hydraulic brakes, engineering that had been proven on the Duesenbergs' successful racing cars. Some 600 examples of the Model A were produced between 1921 and 1927, but fewer than 40 of them are believed to have survived the decades that have passed since. Fewer still have known provenance and rakish two-passenger bodywork.

THE MOTORCAR OFFERED

This Model A Duesenberg is one of the very few whose original owner is known, and that gentleman, Colonel Daniel Cowal Jackling, is the only known Duesenberg owner commemorated by a full-scale bronze sculpture, which stands in the rotunda of the Utah State Capitol, commemorating one man's lasting contribution to the state and its economy. A skilled mining engineer, Colonel Jackling developed the cyanide process for extracting precious metals, later helping to establish the Bingham Canyon Mine, which by 1912 formed the largest industrial mining complex in the world. He later directed the U.S. government's explosives plants during World War I. It is fascinating to envision Colonel Jackling arriving at one of his mines within his glistening Duesenberg.

Copies of correspondence between the Colonel and Duesenberg Motors are included in the file; he writes of the car, identified by its serial and engine numbers: "I am very glad to say that I have had perfect satisfaction and comfort...In fact, I have never owned an automobile that has given a better service account of itself." Truly it was an automobile worthy of such a distinguished personage.

Colonel Jackling's Model A was later owned by a German family and later by Walter Douglas, Jr., of Tucson, Arizona, for whom a former title, dated 1934, is included in the file. By this time the Duesenberg had become a "stake bed" truck, used on a farm and later at a small airport, to pull tail-dragger airplanes to and from hangars. In this form it remained for many years, including two decades spent in the ownership of John Guilliams, who acquired it in the mid-1990s.

When purchased by the current owner in 2014, the car still retained its four original fenders and hood, while the chassis was a "time capsule" thanks to having been preserved under layers of dust in the dry Arizona climate; the owner notes that once the frame was cleaned, there was no rust pitting to be found. The engine had also remained unmolested for all those many years.

A restoration was undertaken using copies of original Duesenberg drawings, with the rear axle fitted with a high-ratio ring and pinion gear; the engine was rebuilt with new poured bearings and forged pistons, and all ancillary components were restored. The original chassis was restored while being carefully sectioned to the short-wheelbase length, 136 inches, and fitted with this beautiful body, a painstakingly accurate reconstruction of the beautiful roadster built by Indianapolis coachbuilders Millspaugh & Irish for the Model A. The body is complete with full side curtains, top boot, and top hardware.

Undoubtedly among the freshest Model A Duesenbergs available, this car is every bit the automobile that Fred and August Duesenberg envisioned: a race-bred motorcar of sporting flair and superb engineering. It also carries with it a wonderful story, with a classic figure of the American West at its core. One may not have a statue of himself in a state capitol, but he can own the automobile of a man who did.