1913 Westcott Model 4-40 Roadster

318.1ci L-Head Inline 4-Cylinder Engine
Single Updraft Carburetor
40bhp
3-Speed Selective-Shift Manual Transmission
Semi-Elliptical Front and Rear Leaf Springs
Rear-Wheel Drum Brakes

*"Honor-Bound to Be Good;" one of few surviving examples
*Known ownership history since new
*Formerly part of the Harrah's Automobile Collection
*Acquired directly from Harrah's in 1986
*Attractive and charming older restoration

THE WESTCOTT AUTOMOBILE

Production of the Westcott began in Richmond, Indiana, in 1909, and continued there until 1916, then moved to Springfield, Ohio, where it continued until 1925. It was what was known in the Teens as an "assembled car," built of largely mass-produced components. What distinguished it was that it was produced using only the finest-quality parts and engines that were, for the time, quite powerful, and that it enjoyed overall excellent build quality. There was considerable pride in the Westcott among its builders; one of the company's taglines was that its product was "Honor-Bound to Be Good."

A Westcott was entered in the very first Indianapolis 500 of 1911, driven by Harry Knight, and became briefly famous when Knight intentionally crashed the car to avoid hitting another driver who had been thrown into his path in an accident. Knight was widely considered the hero of the race, and the Westcott achieved major publicity as a result.

Today the surviving Westcotts are faithfully tracked and documented by an avid genealogy group that focuses on the members of the Westcott family and their various interests, the automobiles among them.

THE MOTORCAR OFFERED

This 1913 Model 4-40 roadster is noted in the file as having been originally owned by Mrs. A.T. (Rica) Christ of Dickey, North Dakota, wife of a prominent local banker who would be driven in the car by friends on her daily errands. She kept it until 1953, when it was passed to her brother, Henry Vogel of Arcadia, Wisconsin, reportedly with 4,900 actual miles. Mr. Vogel painted the car, replaced the battery, and installed new tires, and put it on display in his garage showroom.

In 1964 the Westcott was sold by Mr. Vogel to Harrah's Automobile Collection. It remained on display in the collection until the 1986 Harrah's auction, when it was bought for the Tupelo Automobile Museum.

Now well into its third decade on display in Tupelo, the car is an older cosmetic restoration, likely dating to the 1960s, in a rich two-tone cream and brown with varnished artillery wood wheels, handsome compound-curved seating with brown leather upholstery, an oval fuel tank, and dual rear-mounted spares with canvas covers. An especially fascinating touch is the canvas top, which features a multi-pane "sunburst" rear window of remarkably ornate design.

Very few Westcotts remain, and this is the first to become available publicly in some years. It is a wonderful survivor from the grand early decades of American automaking.