Owensboro
Sited on a bank of the Ohio River where it makes a sharp bend before flowing on to the Mississippi, Owensboro is a city known for its Glenmore bourbon whiskey and genteel mid-southern lifestyle. Ancient ground of the native American Shawnee, stopover point for the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1803-06, home to Red Man chewing tobacco: Owensboro has been many things to many people.
The Owensboro Wagon Company started operations there in 1884 and competed with the likes of the Studebaker Brothers, who had begun their business in 1852 and made their fortune during the American Civil War. Frederick A. Ames moved from Washington, Pennsylvania in 1887 to Owensboro to start his own carriage repair business in this growing town.
By 1904 his repair business had grown to become the Carriage Woodstock Company, with Ames operating two factories. Like many in the carriage trade, including the Studebakers, Ames would transition to motorcars as his next step in 1910.
Ames Motor Car
Automotive entrepreneur William Bendix, whose patented idea produced the Bendix starter motor, had spotted the Ames prototype at the Chicago Automobile Show of 1910 and pitched his ability to properly market and manage the Ames automobile. In 1911 Bendix reorganized the Carriage Woodstock Company into the F.A. Ames Company, keeping the carriage firm intact and adding two divisions under the Ames umbrella, the Ames Motor Car Company and the Ames Body Corporation.
The hump-backed shape of the 1910 Ames “30” Gentleman’s Roadster was found in other speedy roadsters of the time .This catalog image contains swastikas in it border trim, considered traditional symbols of good fortune in ancient cultures.
In 1912, Ames Motor Car would produce a series of cars in two styles, touring and roadster, on chassis ranging from 108 inches up to 124 inches in wheelbase. Its last and most noteworthy model was the 1915 Kentucky Thoroughbred Roadster, a vehicle described by The Automobile as having “smooth lines, clean runningboard and general racy appearance.” In addition to the car company Ames would also continue his carriage firm, which by 1916 was producing up to 50,000 light carriages and horse-drawn vehicles annually.
Next Steps
Ames Motor had enjoyed some success as a quality assembled-car manufacturer, building about 50 cars per month. Although cited by one dealer as “the best 1500-dollar car,” it did not reach an appreciable size like Ames’ carriage company, nor did Ames Motor find a secure market ledge upon which to grow. So in 1915, after Bendix left the firm, Frederick Ames closed the division and focused on bodies.
Ames’ reputation as a quality body builder had attracted other companies to farm out work to this small firm: Ames Body Corp built bodies for Paige, Moon, and Nash, to name a few. And, Ames Body Corp was also making horse-drawn equipment to a steady market, which probably included the U.S. Army. It was only a matter of time before Ames found another profitable niche – building bodies for the Ford Model T.
Model T Bonanza
By the nineteen-teens the Model T was overwhelming the low-cost car market and being sold in the hundreds of thousands per season. In 1916, the year that Ford produced over 501,000 Model Ts, Ames decided that this was a market for which to make bodies!
Five hundred thousand new bodies in 1916 implied that there were already a passel of used Model Ts lolly-gagging in backyards and repair shops, just waiting to be resold and re-purposed by the emerging Fast Ford crowd. Used Ts could use some sporty bodies and speed parts. Into this breech stepped companies like Ames.
Meeting Demands
The first set of bodies by Ames were indicative of how Ames would operate throughout its manufacturing existence, which lasted up to 1926: issue a set of numbered models, with each style appealing to a different demographic. Ames was so successful in pairing its established manufacturing capability with paper ads in well-circulated paper media that it soon became the largest-volume supplier of aftermarket bodies for the Ford Model T.
The 828 and 829 body styles denote the difference between “speedster” and “roadster” in this time period. Illustration courtesy Horseless Carriage Foundation library.
In the first issue of body designs, Number 828, the Lotus Racer, listed for $97.50 and was definitely for the hobbyist who wanted an analog experience in car adventuring that mimicked what was found on the county fair track. The 829 Streamline Roadster offered a bit more comfort for two (including a top, as seen in the ad), while the three-passenger Cloverleaf Roadster provided a jump seat in the back in what became known as a “chummy” style. Other options and accessories were also available, as well as truck beds and boxes.
1917 Ames No. 830 “Wasp” roadster with optional top in cutaway. Factory brochure courtesy Larry Sigworth collection
In 1917 a new set of models came forth, including a four-seat Cloverleaf Chummy Clubster. Other bodies included a small and medium touring body, as well as a sport-bodied roadster painted in racy colors and called the Model 830 Wasp.
1917 Ames No 827 “Racer.” In other ads, it would be referred to as “Speedster”, as these two terms were interchangeable for Ames models. Factory brochure image courtesy Larry Sigworth collection.
In 1917 the Model 827 Speedster-Racer (names interchanged depending on which ad was used) was also introduced, a body whose sharply-chopped tail made a unique statement and retailed at $111. Ames had been making different styles of radiators to stand out from others in the Ford aftermarket industry, but a chopped tail such as that on the 827 was distinctive. Attractive? Well… surely a matter of personal taste!
1919 Ames No 827, herein referred to as a “Speedster.” Sharp-angled top and tail complement each other in this illustration. Illustration courtesy AACA library
Post-War Challenges
The Great War and the United States’ involvement in it in 1918 had dried up most raw materials and manufacturing resources, and so a resurgence in manufacturing was achieved for a brief period after the Armistice was signed and materials once again became available. However, the post-war depression of 1920-21 affected all companies that made goods, especially small firms. Somehow Ames made it through all of this.
For 1922 Ames issued a series of enclosed bodies in response to market demand for more weather protection, which included the Model 840 Road Coach and the 870 Tour Sedan. The latter had removable side panels to convert it to a touring style in warm weather, thus giving the owner two car bodies for the price of one.
Lower prices were also a hallmark of postwar production, and Ames met that with aggressive pricing and a production run of 30,000 bodies in 1922, which was their peak year. An extensive dealer network made all of this possible.
1922 Ames 814 “Racer” - one sharp speedster! Brochure ad courtesy Larry Sigworth collection
The 1922 Model 814 Racer was, according to its sales brochure, tailor-made for “red-blooded young men – the young men who set the pace in every community – the young men who like snap, style, and speed – and a car that is different.” As their sales brochures touted, “Ford economy plus Ames individuality, as expressed in the body, make it possible for you to have a distinctive car at a remarkably low price.”
Indeed, the 814 retailed at a remarkable $49.50 F.O.B. Four silver stove vents arranged in a line visually connected hood to cowl, and “New York Red” was its signature color. A silver pinstripe dressed out the door opening, which was mounted in traditional leg-over-the sill speedster style. Most everyone, even the young Army recruit, went gaga over an 814!
Ames encamped. Image courtesy Kevin Mowle collection
However, those who preferred the truncated-tail Model 827 could still get that, as apparently Ames had not discontinued this speedster model in favor of its successor, the 814 – they now offered both for 1922.
1922 Ames ad featuring some of its offerings. Note that the 827 Speedster was continued along with the introduction of the 814. Ad courtesy AACA Library
Markets being what they were (always in flux), in 1924 the Model 816 Silver King Speedster was introduced in an effort to find the price floor in aftermarket bodies, as the national economy slumped and was again in the tank. The Silver King Speedster was a traditional open-platform affair with two bucket seats and a small cowl made from aluminum. Sold as simple and as cheap as it could be to get customers into the showroom, the Silver King was reportedly priced at $18.75 sans fenders, trunk, or any of the usual accoutrements. But, imagine that price!
1924 Ames Model 816 “Silver King” Speedster kit went back to basics in an effort to keep prices down. Ad courtesy Larry Sigworth collection
One Door Closes…
As all markets wane in their twilight, the need for Model T bodies dwindled as the T was phased out. By 1926 most companies that had serviced this field, including Ames, had folded their tents and left. Coincidentally, the market for horse-drawn transportation had also dried up.
Facing this double whammy and the need to transition to die-stamped auto bodies to keep apace of industry developments, F.A. Ames could have closed its doors with pride. After all, during its 40+ years of existence, the Ames companies had collectively built almost 300,000 vehicles: buggies, carriages, carts, and auto and truck bodies. No mean feat!
In addition to markets disappearing, the sober reality of Frederick Ames committing suicide in late 1925 added to the challenges that Ames the company faced.
Sometimes another door opens as things are at their worst. Staffed with an able general manager, R.S. Triplett, an already skilled army of wood craftsmen, a now-booming economy, and witnessing a steady demand for quality hand-made furniture, the F.A. Ames Company transitioned into the furniture business. Ames soldiered on through the twenties and thirties and subsequently merged with Whitehall Furniture in 1941 after it suffered a bankruptcy. Ames, now a part of Whitehall, maintained its factory presence in Owensboro until 1968.
Eighty-one years, 300,000 vehicles. Now, is that an example of tenacity, or what?
Despite the numbers built, few Ames-bodied Model T speedsters were left unmolested. After all, they were hand-made with 20-gauge mild steel and hardwood, both subject to the worms of Time. But information about these speedsters is still intact and available in period journals and library resources that are referenced in this online journal. For instance, “Amesbuilt” by Kevin Mowle is a sourcebook that tells the Ames story.
Many thanks to Mark Theobold of Coachbuilt.com, for his historiography concerning Ames, as well as the research on the Model T speedster industry done by Larry Sigworth of Vintage Speed Publishing in Bartlesville, OK.