1911 Cadillac Model 30 Touring Car

After 90 years of Slumber

In October of 2003 by invitation of my brother Jim, I attended an auto auction in Milford, Ohio. One of the 35 cars for sale was a rusted old Cadillac sitting under a tent next to a small rusted REO touring car. From what I knew at the time, the caddy looked mostly complete but in sad shape.

After a spirited auction, I won the bidding. The next day the car was towed home on a flatbed truck.

In 1975 the elderly previous owner, August Hoffman of Loveland, OH, bought the car from a local salvage dealer, Ira Perry. Ira’s family stored the car in a couple barns since 1922. As Ira remembers, with some input from his brother, his father bought the car from the Scholeman’s (Sheure’s) in Morrow, Ohio, in 1922; the year of Ira’s birth.

The Sheure’s worked for the Morrow Packing Company, Morrow, OH; as evidenced by their business card above. In 1922, the Cadillac was pushed in a barn there, not in running condition. Ira’s father and brother went to pick up the car with intentions of restoring it. The Perry’s brought the car back to Loveland where it was stored until 1975 and then sold to August Hoffman.

In January of 2003, I brought the car to Gary Funkhouser of Vintage Motorsports Services, Inc. Gary has masterfully orchestrated the deconstruction and rebuilding of this Research started with Cadillac Historical Services in Michigan. The original data sheet showed the car was shipped to the Cadillac Auto Co. of Cincinnati, OH. Extras included a prest-o-lite tank, and a windshield. The car had the standard royal blue body, black fenders, and cream wooden wheels but without the optional nickel-plated brass.

The Horseless Carriage Foundation Library supplied manuals, parts lists and brochures .An inventory of the car showed lowing missing parts: speedometer, and front oil side lamps. Aftermarket front doors were added at some point and the original exhaust manifold/carburator were replaced at some point. Ebay was a great resource for finding the speedometer, dash clock, and oil lamps.

George Kaforski of Plano, IL, a Brass Era Cadillac expert, rebuilt the engine and supplied an original carb/manifold. He provided much information and valuable advice.

The wooden wheels were rebuilt by Calimer’s Wheel Shop in PA. The top oak bows and metal sockets were reproduced by Oak Bows in PA

Metalwork and fabrication was spearheaded by Ted Jamison of Beavercreek, OH. Steve Lutz of Spring Valley did a great job painting.

The wooden body was my job replacing the wooden ash flooring, filling rotten framing and repairing cracked veneer on the front seat backs. New mahogany underseat doors and mahogany dashboard were fabricated.

Just after the finishing touches of the restoration, we took our 1911 Cadillac Model 30 Touring Car at Dayton's Carillon Concours D'Elegance on Sunday September 14th.

The day of the big windstorm. The show was closed early but still trees and branches were falling all around us. One corvette and one patron were hit by branches. One of the two exits from the park was blocked by a fallen tree. Everyone including exhibitors and patrons had to exit via the Patterson exit.

Quite a day. The car won "Best of Class" and the "Col. Edward A. Deeds Judge's Choice Award".

I was an exhibitor at the Ault Park Concours D'Elegance in Cincinnati in June 2009. It was a bright sunny day with only a few cars in my class. We didn't win any awards but many patrons and other exhibitors thought we should have won.

But luckily, the Nominating Chairman from the Louisville Concours D'Elegance was there and gave us a special invitation to the October 2009 show.

On to Louisville!!

The Louisville Concours D'Elegance was held in the middle of Churchill Downs on the infield. The day before we particpated in festivities such as watching the morning work outs for the horses and an evening charity dinner.

The theme of the show was the marque Bugatti. My class consisted of about five cars. The day was long and the late afternoon brought some dreaded light rain.

After the judging process, we were awarded "First Runner's Up Award" in the Class "Brass Era - pre-1916, 30 HP and over." Many thought we should have taken "Best in Class" but we felt good that we did have some recognition.

In 2009, the late Virgil Jones, who formally ran the Hamilton Ohio Car Parade asked if my Cadillac be the lead car and spotlighted car for their show. The show was held July 24, 2010 in Hamilton, Ohio. www.antiquecars.org

All of the 300 cars were organized at a mall parking lot near downtown. The day was sunny with a heat index of 108 degrees. We started off well but vapor locked about three times before we got downtown. We decided to park the Cadillac downtown at the awards area and forego the rest of the parade. The 1911 Cadillac won the “Judge’s Choice Award” and the “Best in Cadillac Award”.

In 2011, the car participated at Dayton's Carillon Concours D'Elegance and won the "Class of 1911" class award. Our competition was a yellow Marmon racer and a rare Ann Arbor touring car.

In May 2012, the car was invited to the Celebration of Automobiles at the Indianapolis Raceway. We were able to take a couple laps around the Indy 500 race track. Later in July we participated at the Keeneland Concours D'Elegance in Lexington.

Next, we are applying to go to the French Lick Concours D'Elegance in October 2015.

We have been accepted at the Nov 1, 2015 Hilton Head Concours D'Elegance. Wish us luck!