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1923 Cole Series 890

Joseph Jarret Cole had a passion for automobiles and flying. He is credited with being the first Automobile Manufacturer to have one of his engines installed into an airplane and the first Auto Manufacturer to fly cross country.

He purchased a carriage company in 1904 and renamed it the Cole Carriage Company, entering into automobile production by 1908. The following year, they had produced 176 vehicles. The year after, there were 1,860 units built. Their best year was 1917, when 4,193 examples were constructed. For most of the years, production hovered around 1,000 - 3,000 vehicles.

The Cole Series 30 was very successful in racing. Bill Endicott drove a car to an overall victory at the 24 Hour race at Brighton Beach, New York.

The company's operations were in Indianapolis, Indiana. Among their achievements, they provided the first automobile to a US president - President William Taft in 1910.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe

This car was built by J.J. Cole, founder of the Cole Motor Car Company, for his son, J.J. Cole, Jr. It was used as a test car for new technology that Cole was developing. This included four-wheel brakes, a new multi-disc clutch system, and balloon tires.

Cole was a pioneer in balloon tires and introduced the first car to offer them as standard equipment with their 1923 models. The car was exhibited at the New York Auto Show where Harvey Firestone saw it. He wrote to Henry Ford that 'the Cole exhibit with balloon tires was the most popular exhibit there.' This car was owned by the car family until the 1980s and was stored in the old Cole factory until then. Of the 40,717 cars that Cole produced through 1925, this is one of only 77 known to exist.