Queen Victoria Phaeton

The 1909 Bailey Electric Phaeton was a sturdy, rugged vehicle. It completed an endurance run through four New England states and climbed Mr. Washington, New Hampshire. At one time, Thomas Edison used a Bailey nicknamed Maude at his laboratory for testing his newly developed 'Edison Cells,' which were nickel-iron batteries.

Electric cars were cleaner, quieter, and easier to drive than gasoline or steam automobiles. S.R. Bailey & Company built the Bailey Electric Phaeton in Amesbury, Massachusetts, from 1907-1915. The company promoted its machines as cross-country vehicles capable of driving 100 miles on a full charge under ideal conditions. This was an impressive claim since most electrics of the time had a limited drive time of 20-2 miles between battery charges.

Despite its simple, carriage-like appearance, the Electric Phaeton was designed to be a sturdy, rugged vehicle. Company founder Samuel R. Bailey was known for perfecting steam wood-bending technology which he utilized in his business empires of hat-making and sleigh and carriage building. After experimenting with cars for several years, Bailey entered the automotive market around 1907. The company only built electrics, all of which used batteries made by the Edison Electric Company - a logical partnership, as Bailey already made light-weight wooden battery trays for Thomas Edison's evolving line of car batteries.

This 1909 Bailey originally sold for $2,000. It had a top speed of 20 mph and used Edison batteries and a General Electric motor. Unlike most electric car companies that produced ponderous enclosed machines with tiller steering, Bailey & Co. generally manufactured open cars with wheel steering. The company was interested in promoting its machines as potential cross-country vehicles, a use generally unsuited to electric cars due to the limited length of battery charges and because of the heavy battery that had to be carried with the car. A Bailey nicknamed 'Maude' performed many daring road tests for its maker and Edison's batteries. 'Maude' famously took part in a 1910 endurance run through four New England states and even climbed Mt. Washington, New Hampshire - an unusual achievement for an electric car.

After only a few years of production and limited success, Bailey ended automobile production in 1915. Edison too shifted focus away from electric cars - by the time his battery was introduced in 1909, electrics were rapidly losing ground to more powerful gas-fueled cars.

by Frick Auto Museum