Winton Phaeton (1899)

Alexander Winton was a Scottish immigrant who moved to Cleveland OH and founded the Winton Bicycle Company. With the invention of the internal combustion engine, Winton turned his focus to automobiles.

In 1897, he founded the Winton Motor Carriage Company and built his first car that year. The Winton Phaeton was powered by a 1-cylinder motor capable of 8HP. The car was rugged and built with enough ground clearance to navigate the roads of the period. The car had a steering tiller, buggy springs, and the motor was mounted under the rear deck. The driving lamps were gas powered and the tires were made by BF Goodrich.

In an attempt to promote his car company, Winton drove the car from Cleveland to New York City on roads that roads were undeveloped and occasionally nothing more than mere trails. The trip was a success but Winton made a second trip the following year to generate more publicity. The stunt worked. Winton was able to build and sell 22 cars in 1898 and over 100 cars the following year.

In 1997, in a re-enactment, a Winton Phaeton made the same 500-mile journey from Cleveland to New York.

One of Winton’s customers was James Packard. He expressed his dissatisfaction with his Phaeton. Winton challenged Packard by telling him that if he was not happy with his car then he should go out and build his own. Packard Motor Car Company was founded the following year.

The car in these photos is an 1899 Winton Phaeton that was purchased by Lars and Isabel Anderson. The Anderson's were intrigued by the many cars that they saw during their travels in Europe. At the time, Paris was the epicenter of automobile development and technology. This is the first of many cars that the Anderson's bought for their extensive collection.

The car’s nickname was ‘Pioneer’.