The life of a traveling salesman could be a harsh and lonely existence, especially in the depths of the Great Depression, but hitting the road with a well-appointed house trailer, office, and mobile showroom surely made things a bit more palatable. This October, RM Sotheby’s will offer up an interesting time capsule of 1930s American history at its Hershey, Pennsylvania, sale, when a 1931 Ford Model A De Luxe coupe and custom trailer that once served as fishing and marine supply salesman J.M. Keely’s mobile base of operations crosses the auction stage.
From the company’s headquarters in Miami, Florida, the J.M. Keely Sales Company offered up nearly anything the active fisherman or boater might need, from rods and reels to tackle, outboard motors and even portable generators. It’s not clear when the business was founded or even if the Model A and trailer combination offered represents Keely’s first attempt at a mobile showroom, but the business employed traveling salesmen (later in step vans) into the 1950s. A J.M. Keely Sales Company, likely related to the Miami-based original, was registered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in 1958, but the business is listed as inactive today. The once-grand J.M. Keely Sales Company showroom in Miami, seen here on Fishing For History, has been razed, and today the corner property is nothing more than a vacant lot.
It’s clear that quite a bit of thought went into the construction of both the Model A tow rig and the custom-built trailer, which itself used many components liberated from the Model A parts bin. While the car’s 201-cu.in. L-head four-cylinder engine, rated at 40 horsepower, remained in stock form, the rear axle, hubs, brakes and wheels were borrowed from a Ford Model AA truck. A stouter transverse leaf spring replaced the original light-duty unit used on coupes, and the rear frame was reinforced to accommodate the addition of a Glenn Curtiss Aero Coupler trailer hitch, which utilized a horizontally mounted tire and wheel to cushion against bumps and vibration.
Like the Model A De Luxe Coupe offered, the trailer also relied upon a Ford AA truck rear axle, carrying over the heavy-duty hubs and using vacuum-operated brakes. Electricity came from 110v “shore power,” onboard storage batteries (charged by a dedicated six-volt generator in the Model A), or one of Keely’s Onan generators, depending upon the location. Outfitted as a mobile showroom for the company’s wares, the trailer accommodated life on the road with a bed (and a frame that allowed the addition of a second bunk bed), a kitchen (with sink, gas stove and icebox) and a desk. Excluding the included chamber pot, the trailer contained no bathroom, although an on board 25-gallon tank did provide water for washing, drinking, and cooking.
Those with a particularly keen eye will note that the trailer’s door handles and window cranks are Model A parts. It’s quite likely that the Ford parts were both cheap and readily available when the mobile showroom was constructed, adding to its sensible function-before-form mission.
With J.M. Keely himself behind the wheel, this rig traveled the roads of south Florida and the Gulf Coast, selling wholesale fishing and boating supplies to a network of regional dealers. Though the exact years in service remain a mystery, the weather-beaten combo was pulled from a pole barn in Key West, Florida. The custom Model A and the unique trailer were damaged by Hurricane Andrew, a category five storm that devastated Florida and Louisiana in 1992, so the restoration must have been a lengthy and complex endeavor. The end result is a unique window into Depression-era America.
The Model A and trailer are offered complete with vintage fishing and boating gear; the sale even includes road maps and company letterhead used by Keely on the road. Uniquely positioned to appeal to collectors of the Ford Model A, vintage trailers and vintage fishing / boating supplies, the lot is being sold by RM Sotheby’s in a no reserve sale. A previous attempt to find a buyer, at Auctions America’s 2012 Auburn sale, resulted in a high bid of $70,000 which failed to meet the then-established reserve price.
RM Sotheby’s Hershey auction will take place on October 6-7 at the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, Pennsylvania. For additional information, visit RMSothebys.com.
See original article at" https://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2016/09/21/part-classic-car-part-rolling-history-lesson-j-m-keelys-1931-ford-model-a-de-luxe-coupe-and-custom-trailer/
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