When it comes to locating early wagons
for collections, many folks wonder where to start. Over and over I’m asked, “How do you find
collector grade wagons?” The answer is
easy to share. The process involved,
though, can be a lot more difficult. The
real secret to finding these vehicles is to never stop searching for them. Honestly, that’s it. You never know when one is going to pop
up. It’s a little like a ‘jack-in-the-box’
toy you might have played with as a kid.
You’re turning the crank, hearing the music, and you know from
experience that the thing is going to pop up – yet, it still has a way of
surprising you.
Before you can search, however, it’s
important to know what to look for. While
this statement sounds simple, it’s the part of the process that can be
considerably more difficult. In fact, it
can take years to learn how to interpret a vehicle’s identity, condition,
originality, features, and overall desirability. There are so many important distinctions of
early wagons because the industry was vast and the time periods covered are
extremely broad. Equally challenging,
makers frequently had multiple ways of building the same or similar pieces and,
to make matters worse, truly authoritative information can be frustratingly
hard to locate. Once you have a
direction for the search, though, the history chasing can begin. I usually supplement my quests for the rarest
wagons by putting out the word that I’m interested in a particular brand and just
hope that enough paint has survived to make the vehicle easier to recognize
without doing extensive research.
With that as the backdrop to this blog,
I can say it was a day like any other when I received an email from Doug Hansen of Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop. He knows
how to get my attention. The email was
short… only one photo with a single word question – “Interested?” The photo showed a close-up of a wagon logo
on a sideboard. The brand name shown was
‘Cooper’. Now, I had been looking for a
Cooper wagon for years and I’d shared that with Doug quite some time ago. While I’ve spent a fair amount of time
studying early Cooper literature and have stumbled across a few 20th-century-built
spring seats, I had never been this close to an original Cooper vehicle.
This set of wheels had a number of early
distinctions and was just one day from selling at an estate auction. High narrow wheels, wide original floorboards,
a through-bolted gear, and a period box brake were among its notable attributes. Best of all, the wagon was relatively
untouched by modern restoration attempts.
The first thing I needed to do was confirm the originality of the gear
to the box. The design clearly pre-dated
those shown in a commonly reproduced 1915 P & O catalog. Based on comparisons with additional period
imagery from our Wheels That Won The West® archives, the piece appeared consistent
with what was produced during the 1880’s and 1890’s. Only with sufficient high resolution photos or
a first-hand inspection would I be able to narrow down the manufacturing date
and also confirm whether the box and gear were mates. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get that kind
of access before it sold. Nonetheless, I
took a chance and bought the piece.
Once I had it home, it was easy to see
that the wheels and gear were covered in an extremely old repaint job; not
uncommon as many early farmers took care of their vehicles (especially the
gears) by repainting when the original colors started to wear. Over the years, I’ve discovered a method that
allows the removal of the different paint layers. Combined with a little elbow grease, the old supplements
of barn paint on this wagon are coming off nicely. Beneath the surplus red coating, I’m finding a
significant amount of original orange paint along with the correct black stripes
and white pinstripes. Not only do all of
the design elements on the gear match up with early Cooper imagery but the
skeins, themselves, are cast with the initials AAC. That lettering represents the name of the
company president and founder, A.A. Cooper – which is the way most early literature
referred to the company. The final piece
of evidence confirming the originality of the gear and box to each other happened
when I uncovered the stenciled A.A. Cooper name on the rear axle.
After reviewing the piece further and
comparing multiple features with Cooper’s design and construction variations from
the 19th century, it’s clear the wagon will date sometime shortly after
1885. A supportable timeframe of
manufacture would be the late 1880’s to near 1890. The taller 54” rear wheels, original paint, pin
striping, and logos on the box and gear as well as a patented cold-rolled steel
brake ratchet and also a factory serial number further reinforce the uniqueness
of the piece. Combined with period
government records listing Cooper as among the very best makes (only Peter
Schuttler and Bain were ranked higher in this 1880 record of competitors for
government contracts*), it was a relatively easy decision to add the vehicle to
the Wheels That Won The West® collection.
How many more 19th century Cooper wagons
with original paint and serial numbers still exist? It’s hard to say. I’ve heard rumors of others but it’s taken me
nearly two decades to actually locate one.
The real reward is the knowledge that another relevant piece of early
American transportation can now be preserved for generations to come. Well-known on the American frontier, Augustine
A. Cooper made a complete line of carriages, wagons, and sleighs. It’s appropriate, then, that this Cooper
wagon should join a number of other extremely rare vehicles in our collection, each helping interpret the way it was… when
opportunity ruled and wagons rolled throughout the American West.
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*1880 Government deposition. For additional information within another
contemporary publication, see “Wagons For The Santa Fe Trade” by Mark L.
Gardner.
