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Weekly News July 8, 2013Description
Robert E. Lee North of the Potomac: On this date 150 years ago, General Robert E. Lee, with his defeated Army of Northern Virginia, was still trying to flee the Union Forces but couldn’t get across the flood-swollen Potomac River southwest of Hagerstown, Maryland. He had been dealt a crushing blow on the final day of the Battle of Gettysburg (July 3), but the Union Army did not pursue him, and by July 10, his many wagons with wounded soldiers finally reached the safety of Virginia and the War between the States lasted nearly two more years.
Fifty years after this momentous battle, a great encampment was planned on and near the Gettysburg Battlefield. Both Union and Confederated Veterans, most in their 70s, were invited to return and take part. Recently retired General Leonard Wood, hero of the Spanish-American War, was in charge of the encampment. It was always surprising to me that Confederate veterans would want to return, but many of them did. My father, a 28-year-old Stanley dealer from Delaware, seized upon an opportunity.
He bought a new 1913 Model 810, 12-passenger Mountain Wagon; had it shipped from the factory in Newton, Massachusetts; and planned to take it to Gettysburg for the summer, giving conducted tours of the Battlefield. A new Mountain Wagon sold for $2,300 at that time. A small crew was assembled to run the operation. A man named Palmer was hired to maintain and operate the vehicle; Thomas S. Dennison, son of the long-time store keeper in Yorklyn, Edward H. Dennison, was to be the promotional man and to handle scheduling of the tours; and Warren Gilbert of Gettysburg was hired as the Battlefield guide. Clarence Marshall made several trips to Gettysburg during the summer but could not neglect the vulcanized fiber business in Yorklyn, where he was in charge of the Marshall family’s machinery in their new fiber mill, so his visits were brief and intended to “check on things.”
Warren Gilbert was an interesting man. He claimed to have attended Lincoln’s famous address dedicating the National Cemetery at Gettysburg on November 19, over four months after the battle. Actually, his mother was in a choir that sat on the platform with the President and other dignitaries, and her infant son Warren was born 4 days later! He had written well-accredited books on the battle and was regarded as one of the best guides in Gettysburg. Tom Dennison did his job well, and one evening General Wood and his staff chartered the Mountain Wagon to take them to a special dinner. A lot of people visited Gettysburg and its battlefield in the summer of 1913.
The Mountain Wagon operation was a financial success. My father told me that when they were busy, which was much of the time, they were making tours of the Battlefield in about 40 minutes. Most of the tour vehicles were horse-drawn in 1913, and while some may have carried more passengers, their two- or three-hour tours were no match for the Stanley. When the Mountain Wagon came back to Delaware after Labor Day, it had more than paid for itself in less than three months. With this “Wagon,” my father established a bus route from Yorklyn to Wilmington on weekends during the following fall and winter. This is recognized as the first established bus line in Delaware. I think the same man Palmer, who operated the car at Gettysburg in 1913, bought it from my father and attempted to run a bus service from Kennett Square to Wilmington in 1914 and possibly beyond that date. What happened to the car after that is unknown.
In 1951, my father and I attended an Allegheny Mountain Region weekend event at Gettysburg (the Gettysburg Region had not yet been formed). My father went in his Model 87, and I drove my Model 607. On Sunday morning, Warren Gilbert, then nearly 88, rode in the front seat of my car around the battlefield, describing it in vivid detail. In the front seat of our Model 607 rode a man who was on the platform with President Lincoln when he made his most memorable speech 88 years before! A few days ago, the 150th anniversary of the famous battle was celebrated with fanfare.
Work Report: On Tuesday, July 2, 16 volunteers answered the call, as follows: Jerry Novak (in charge), Dan Citron, Art Wallace, Steve Bryce, Dennis Dragon, Bob Jordan, Ted Kamen, Bob Stransky, Dave Leon, Richard Bernard, Jay Williams, Ken Ricketts, Emil Christofano, Bill Schwoebel, Tim Ward, and Tim Nolan.
The Model 76 was returned to the museum with its repaired water tank back in the car. A stripped hole was found on the bottom pan of the 735’s condenser, so this was drilled and tapped and a larger screw inserted. Work got underway again on the Model 607, with the spare tire bracket holes located in the right running board, and more touch-up areas were given attention. The fuel tank on the Model EX was thoroughly cleaned by washing several times (while in the car). A new vaporizer cable was inserted in the burner of the Model 740.
As an experiment, a section of stainless steel tubing was put in the fuel line of the Model 87, replacing the usual copper tubing, in an effort to reduce the burner smell. Sound deadening on the Lionel train layout continued.
Since Thursday night was the Fourth of July, no work session took place, but seven cars from the FAHP collection, plus Stanleys owned by Bob Wilhelm and Steve Jensen respectively, took part in the Hockessin Independence Day parade. Our cars were Stanley Models EX, 76, 820 (Mountain Wagon), 725, and 740, plus our ’32 Packard phaeton and our Rauch & Lang electric car. All cars performed well, and most went to Woodside Farm for ice cream following the parade.
On Friday, 7/5, the condenser was put back on the Model 735, and everything was hooked up again. Steve Bryce tested the car the next day and believes the condenser to be tight. The engine case was also repaired and is ready for installation.
