Dear Friends. (If you see any or all of a Rochester Duesenberg walking beam engine for sale at Herhsey,please call my cell. Thanks!) OK Here's the story.In 2008 I bought the Dreyer sprint photographed below from John Jackson Jr. His dad John Jackson Sr. of Winchester Va. bought the car from Frank Moore of College Park Maryland around 1970. Franks brother,racing great Don Moore had Pop Dreyer build the car for him around 1930. Don lived some in New Jersey and also raced in Richmond. He drove on the Kline Kar racing team in the 1920s. They used Duesenberg engines in their cars factory team.This car apparently had a somewhat antiquated by 1930,Duesenberg or Rochester Duesenberg walking beam engine put in it from new. See photos. That is almost certainly a Rochester Duesenberg engine,used in such early 1902s cars as a Roamer,etc. The motor blew up in World War Two,and was replaced with a flathead Ford 6 in,which is still in it. The car is a superb original,and was shown at the 2010 Amelia Island Show.The Duesy motor was set aside,and someone around 1970 convinced Frank Moore that he was from the Indianapolis Speedway Museum,and to give them the motor. Then he and the motor disappeared. Please read John Jackson Jrs. account of this as told to him by Frank Moore around 1970. This engine is probably still in a garage in the greater Washington D.C. area. Please share with your AACA and race car friends in the Washington area,and help me find a lead to reunite this motor with its car. Thanks,George Albright,Ocala,Fla. Hershey Space CT 56. Tues-Thurs only. cell 352 843 1624 email <a href="mailto:
[email protected]]
[email protected][/url] John Jackson Jrs. account of the Duesenberg engine,as told to me in 2008: "Interesting written material about Don Moore. He must have been quite a character. He started racing not long after the turn of the last century. I met his brother Frank (Babe). Nice individual. Dad bought the #47 from him. The car was sitting outside in the elements in College Park, Maryland. I know dad made two trips to get the car and the related spare parts of Dayton wire wheels, magnetos, Winfield carbs, clutch mechanisms, etc. It was during this "gathering" process that Frank told my father about the walking beam Duesenberg engine. Frank gave the engine remains to a man presenting himself as a representative of the Indy Motor Speedway museum. Dad contacted the museum who responded they never received such an engine from Frank Moore. This correspondence took place in 1971 time frame. A good friend of ours, who lives in the Washington D.C. area, and was connected through friends with interests in vintage race cars, inquired around about the motor remains and discovered who had it. His contact would not reveal were it was. Frank Moore said the engine needed a new crankshaft and other parts, which Don had sent to New Jersey to have manufactured sometime prior to WWII. Don must have been much older than Frank based upon the pictures I saw of Don in his scrap books that Frank retained. The scrap books were a trip though racing history. I have copies of some of the pictures and memorabilia in the books. As a side note, the Kline Kar that now resides in New Jersey almost was scrapped per my deceased friend and former AAA driver from Richmond. He was contacted by a government authority to review the car and estimate its value back sometime as best as I can remember about 1983 or so. He told me that car was of which the Kline Kar was one. As I understood there was some kind of a disagreement within the family. One family member decided to scrap the three cars. Two of them were scrapped before rest of the family discovered what was going on. All I know about those cars is they had knock-off wire wheels. I suspect they were probably Model T's."
Greatly appreciate your sharing the correspondence.
Sincerely yours,
John
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