Chassis No. 19160

Engine No. 6458

The Mercer Automobile Company was established in May 1909 in Trenton, New Jersey, evolving from the Walter Automobile Company. It was organized by Washington A. Roebling II, with financial support from the Kuser family. The company's first cars debuted in 1910, designed by A.R. Kingston, E.T. George, and C.G. Roebling, and were powered by four-cylinder L-head Beaver engines. In late 1910, Mercer introduced the T-head Raceabout for the 1911 model year-engineered by Finley Robertson Porter and promoted by Roebling. It quickly earned a reputation as one of America's earliest and most legendary performance cars.

Tragedy struck Mercer in 1912 when Roebling perished aboard the RMS Titanic, and again in 1914 when Porter resigned. That year, Eric H. Delling stepped in to design a new 70-horsepower L-head engine. He also refined Mercer's models with modern features like windshields, bench seating, Houdaille shock absorbers, and enclosed coachwork. Despite the challenges, Mercer launched the Series 5 in 1915, the company's first all-new model. Produced for nearly a decade, the Series 5 solidified Mercer's status as a premier American speed machine during the Nickel Era.

The remarkable journey of this 1922 Mercer Raceabout began in 1930 when Vincent Galloni purchased it from the original owner in Pennsylvania. Galloni had joined the Walter Automobile Company in 1909 and stayed with Mercer through its final days in 1924. Afterward, he operated a Mercer repair shop in Trenton, earning the nickname "Mr. Mercer." He maintained, rather than restored, this Raceabout throughout his ownership until 1950, when it was sold to Morris Burrows for $3,400 with just 9,000 miles on the odometer.

Burrows brought the car to Windsor, Vermont, and enthusiastically drove it to events like the 1952 and 1960 Vintage Motor Car Club of America meets and on the AACA's Glidden Tours in 1957 and 1976. It returned to Trenton in 1976 for the bicentennial Mercer Reunion and again in 1978 for display at the New Jersey State Museum. During Mr. Burrow's ownership, he treated the highly original Mercer to mechanical restoration work by Ralph T. Buckley's Antique Auto Shop, Inc of Pleasantville, New Jersey. In 1989, Burrows sold the car to Hemmings Motor News editor David Brownell. It later passed to David Noran in 1992, and finally to Tom and JoAnn Martindale in 2008. During the Martindale's ownership, the impressive Mercer has been enjoyed on tours and kept in good mechanical condition while further preserving the car's exceptional originality, and was shown by the Martindale's at the 2010 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.

Now showing only 28,434 believed-original miles, this uncommonly preserved Mercer has never undergone a full restoration after 103 years of service. Original factory finishes stampings are present throughout the car, and what is believed to be the original interior remains in remarkable condition. The mighty impressive history file accompanying the Mercer Raceabout contains numerous records, letters and old photographs, neatly documenting the car's undisputed history. Unlikely to ever be repeated, this Raceabout remains a truly captivating example of the premier American Nickel Era speed machine.