The Springfield Phantom I provided the American Rolls-Royce customer with a chassis tailored to stateside driving conditions, featuring left-hand steering placement, a three-speed gearbox, and the Bijur centralized chassis lubrication system. Of the 1,243 chassis built, this example, numbered S268KR, was among the last cars built at the Springfield works and was one of just 10 fitted with spectacular Riviera town car coachwork by Brewster.

Brewster’s well-earned reputation for quality, innovation, and style was the ideal complement to the Rolls-Royce chassis, and the coachbuilding firm was acquired by Rolls-Royce of America in October 1925. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of Springfield Phantom Is were equipped with Brewster coachwork. Brewster offered a wide array of body styles to the discerning Rolls-Royce customer, the most formal of which were its town car designs. Among those, Brewster’s Riviera town car is unquestionably the most attractive, cleverly combining sporting and formal design elements. Noted Rolls-Royce authority John Webb De Campi succinctly described the Riviera as: “One of Brewster’s most striking styles. From the front seat forward it looked like a sporty Ascot tourer with an elegant brougham attached behind.”

A close examination confirms that assessment. The hood and cowl blend perfectly with the front doors, which are free of ornamentation, including any exterior door hardware. The delicate windshield, with its slightly angled rake, suggests sportiness and can be lowered completely for an even more rakish appearance. The rear half of the body speaks of formality, beginning with dual coach lamps, a more upright passenger compartment and rear-hinged doors. The passenger compartment provides privacy for its occupants, courtesy of the blind, rear quarter-panels, which are fitted with decorative landau irons on the exterior.

Ephraim Franklin Jeffe is recorded as the first owner of S268KR, taking delivery of the car in May 1933, at his home address of 301 Park Avenue in New York City. According to The New York Times, Mr. Jeffe served as Vice President of sales for Consolidated Edison and served in both world wars, emerging as an Army Brigadier General in 1944.

According to Rolls-Royce Owners’ Club (RROC) records on file, the Phantom I was subsequently owned by Fred Carl of Los Angeles, California and then, around 1950, was sold via Chicago-based dealer John Troka to Arthur W. Seidenschwartz of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. An active member of the RROC Milwaukee region, Mr. Seidenschwartz displayed the Riviera at several regional and national meets throughout the 1950s and 1960s.

Following decades of single family ownership, Mark Smith acquired the Riviera Town Car at Gooding & Company’s Pebble Beach Auction in August 2004. Exhibited in the Prewar Preservation class at the 2019 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance®, this remarkable Rolls-Royce remains in largely original condition, with less than 70,000 miles showing on the odometer when catalogued.

One of Brewster’s most attractive designs – a superb blend of sportiness and elegance – the Riviera Town Car is among the most desirable Rolls-Royce of the Classic Era. Exclusive when new, it remains so today, with only 10 such examples ever built and most now kept in significant private collections. Surely one of the last Brewster-bodied Springfield Phantoms known to survive in unrestored condition, S268KR exudes grace and sophistication – qualities that ought to appeal to the connoisseur.

*Please note that this Lot, like all vehicles in this Auction, has been in long-term static storage and may not be currently operational. It will require mechanical attention prior to any road use.

Gooding & Company presents and conducts the Estate of Mark Smith Auction under the authority of John J. Rendemonti, Executor of the Estate of Mark J. Smith, duly appointed by the Circuit Court of the State of New Hampshire, Probate Division, Case Number 312-2022-ET-00072. The Estate has compiled available title and/or registration paperwork for the Vehicles offered in the Auction and will provide such paperwork to the Buyer if it is available. However, as set forth more fully in the Conditions of Sale, neither the Estate nor Gooding makes any representation or warranty with respect to any existing certificate of title or registration with regard to any Lot in the Auction. Any Lot may be sold on a Bill of Sale. By participating in this Auction, all bidders and buyers recognize that Estate and Gooding have expressly disclaimed all such warranties concerning the availability or sufficiency of any title or registration documentation.