October 5, 2009
Rare 1912 Alco on display at the Seal Cove Auto Museum
We’ve got a new addition at the Seal Cove Auto Museum, and it’s another great reason to come out and visit before we close for the season on October 12.
Thanks to a kind loan from car collector Andy Oldman of Belmont, Massachusetts, a 1912 Alco four cylinder touring car, that once belonged to Richard Cushing Paine Jr., the Museum’s founder, is back on display.
Alcos were built by the American Locomotive Company from 1909 to 1913 and were among the most expensive American cars of their day, costing in the $6000-$7000-plus range. Their engines were massive: 453 cubic inches for the four in 1911, 579 cubic inches for the six. It took one year and seven months to build a single motorcar, and six months alone to build the rear axle. It is no wonder then, that on August 22nd, 1913, the auto industry was horrified when The New York Times reported that the Alco was to be discontinued. The Alco plant was among the best equipped in America, their products were among the most respected in the nation, the American Locomotive Company had just revealed gross earnings for the fiscal year of $34 million but, unfortunately, none of the profit came from the automobile division. Alco’s management apparently had been unaware that while locomotives are bought, automobiles have to be sold. When the time was taken to total up and analyze the figures, they revealed that thus far 5000 Alcos in 54 different models had been built, and that the company had lost an average of $456 on each one of them. Almost immediately, American Locomotive announced its desire “to sever as completely and as soon as possible all connections with the automobile branch of the business.” Fortunately, a handful of Alco cars survive today as testimony to how a motorcar can be built too well for its own good.
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MAY 2009 |
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The Board of Directors of Seal Cove Auto Museum is delighted to announce the appointment of its first Executive Director, Roberto M. Rodriguez, formerly of Revelstoke, British Columbia, and Windsor, Vermont. He will assume leadership of the Museum effective May 1, 2009, replacing Diane Kopec who has served as Interim Director.
Mr. Rodriguez brings over thirty-seven years of museum experience to the Seal Cove Auto Museum, having served most recently as the Executive Director of British Columbia’s Revelstoke Railway Museum. Previously, he was the Manager of the Precision Valley Corvette Museum in Springfield, Vermont, and before that, the Director of the Fort at No. 4 Living History Museum in Charlestown, New Hampshire. He has also served as the Director of Park-McCullough House in North Bennington, Vermont, and from 1993 to 1998 was Director of the American Precision Museum in Windsor, Vermont.
Mr. Rodriguez started his museum career in Canada, first with the National Museums of Canada, and then as Deputy Director of Installations at the Canadian Museum of Civilization during its design and construction.
Before specializing in museum management, Mr. Rodriguez was a successful product and exhibition designer having received his Associates Degree from the Ontario College of Art in Industrial Design. He was Chief of Design and Technical Services for the National Museums of Canada and was responsible for designing hundreds of permanent, special, and traveling exhibitions.
Mr. Rodriguez commented that leading the Seal Cove Auto Museum will offer him a wonderful opportunity to combine experience managing museums with his passion for automobiles. “I have been a car collector and enthusiast since buying my first car, a 1929 Durant, in 1961, and I hope to convey my passion for the hobby equally to children and the general visiting public. It is exciting to think about new public programs and events that will appeal to the whole family along with the avid automobile enthusiast. Car enthusiasts, as well as those who enjoy the romance of a bygone era, will delight in the depth of this unique collection that features a wide variety of antique autos with a special emphasis on examples from the "Brass Era" (1895-1917). Who can resist building on such an extraordinary collection? I eagerly anticipate joining the Mt. Desert Island community and developing the Seal Cove Auto Museum into one of Maine’s leading educational and cultural institutions of its type.”
“We are all delighted that Roberto will be coming to serve as the first Executive Director of the Seal Cove Auto Museum. The entire Board is looking forward to working with him on this exciting project,” remarked Board President Peter L. Murray. “Roberto’s strengths mesh perfectly with our mission to preserve and exhibit the core of the Richard Paine collection, and by doing so keep the Paine Legacy alive.” During his lifetime, Richard Paine formed the non-profit Seal Cove Auto Museum to provide a place to keep and display his superb collection.