1935 Stagecoach Travel Trailer, Used by Charles Lindbergh and Family
Add to SetSummary
Henry Ford gave this trailer to his friend Charles Lindbergh in 1942. Charles and his wife Anne used it as a home on the road and as a spare room and a study at home. Anne wrote The Steep Ascent here, and Charles wrote portions of his Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Spirit of St. Louis.
Henry Ford gave this trailer to his friend Charles Lindbergh in 1942. Charles and his wife Anne used it as a home on the road and as a spare room and a study at home. Anne wrote The Steep Ascent here, and Charles wrote portions of his Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Spirit of St. Louis.
Artifact
Travel trailer
Date Made
1935
Location
Not on exhibit to the public.
Object ID
57.72.1
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of Charles A. Lindbergh
Material
Metal
Wood (Plant Material)
Glass (Material)
Rubber (Material)
Color
Gray (Color)
Silver (Color)
Dimensions
Height: 106.75 in
Width: 86.75 in
Length: 23 ft
Inscriptions
The following is handwritten on the bottom of a kitchen drawer in the trailer, by (most likely) Charles A. Lindbergh: TRAILER TRIPS- STATES DRIVEN THROUGH MICHIGAN - 1942 (A.M.L. & C.A.L) CONNECTICUT - 1944 (A.M.L & CAL) MASSACHUSETTS - 1945 (A.M.L., C.A.L., JON & LAND) NEW HAMPSHIRE - 1945 (A.M.L., C.A.L., JON & LAND) MAINE - 1945 (A.M.L., C.A.L., JON & LAND) NEW YORK - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) NEW JERSEY - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) PENNSYLVANIA - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) MARYLAND - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) VIRGINIA - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) NORTH CAROLINA - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) SOUTH CAROLINA - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) GEORGIA - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) FLORIDA - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) (KEY WEST) DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) DELAWARE - 1946 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) WEST VIRGINIA - 1947 (C.A.L.) (& AML-'47) OHIO - 1947 (C.A.L.) INDIANA - 1947 (C.A.L.) MISSOURI - 1947 (C.A.L.) KANSAS - 1947 (C.A.L.) OKLAHOMA - 1947 (C.A.L.) TEXAS - 1947 (C.A.L.) (& AML-'47) NEW MEXICO - 1947 (C.A.L.) (& AML-'47) ARIZONA - 1947 (A.M.L. & C.A.L.) / UTAH - 1947 (AML & CAL) NEVADA - 1947 (AML & CAL) CALIFORNIA - 1947 (AML & CAL) OREGON - 1947 (AML & C.A.L.) WASHINGTON - 1947 (A.M.L. & CAL) IDAHO - 1947 (AML & CAL) COLORADO - 1947 (AML & CAL) / LOUISIANA - 1947 (AML & CAL) MISSISSIPPI - 1947 (AML & CAL) ALABAMA - 1947 (AML & CAL) TENNESSEE - 1947 (AML & CAL) KENTUCKY - 1952 (CAL) FLORIDA - 1952 (AML, LAND, ANNE, SCOTT, REEVE. CANADA - 1957 - (CHL & CAL) ONTARIO / THIS TRAILER WAS ONCE OWNED, AND USED AS AN EXPERIMENT IN TRANSPORTATION BY HENRY FORD. IT WAS EXHIBITED IN THE EDISON INSTITUTE, DEARBORN FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS TO DEMONSTRATE FUTURE POSSIBILITIES OF MOTOR TRANSPORT. IT WAS GIVEN TO US BY HENRY FORD IN THE FALL OF 1942 WHEN HE LEARNED THAT WE WERE PLANNING TO BUY A TRAILER TO PLACE SOME DISTANCE FROM OUR HOUSE AS A RETREAT IN WHICH WE COULD WRITE AND STUDY WITHOUT DISTURBANCE. YEAR - LOCATION 1942 - BELKNAP PROPERTY, BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MICH. 1943 - " " " " " " " " 1943 - PATTERSON PROPERTY, BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MICH. 1944 - " " " " " " " " 1944 - TOMPKINS PROPERTY, WESTPORT, CONN. 1945 - " " " " " " " " 1946 - " " " " " " " " 1946 - SCOTTS COVE, DARIEN, CONN. 1946 - CONTENTMENT ISLAND, DARIEN, CONN. 1947 - " " " " " " 1947 - SCOTTS COVE, DARIEN, CONN. [AML = Anne Morrow Lindbergh; CAL = Charles Augustus Lindbergh; Jon Lindbergh (b.1932), Land Morrow Lindbergh (b.1937); Anne Lindbergh (b.1940), Scott Lindbergh (b.1942) and Reeve Lindbergh (b.1945).] Marked on trailer hitch: 150 SLIMP. K in diamond Decal on right door of upper sink cabinet and above bathroom closet: STAGE COACH TRAILER / A CUSTOM BUILT PRODUCT OF / IDEAL MANUFACTURING CORP. / MISHAWAKA, INDIANA (blue/bronze colored w/ engraved stagecoach and horses) Tag tacked to interior of right upper sink cabinet: LUBRICATION CAUTION / AFTER INSTALLATION OF SLIMPWHEEL COUPLER [...] SLIMP AXLE PRODUCTS Paper tacked on interior upper left cabinet above stove: (in pencil) NEW TRAILER STOVE / (1948) / (printed) OPERATING DIRECTIONS [...] Paper tacked on interior upper left cabinet above stove: (handwritten) COOKING STOVE & HEATER / BOTH RUN ON KERSOSENE. / PRIME COOKING STOVE WITH ALCOHOL. Paper on interior of upper center cabinet above stove: (printed) DIRECTIONS / WILLIS KEROSENE STOVES [...]
Specifications
Make & Model: 1935 Stagecoach travel trailer
Maker: Ideal Manufacturing Company, Mishawaka, Indiana
Height: 8 feet 11 inches
Width: 7 feet 3 inches
Overall length: 20 feet
Weight: 2750 pounds
Price: $795
Average 1935 wage: $1,115 per year
Time you'd work to buy this trailer: about 8-1/2 months
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