This car’s frame is ash which is very flexible. The engine is transverse mounted and air cooled. Franklin produced only air cooled automobiles until 1934 when it went out of business due to the depression. The H.H. Franklin Company began manufacturing automobiles using John Wilkenson’s air-cooled prototype cars developed for the NY Auto Show. The first production car was sold for $1,200. About a dozen cars were sold in 1902.
After the depression, the rights to the Franklin Company were purchased by Doman-Marks Engine Co. which produced Franklin aircraft engines from 1938 until 1974. The companies name was changed to Aircooled Motors Corp.
Franklin automobiles set several cross country records. In 1904, L.L. Whitman accompanied by a Franklin representative drove a runabout from New York City to San Francisco in just under 33 days, which cut the previous Winton and Packard records by almost half.
*The Classic Automobile Collection is viewable during special events and by appointment only. Please call the office for details.
