Vehicle Description
Serial No. 5211
Engine No. IND20-1008
The Cunningham: An American Dream
Briggs Cunningham was born into fortune in the Midwest and spent
much of his life in the pursuit of power and speed. One of the last
old-school American sportsmen, he was, befitting his middle name
Swift, one of the quickest men on both land and water, leading his
yacht to victory in the 1958 America's Cup and participating at all
of the world's most famous motor racing events. He owned and drove
great automobiles from every era, collecting significant sports
cars from throughout the 20th Century, while buying and competing
at the highest levels.
Cunningham's great automotive pursuit was victory at the 24 Hours
of Le Mans - and not just victory, but victory in an American-built
car with an American driver. For most, it would be a fitful dream,
but Cunningham's wealth and drive enabled him to seriously tackle
the endeavor. After credible but unsuccessful efforts with
Cadillacs, he decided that he would simply manufacture his own car.
Between 1951 and 1955, the B.S. Cunningham Company of West Palm
Beach, Florida, produced several generations of Le Mans entrants,
powered first by Cadillac V-8s and then by Chrysler Hemis, with
strong tubular chassis, independent coil-sprung front suspension,
and slinky bodywork. Cunninghams finished 3rd at Le Mans in both
1953 and 1954 - not the outright win of which he had dreamed, but
still an amazing achievement for a boutique American builder.
To enable Cunningham cars to race at Le Mans, the firm was required
to build 25 similar roadgoing models, which resulted in a limited
run of what was known as the C3. Essentially using the same chassis
design and powerplant as the Le Mans cars, it featured impressive
bodywork that resembled a slightly scaled-up Ferrari - no
coincidence, as the bodies were built by Vignale.
While comfortably trimmed with the finest materials, ornately
detailed in Vignale's typical fashion, and a pleasure to drive, the
C3 was still an outstanding performance machine and could genuinely
be described as a true American gran turismo car. Yet as a means to
an end, production did not exceed the required 25, and so the cars
remained coveted collector's pieces essentially from the moment of
their birth. Their roster of original owners was a "who's who,"
unsurprising given Cunningham's numerous connections in both
society and motor racing.
Chassis Number 5211: Carrying a Burden
The C3 offered here, chassis number 5211, was the first known
example built with its trim details of round minor instruments, a
Chrysler "pistol grip" emergency brake handle, a turn signal arm
built into the steering column, and a chrome rub strip under the
doors. It was also the first C3 with the distinctive brass serial
number tag on the firewall.
Original owner William A.M. Burden, Jr., was a prominent member of
a distinguished New York family that led back to "Commodore"
Cornelius Vanderbilt on his mother's side and to a prominent steel
fortune on his father's. Bill Burden handled his inheritance
smartly and accordingly maintained quite a lot of it, which allowed
him to indulge his favorite pursuit, automobiles. He was a studied
devotee of the motor car, corresponding with every major
manufacturer of fine high-performance luxury machines from the
1920s through the 1950s, and commissioning carefully specified
examples built with their cooperation to his distinguished taste.
He was especially fond of Mercedes-Benz, possessing over the years
both new and later on as collector cars an SSK, bespoke 540 K, 770,
and 300 SL, but also enjoyed a pair of Duesenbergs, a Bentley
R-Type Continental, and, it should be noted, the Hispano-Suiza J12
that is also offered in this sale.
Mr. Burden's automobiles were frequently finished in all-over
black, and so it was for his Cunningham, with the appearance
lightened somewhat by red leather upholstery. Another feature
typical of custom orders by Burden was additional instrumentation,
which was also specified for his Cunningham. He additionally
requested a comprehensive set of high-performance engine
modifications to ensure maximum performance, including enlarged
ported cylinder heads with special valve springs, and polished
connecting rods with special rod bearings - essentially ordering
himself a Cunningham Le Mans entrant, but with a roof and Chrysler
Fluid Torque Drive transmission!
The ownership of 5211 by Mr. Burden appears to have been somewhat
brief, as he traded it back to Cunningham's racing technical
supervisor, Alfred Momo, in 1953, not long after delivery; it was
then sold by Momo to Lawrence Leeds of New Jersey. It went on to
pass to John Paolantonio in 1962, and subsequently disappeared from
sight for many years, though in the late 1970s it is known to have
been cosmetically refinished. Finally, in 1990 it was purchased by
the noted East Coast purveyor of fine automobiles, Jerome Sauls,
who undertook a restoration in light yellow that won its class in
2002 at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.
In 2004 the Cunningham was bought by Anthony Gosnell, a British
enthusiast who took it to Europe and exhibited at the Waddlesdon
Manor Louis Vuitton Concours later that year. Two years later, it
was acquired by the renowned sports car collector Harold "Joe"
Hayes of Chicago, who undertook considerable cosmetic improvements
in the hands of George Kovanda at Chicago Restorations, invoices
for which are included in the file. As part of this work, the car
was also fitted with new bumpers of the correct original
design.
Part of the Gateway Automobile Museum since 2012, the Cunningham
remains as-acquired, in excellent overall condition, with 76 miles
recorded at the time of cataloging. It retains its original engine,
of the same number recorded in Cunningham records and rosters,
complete with its Cunningham manifold carrying four Zenith
carburetors, chrome valve covers, and Mallory high-performance
ignition system, as well as the original Nardi-style wooden
steering wheel with a distinctive Cunningham-badged horn button.
The Dayton chrome wire wheels have unusual machined knock-offs, a
beautiful touch.
Very few examples of the Cunningham C3 are available for
consumption, many having long since vanished into more or less
permanent collections and museums, including some of the most
prominent such institutions in the world. This example, thus, marks
a genuinely rare opportunity to enjoy an especially appealing
example of Briggs Cunningham's American dream, with rich provenance
in having been built for his contemporary, William Burden. It is a
car built by a connoisseur, for a connoisseur.
Collection Guarantee Disclosure
Please note that as part of a larger collection to be offered at
live and online auctions, the Consignor of the Gateway Collection
has been guaranteed a minimum price for certain cars, including
this Lot, by Broad Arrow. Depending on the final Hammer Price
obtained for those Lots, Broad Arrow may benefit financially.
