For Sale: 1919 Kissel Model 6-45 in Saint Louis, Missouri

The Kissel Motor Car Company was founded in 1906 by two ambitious young brothers, George and Will Kissel. The Kissel family, who had emigrated from Germany to Wisconsin, gradually expanded their farming operations to include groceries, hardware, lumber and homebuilding among other businesses. The family's generous wealth certainly aided in Will and George's enthusiastic plans to build an automobile. The first prototype was quite advanced; a shaft-driven, four-cylinder runabout built in 1905. By 1907 production of the "Kissel-Kar" was underway, using Beaver engines and bodies supplied by the Zimmerman Brothers, sleigh builders from up the road in Waupun, Wisconsin. Soon, the Kissel brothers were producing a car entirely of their own manufacture, and orders from distributors came pouring in. The Kissel was known for being high on quality, value and performance - as well as for its clever features such as the "all year top" which was in essence the first removable hard top. Kissels grew more complex and luxurious, with a twelve cylinder "Double Six" eventually joining the lineup.
Following a lull in sales in the immediate postwar years, things picked up for Kissel and they transitioned into the roaring twenties with a range of sporty, high-quality cars. In 1919, Kissel introduced its most famous model - the "Gold Bug" Speedster. Kissel's most famous and enduring product, the "Gold Bug" Speedster was actually the mastermind of one of the company's dealers. New York distributor Conover T. Silver commissioned the Speedster to his own design. The sporty Silver-designed Kissels even carried his name for a time. The "Gold Bug" designation came from a naming contest for the sports car organized by Kissel and was chosen from over 500 submissions. This sporty two-seat roadster featured six-cylinder engines of Kissel's own manufacture mated to a low-slung body with cycle fenders and no running boards that gave the appearance of a racer for the road. The flamboyant and stylish Gold Bug proved to be very popular with some of the biggest names of the time - Emelia Earhart, Fatty Arbuckle, Ralph DePalma, Greta Garbo and Al Jolson were all counted among the roster of Kissel Gold Bug owners. Today, just a handful of Gold Bugs survive, each a rolling homage to the glamorous and exiting Jazz Age.
The motorcar offered is not only the earliest surviving Kissel Speedster, but also one of the finest examples extant. Identified as chassis no. 1141, this Kissel is known to have been manufactured before the sobriquet "Gold Bug". Carrying a rich history beginning in the 1950s, this Kissel has not only been well documented with a rich list of previous owners, but also meticulously restored to Concours standards for which it has been awarded. The car's known history traces back to the small town of Orchard Lake, Michigan, where C.R. Funk owned and preserved it from the 1950s until it was acquired by Bill Harrah in the 1970s. As part of Harrah's renowned collection-one of the most prestigious of its time-the Kissel was meticulously maintained alongside many other significant automobiles. Following the dispersal of the Harrah collection, the car was sold at auction in 1986.
The car passed through two owners, first to Knox Kershaw of Alabama, followed by Larry MacElree of Newtown Square, PA. Larry and his wife, Jane, cherished the car from 1990 until 2017, when it was acquired by David George II, then-owner and operator of D.L. George Historic Motorcars in Pennsylvania completed a full restoration, documented by photographs on file. Great attention to detail and authenticity included rediscovering and refitting the original aluminum dash behind a newer replacement, as well as using period-correct materials for the running boards and flooring, and rebuilding all of the mechanical systems save for the engine and rear differential, which while disassembling and refreshing, were found to be in good condition and did not require rebuilding. Most interestingly, when the body was stripped, the original paint color was found to have been black, inside and out-and thus, the present and correct livery is a menacing and muscular change from the more common Kissel Chrome Yellow. The car was shown by Mr. George at The Elegance at Hershey in 2017, receiving the Heritage Award, and at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance in 2018, this Kissel is well known for how outstanding it is.
This delightfully sporty and distinctive motorcar is arguably the finest example extant from this seldom seen marque. Beautifully presented in its sinister, original livery, this Kissel's reputation precedes itself. Recognized as a CCCA Full Classic, this 1919 Kissel Model 6-45 Speedster is ready for its next motoring adventure, whether that be on a concours field, or on the open road.


Offers welcome and trades considered