Vanderbilt Cup Races

Why This Car Matters

The 1933 Pierce-Arrow Silver Arrow debuted at the New York Auto Show. It was also exhibited at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair and made the rounds of the national auto show circuit. The design was an instant hit and is what made the Silver Arrow years ahead of its time. The overall look of this car was like a hot knife going through butter and it dramatically stood out as modern and sophisticated when compared to the brick-like design of most cars in that early 1930s time period.

Every feature was well-thought out, including the way the headlights were streamlined and molded into the front fenders, and the way the windshield sloped back. Another unique aspect of the design was the consoled spare tire on each side within the front fenders. Power came from a 12-cyl engine that developed 175 h.p.

Only five Silver Arrows were ever built. Henry Austin Clark, Jr. believed that ten were built. They were sold new at the time for $10,000 each — the equivalent of $236,500 in today's money. Today, only three Silver Arrows are known to exist. 

- Painting of the Silver Arrow by Leslie Saalurg featured in Automobile Quarterly 1962 Vol1, No1 

Austin Clark Acquires Car Number 7

Eventually, Chassis Number 7 Pierce-Arrow Silver Arrow found its way into the ownership of Henry Austin Clark, Jr. 

The following is an excerpt from an article that Austin Clark wrote about his Silver Arrow in Volume 1, Number 1 of Automobile Quarterly:

“Car number seven, is said to have belonged to an underworld character first. Later, via the famous D. Cameron Peck Collection, it came to the Long Island Automotive Museum, and has been restored to its original beauty from a very rough condition. The interior was redone in broadcloth; the curley and birds-eye maple trim refinished. The radio controls, speaker, and duplicate instrument set are in the back.”

In 1949, not long after acquiring the car, Austin Clark sent his rare Pierce-Arrow to be restored by Gus Reuter and his team at the famous Reuter’s Coach Works which was located in the Bronx borough of Manhattan. Reuter was well-respected and a master at his work. Austin Clark once said, “If I had to take out of my collection all the Reuter-restored cars I’d be in bad shape.” 

This is what the Silver Arrow looked like before the initial restoration for Austin Clark. As you can see, it was in extremely battered condition. 

Courtesy John J. O'Leary IV (Reuter's Coach Works Archive)

A document sent from Gus Reuter to Austin Clark regarding the next steps for the restoration of the 1933 Silver Arrow.

-From the collections of the Henry Ford - 1950 Gus Reuter letter 

The Silver Arrow during the final stages of the restoration at Reuter’s Coach Works. An employee is seen putting the final touches on the interior. 

-Image from the collections of the Henry Ford 

Reuter's Coach Works in the 50's

Gus Reuter passed away in 1986 and his two sons continued with the Bronx business. Unfortunately, Reuter's fell victim to the early 1990's recession and closed.

The building still stands as a car audio business..

Here, the Silver Arrow on display inside the Long Island Automotive Museum, with the iconic green sign that shares the make and model of the car as well as the engine size and horsepower it had. 

It is with a great deal of thanks to fellow automotive historian John J. O’Leary IV that we have been able to put together more of this story. Mr. O’Leary contributed the never-before publicly shown photos of the Silver Arrow and shared a number of missing pieces and anecdotes to the story of this iconic vehicle. The historian for the world-class Reuter’s Coach Works restoration shop, Mr. O’Leary is dedicated to preserving and uncovering the history of rare and iconic cars that were restored by Gus Reuter, as well as other historic automobiles.

- Courtesy John J. O'Leary IV (Reuter's Coach Works Archive) 

The 1933 Pierce-Arrow Silver Arrow was a very popular attraction to visitors of the Long Island Automotive Museum.

Because this was such an iconic and historic piece of automotive history, Austin Clark included his 1933 Pierce-Arrow Silver Arrow in the series of postcards that were available in the museum's gift shop.

-Henry Austin Clark Postcard Collection

The Pierce seen in front of the museum in 1953 from an article in Mechanix Illustrated.

Silver Arrow at Auction — and Beyond

In 1963, however, Henry Austin Clark decided to sell off some of his collection from the Long Island Automotive Museum. One of the vehicles included at auction was the 1933 Silver Arrow. According to the auction catalog list, the car sold for $7,000 ($70,000 today) to the Taylor family.

After the Silver Arrow was sold by the Museum, it remained in private collections and out of the public eye until 2015. 

According to Mr. O'Leary,  the 1933 Pierce-Arrow Silver Arrow was brought back to auction by RM Sothebys in 2017. Mr. O’Leary saw the car at the time and noted that it had been newly restored. The Silver Arrow crossed the auction block and sold for $2.31 million.

 Today, this historic Silver Arrow is currently in the Richard H. Driehaus Collection in Chicago. 

Photo Daniel Schnabel RM Sotheby's