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| Frey Carriage Company's Brewster Peters Phaeton: polished like a cherished archive of excellence. |
Brewster made award winning carriages from 1810 and in 1905 morphed into making auto bodies for Rolls Royce and others until 1935 when the company, ravaged by the Great Depression and despite continually winning accolades for their body designs, closed in bankruptcy. For years the Brewster Trophy was the most coveted harness prize at Madison Square Garden Horse Shows. Edward King, manager of the New York National Horse Show referred to Tiffany & Co as the "Brewster of jewelers". Cole Porter Sang" You' re the top! You're a Ritz hot toddy! You're the top! You're a Brewster body." Ironic that Brewster should be named in a song from Anything Goes, as James Brewster was teetotal and payed his employees with high wages as long as they would not drink on the job.
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| The Hallmark of a Carriage Builder: Brewster Oil Cap stamped with Vehicle Serial Number. Photo: Frey Carriage Co |
Brewster was a sign of quality in workmanship, design and detail. For every carriage Brewster built, detailed records were kept: customer order information and vehicle description and specifications. The CAA has an online record for members of all the transactions in the Sales and Specifications Books.
It is with gratitude to the NY Times for archiving our history through news stories, Frey Carriage Co for restoring our history through carriages, and the CAA for preserving the relevance of a business forced to reinvent itself after 90 years. And to the Brewster carriages, themselves, which prove, quality never goes out of style and just gets better with age.
Kind Regards,
Michelle Blackler
Serendipity
www.hossbiz.com
Serendipity is an Accidental Sagacity Corporation Company.
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