Babe Ruth’s Pierce?

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I am trying to trace the history of a 1922 EDL. Les Ostrander of Jamestown NY owned it for about 35 years, from 1970 to 2004. Loren Holland of Ilion NY owned it before Les. Both of these men have died. Here is the challenge: Les Ostrander always said he found the Pierce on a truck bound for a museum in Pennsylvania. When he learned it originally belonged to Babe Ruth he talked Loren into selling it to him. He publicized the Babe Ruth connection for as long as he had the car. I have pictures of induction week at Cooperstown, pictures with Babe’s daughters and grandchildren in the car, letters from Base ball Hall of Fame and museum discussing purchasing the car from Les, all kinds of support from western NY Babe Ruth League baseball people. What I don’t find is any documentation officially linking Babe Ruth to the car. I cannot imagine the Hall of Fame would want to purchase it without verifying Babe Ruth owned it, but whenever I asked Les for “proof” that it belonged to Babe Ruth he would answer “let them prove it didn’t”.

The car is unrestored, and in good condition. The upholstery is supposedly the pin stripe pattern of the 1921 Yankee uniforms. If it is Babe’s car, I’ll leave it alone and continue to share it at baseball events. If it isn’t Babe’s, I’ll redo the upholstery and see you folks in Gilmore some summer.

If you know anything about this car, please let me know. There is another picture of it on the PAS website, Featured Articles, Dual valve six, series 33, which was taken at the 100 year celebration in Buffalo. thanks.

[Author nameAuthor names are only available to PAS members.]

Hello Stan & Sandi,

Loren put an ad in “Cars & Parts” sometime in the mid seventies, wanting to sell this car. I was in R.I. heading home and decided to stop and see it. At the time Loren had it stored in a roadside museum not far from Ilion, N.Y.

He took me there to look over the car. As we talked, he mentioned a 1936 Town Car that he also wanted to part with. I bought the Town Car! While at work, a fellow “car nut,” Ray Lipka, mention he wanted “an older Pierce” to tinker with. I told him about your car and the next weekend we were off to Ilion. He bought it, tinkered with it, loaded it onto his trailer-heading to a car show. That’s when Les spotted the car, took the bait, and was hooked. There was also a “parts chassis” (with front fenders) that Ray also bought. I don’t know if Les got that? Ray, too, has passed on, his son Dave (I haven’t seen or heard from him in 20 years) might still be around. I’m pretty sure Ray was the one that started the baseball connection to the car–he had played in the Minors and for a short time Majors. Les tried, for years, to get the connection between this car and the “Babe” made; but, never could. The “Babe” did own a Pierce–a roadster.

Good Luck,

Bob

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