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| James Melton driving his 1907 Rolls-Royce (chassis 60565) |
Before there was Jay Leno, the collector car community had James Melton (1904-1961). Mr. Melton was a well known operatic singer (tenor) who worked in radio, film, and television. He also had a fantastic collection of cars located near his home in CT (he later moved the collection to FL).
In our continuing look at the 1958 Glidden Tour, we see the pictures of Mr. Melton on tour in his 1907 Rolls-Royce Ghost (chassis 60565). I've written about this car before, but the short story is that the chassis was imported into the US in 1907 by S. B. Stevens (one of two chassis that he ordered - and one of the very first Ghost chassis brought to the US). I believe the body from this car was placed on the other chassis (a Barker Touring), and this car, used in local endurance events. The Stevens family owned the car until Melton found it in their garage in Rome, NY (said to be around 1940). It was one of Melton's favorites and he used it extensively. The car passed through a number of well-know collectors and resides today in the collection of Robert Lee of NV. Melton's daughter, Margo Melton Nutt, writes a wonderful blog about her father: http://jamesmeltonmusicalcareerantiquecars.blogspot.com.
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| James Melton at the 1958 Glidden Tour |
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