by Dan Nicholes

The day was kind of bleak, and only about a dozen cars showed up. There were, however, four Alfas!

Inside the museum, there were no Alfas or other Italian cars. For interest, I included two pics below: the 1930 Duesenberg belonged to Gary Cooper and the 1912 Packard belonged to Mrs. Theodate Pope Riddle, one of America's first female architects, who drove it around Europe in 1913. The story according to the museum curator was that when she drove it to the ship in England to return home, there was not enough room to put her car in the hold. So she did not sail without her car. The ship was the Titanic.

Editor's note: After this October 11th event, I sent the following email to Tom Goux, the guy from the Heritage Museums and Gardens who told us about the event:

Hi Tom -

Well, I heard from one our club members who attended your European Car Show -- I guess the turnout was a bit disappointing.  He did say that, of the dozen or so cars that were there, four of them were Alfa Romeos.  33% -- not bad!

You're probably aware that, with the demise of the annual September Concours d'Elegance at Castle Hill in Ipswich, you have an excellent opportunity to step in and take its place.  Castle Hill was gaining a terrific reputation -- the East Coast's answer to Pebble Beach!  It was a fabulous, upscale automotive event held on a beautiful estate, as is yours.  Initially, it would take some promotion, but then it would be self-perpetuating.  I'd be interested to hear your comments.

Best wishes -

Dave Pratt
Alfa Owners of New England

If you feel the same way, why not contact Tom at tgoux@heritagemuseums.org and tell him so? You can learn more about this beautiful venue in Sandwich, MA at the Heritage Museums and Gardens web site.