MTFCA Forum

Does anyone have any information on an old Ford dealership that may have been in New Hampshire in the 20's and 30's? I had a customer bring in a clock for repair that has a beautiful milk glass dial with the name of Newman and Katser Ford V8 sales on it. There's no town of origin on the dial, but I'd like to see if there are any pics of the dealership and possibly the clock in place. Thanks, Chris the clock man.

In the New Hampshire state corporation register, there is a Newman Ford Sales shown at 470 S Broadway, Salem NH, 03079. Started in 1974, dissolved in 2004. Google Maps shows a Hyundai dealership at that address and also a Ford Collision Center. My guess is that that location is probably where the dealership was that you're looking for. You might see if there is a historical society in Salem, or contact the local newspaper. Good luck!

Thanks for the info; this clock would date from the 20's to the 30's as it's a very early Telechron movement and has the V8 logo. I'll see if I can get any info from NH.

I knew the date was wrong, but there is a tendency (I think) for car dealership buildings to be used through the years by a series of different dealers of different makes. I just thought that maybe the Newman and Ford connection might be significant. I enjoy tracking down stuff like that.

Are you sure it's "Katser"?

And are you sure its from New Hampshire? There is a KAYSER Ford dealership that's been in business since 1925 in Madison, Wisconsin.

Perhaps a picture would help.

I don't have the dial here at the shop, but it had two names on it (can't recall the order, but it was either Ben Newman and ? Katser or ? Newman and Ben Katser. I have no way to verify if it really was New Hampshire or not, but I'm emailing the Ford archives to see if they have any old dealer agreements from the 30's. Let's hope they can help!

I contacted the archives at The Henry Ford website and Kathy was very helpful. It turns out that the dealership was in Warren, Michigan (12187 Dexter Blvd). She sent two photos that were in the archive of the old building and lo and behold, there was an attached gas station with an Art Deco clock tower! I bet this one was in that tower. I contacted the Warren historical society as well to see if they have more photos. When I googled the address, the satellite and street view indicate the entire area is now suburban housing (tiny bungalows from the 50's or 60's perhaps) and there is no trace of the gas station or the dealer building that was attached.