Among the beautiful bodies produced for the American-built “Springfield” Phantom I was the Newport town car, an unusually well-proportioned formal car distinguished by crisp modern lines, including a hoodline extended back to the angled windshield, and a relatively low roof. This style was produced mainly for the succeeding Phantom II, but a handful were mounted to very late Phantom I chassis, often ones that had remained unsold for years following their construction – typical in the Great Depression.

Rolls-Royce Foundation records note this car’s delivery new on 13 January 1934 to one S.J. Gaines. It passed in April 1935 to Belle Bacon of Brookline, Massachusetts, then in October 1936 to Ira Morris Nelson, a prominent Chicago meatpacking heir, philanthropist, and diplomat, related by marriage to the Guggenheim and Rothschild families.

York L. Wilson of Washington, D.C., acquired the Phantom I in April 1946. Its next known owner, Stanley M. Franklin of Vienna, Virginia, purchased the car in 1978 and owned it for eight years before its acquisition by Robert Pell of LaHabra, California. Mr. Pell, the longest-term owner, saw the car restored to its present lovely appearance, after which it was purchased by the current owners for their distinguished collection in 2000.

Offered with a sumptuously appointed interior and a handsome design in wonderful colors, this is among the most attractive formal Phantoms offered in some years and would be a superb addition to any Rolls-Royce collection.