by Sean Malcom
Corvallis resident and Army veteran, Ron Curtis, has been cleaning up a 1911 Model T for the past year to showroom quality. Curtis, who is the current caretaker of the Model T, has put countless hours into cleaning, polishing, and restoring the car to its former glory. “This is my passion,” he said, “To bring this back to life so other people can see it. I’ll be at every show showing it.”
And showing it, he has. Curtis, and his wife Terri, have been showing the Model T at car shows all summer, including a recent “Chief’s Choice” winner at this year’s Daly Days car show. It is important to mention this correction from the Aug. 2 paper, in the article about the Daly Days events. That article mentioned, “The Hamilton Police Chief’s choice winner was Ronald Thermos with his 1911 Model T.” In fact, that winner was Ron Curtis with this Model T.
Ron’s meticulous hard work has paid off. The old Ford looks how it would have, running off the assembly line in the early 20th century. With its leather convertible top and brass accents, the 1911 Model T is definitely a head-turner.
The Ford Model T was produced from 1908 until 1927 and was targeted to the middle class as the first “affordable automobile” through the use of assembly line manufacturing. The 1911 Model T Ron has been preserving boasts a 2.9 liter four-cylinder engine matched up to a two-speed transmission with a top speed of 42 miles per hour. The headlights are acetylene gas flame-powered, using thick concave mirrors combined with magnifying lenses to project the light. The driver had to light all head and tail lights prior to night driving.
The car belonged to James “Ned” Applebury, a lifelong valley resident, until his death in 2001. Applebury was a collector of antique cars and restored many throughout his life. This Model T was purchased in the early 90s from Robert “Bob” Miller, who was president of the Bell-McCall dealership in Hamilton at the time. Following Applebury’s death, the car was transferred to the Applebury family trust, where it was stored in a barn until recently.
While Model T’s from the early 1900s do not have VIN numbers like modern vehicles do, they do have serial numbers stamped on the engine blocks. However, trying to track down a century-old vehicle’s history through the Montana Title and Registration Bureau has proved difficult, if not impossible.
Applebury’s son, Dr. Alan Applebury, a long-time valley veterinarian, said he believes the car has been in the valley for a long time, but he is unable to track the history beyond Bob Miller owning it before his father.
“Doc’s entrusting them with us,” Ron’s wife Terri said. “He knows Ron has a passion for them, and he knows they’ll be seen.
Ron was introduced to the Appleburys through Terri’s volunteer work at Fox Hollow Animal Project. A non-profit that was started by Alan.
“Doc Applebury told me I could take it and show it,” Ron said. “Boy, was I tickled pink.”
Ron said that the project to clean up the old Ford came at the perfect time. As a disabled veteran, Ron is unable to work in his previous profession as a plasterer. “Doc gave me the opportunity,” he said, “snapped me out of a depression. This car saved me. It’s really been a godsend.”
Years of sitting in a barn took its toll. Ron said he has well over a thousand hours cleaning up the Model T. Terri said she thinks he has a thousand hours in polishing the brass alone.
The Model T has won a handful of awards throughout this year’s car show season. For now, though, Ron will tuck the old Ford safely away in the corner of his shop until he can show it again next year.