Using the $4,000,000 he received from the sale of his Cleveland Bicycle Company, Henry Lozier founded the Lozier Motor Company in Plattsburgh, New York, at the turn of the 20th century. Originally a manufacturer of marine engines and launches, Lozier also experimented with steam- and gasoline-powered cars, examining the finest foreign- and American-made offerings of the time, and even repairing a crashed Mercedes at no cost to the owner, just to study its inner workings.

After conducting extensive testing and carefully selecting the best components available, construction of Lozier automobiles commenced in 1904. At the New York Automobile Show in January 1905, the first Lozier was unveiled, boasting high-quality engineering and an impressive 30–35 hp four-cylinder engine. Despite its $4,500 price tag, the Lozier quickly found an audience, and 25 cars were sold that year, followed by 56 examples in 1906.

Lozier entered the world of racing in 1907, with Ralph Mulford as the factory driver. Thanks to their durability, strength, and speed, combined with Mulford’s skills, Lozier automobiles broke more 24-hour endurance records and won more 24-hour races than any other car of the era. In 1910, Lozier won the famed Elgin Road Race and, in 1911, it captured the Vanderbilt Cup and placed 2nd in the inaugural Indianapolis 500. It was a controversial finish: due to a mix-up in lap timing, the win was given to Marmon, the hometown entry, instead of the big, white Lozier from Plattsburgh.

By this time, Lozier had introduced several engineering innovations that made its cars stand apart from other American offerings. From the start, the company used all-aluminum bodies and its chassis utilized ball bearings in practically every moving part including crankshaft bearings. The company also pioneered casings for its double chain drive before switching to shaft drive in 1908, and employed redundant ignition systems, multidisc clutches, advanced brakes, and four-speed gearboxes before many of its competitors.

Thanks to its impressive racing record and stellar reputation among sophisticated, well-heeled motorists, Lozier claimed its cars were “The Choice of Men Who Know.” Advertisements of the period read: “Lozier Motor Cars are built for people who measure cost in comfort, safety, power, appearance, and dependability. The superlative degree of these qualities describes the Lozier – the only car in America that has commanded a price of $5000 or more for eight consecutive years.”

Demand for Loziers eventually outstripped the Plattsburgh factory’s 600 car-per-year-capacity. Harry Lozier made the fateful decision to relocate the facilities to Detroit, and a large, new factory was built. Soon after, he was forced to leave his namesake company. A new president embarked on a series of ill-considered decisions that left the company weakened. Despite a change in management, the situation worsened, and by late 1914, Lozier was in receivership. A reorganization effort in 1915 failed and a second attempt yielded no better result. In September 1918, the splendid name of Lozier was consigned to automotive history.

Before its demise, Lozier’s production peaked in 1912 at 600 cars. That year, the company announced that it would build only six-cylinder automobiles and introduced two new models: the Type 72 “Big Six” and the Type 77 “Light Six.” Replacing the top-of-the-line Type 51, the Type 72 utilized its predecessor’s 131"wheelbase and 554 cid T-head engine, conservatively rated by the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers (ALAM) at 51 hp, but estimated to produce 88 hp. Major advances over the Type 51 included left-hand-drive steering, electric headlamps, multi-point ignition, and an automatic splash-lubrication system. Built in limited quantities during 1912–1913, the Type 72 was the very last of the elegant, high-priced Lozier motor cars.

Lozier offered the Type 72 in a variety of body styles including the Knickerbocker Berline, Briarcliff Toy-Tonneau, Lakewood Torpedo, Riverside, and Larchmont Touring cars. The most sporting of all was the Meadowbrook Runabout, named after the exclusive Long Island, New York, hunt club. According to the factory sales catalogue, the Meadowbrook Runabout was “built to meet the large demand for a racy-looking two-passenger car. The chassis is identical to the Lakewood and Briarcliff models in all principal details, except that the tires are carried on the platform back of the front seats. A side seat on the running board is provided for the chauffeur…Stripped of fenders, the Meadowbrook is the Lozier model which has won so many notable victories in the great races of the past.”

Surviving, large-horsepower roadsters with their original bodies from the antique era are incredibly rare today, and the Lozier presented here is the only original Type 72 Meadowbrook Runabout known to exist. Its history can be traced back to December 1943, when it was sold at the Frederick H. Cleveland Estate auction in Poughkeepsie, New York. Described by auctioneer James R. Smith as “1912 Lozier runabout, only run 1200 miles,” the Meadowbrook was reportedly purchased by a local used car dealer for $150.

By 1949, the Lozier had been acquired by Walter Levino of Peekskill, New York, a garage owner and pioneering car collector who owned several other high-quality antiques. A photo of the Lozier at a car show during Mr. Levino’s ownership is included with the file. Mr. Levino owned the car until 1953, when it was sold to Thomas J. Lester of Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

This Lozier was among Mr. Lester’s first major acquisitions, and he would go on to become one of the most prominent American car collectors of the era, with a stable that included a Thomas Flyer 6-70, Mercer Raceabout, Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, Duesenberg Model SJ, and another Lozier – a 1909 Type H Briarcliff. With his engineering background, Mr. Lester appreciated the highest-quality antiques and supported the burgeoning hobby by establishing his own tire manufacturing company, which became the go-to supplier for classic cars.

Restored between 1953 and 1954 in its current bright yellow livery with a unique, period air starter, Mr. Lester’s Lozier went on to take part in numerous shows and events, earning its AACA First Prize award in 1954, taking part in the Henry Ford Museum’s annual sports car show in 1955, and completing the Glidden Tour and National Reliability Run in 1957. Also in 1957, the Lozier was selected to participate in the second Anglo-American Vintage Car Rally, organized by the VMCCA. This event, which brought together the finest collector cars in the UK and the US, included an eight-day, 800-mile rally through eastern states, with various competitive elements. Mr. Lester, who claimed that his Lozier Type 72 was the fastest antique car in America, painted the radiator grille with his entry no. 4, which remains on the car to this day.

Acquired by Jerry S. Foley III in 1959, this Lozier has remained a fixture of his Jacksonville, Florida-based collection ever since. Over the past six decades, the Meadowbrook Runabout has appeared in numerous publications, including the cover of Sports Car Illustrated in 1960, and Town & Country in 1963, as well as the pages of Car Life and Automobile Quarterly. In the early 1970s, it was chosen by the great collector Henry Austin Clark Jr. to be featured on the Long Island Automotive Museum’s famous series of postcards.

Always cherished, maintained, and driven sparingly, the Lozier has not had significant restoration work carried out since Tom Lester’s ownership and consequently still appears very much as it did in the mid-1950s. Today, it possesses a charming patina and its many period-event plaques serve as a wonderful testament to a bygone era of car collecting.

Arguably the ultimate expression of the esteemed Lozier Motor Company – a marque synonymous with quality and prestige – this magnificent, high-horsepower, six-cylinder Runabout is surely among the finest, most sought-after of all American antiques, and it is the only one of its kind.