A left over piece of a 1915 Touring

We often get interesting emails here at MTFF. This week was no exception. The story involves a 1915 touring discovered around 1959 and purchased by a young man in New Jersey. The touring was eventually traded in at a Cadillac dealer in St. Michaels, MD around 2001 perhaps?

In any case a previous owner, James, has the serial number plate for the touring. He would like to reunite the plate with the car. Here is the plate:
JAMES DEAN - 1915 MODEL T FORD - SERIAL NUMBER PLATE.jpg

At the time this plate was affixed to a 1915 touring Ford was in the process of eliminating this procedure. The car number stamped on the plate would not have matched the number stamped on the engine block. The engine block would have been thousands higher, perhaps between 688,000 and 695,000.

This is the car as found in August 1958.

Another photo in the front yard of the former owner in Dumont, NJ. The serial number would place the likely production date between March 15 and April 15, 1915. These were interesting times at Ford as the new “1915” touring bodies had been introduced in February 1915 and were still being produced in low numbers. The serialized body number plates would be discontinued at the end of June, 1915.

Great story and a beautiful tag.
It would be really neat to find that touring and reunite the tag!
A very early real 1915…

Here is another tag (a little worse for wear) that appeared in April 2019.
It was found on a 1915 Beaudette bodied touring along with the body tag.
Someone saved and attached them both on the front seat frame of the car.
The original engine wasn’t with the car.

Dash tag is 610560 and body tag is 1-15-203588.

Does that suggest this (these) touring cars were actually built in January 1915?


The body apparently was made in January 1915. Not the car. Ford records show exactly zero 1915 tourings shipped / built in January 1915. February was another terrible month for tourings as Ford records show only 5674 tourings - that’s about 75% less than Ford shipped in February 1914.

More here: The 1915 Model T Ford Part 3 – Model T Ford Fix


Cool old photos. The January 1915 tags posted are off my car. Actually have it running and driving now. Dad helped me finish the rpu body in the fall of 2020. Will be on the road this summer.