1911 Pierce Four (Engine No. 1442)

• ENGINE: Inline 4-Cylinder 696 CC 6 HP T-head with the Inlet and Exhaust Valves on opposite sides of the Combustion Chamber
• ENGINE NO.: 1442
• CHASSIS NO.: 1442
• MANUFACTURED: Buffalo, NY, USA
• FRAME: 3.5” Copper-lined Steel Tube Frame with Internal Oil Tank, Gas Tank & Control Cables
• PAINT: Blue
• MAGNETO: Herz & Co. of Germany
• TRANSMISSION: Sliding Gear Two-Speed Shaft Drive & Friction Disc Clutch
• SUSPENSION: Sprung Front Fork
• TOP SPEED: 60 MPH +
• CARBURETOR: Breeze
• FORK: Cartridge Spring
• SEAT: Calvary No. 3 from Mesinger Mfg. Co. of New York
• GRIPS: Double Grip Control with Rough Rider U.S. Motor­cycle Grips
• WHEELS: 28 in. with 2.5 in. Tires
• WHEELBASE: 60 in.
• FEATURES: Handlebar-Mounted Clock, Foldable Rear Fender, Pierce Emblem

In 1865, Heinz, Pierce, and Munschauer were established to sell household items, including gilded bird cages and refrigerators, in Buffalo, NY. Seven years later, Pierce would buy out his partners, form the George N. Pierce Com­pany, and in the 1890s, pivot to selling bicycles with the soon-to-be-famed ‘arrow’ logo. In 1900, he sent three board members to Europe to study technology, and they returned with a De Dion engine. Forming the Pierce-Arrow Automobile Com­pany in 1901, they would become known for producing some of the finest, most expensive luxury cars, on par with Rolls-Royce, from the 1910s into the 1930s, which George’s son, Percy, raced competitively.

In 1907, Percy was appointed President of the newly formed Pierce Cycle Com­pany, thereby separating the bicycle business from the automobile business. Following tradition, he went to Europe to study motor­cycles and acquired a Fabrique National Four, the world’s first production four-cylinder bike, in 1908. With FN’s inspiration, the Pierce Cycle Co. would produce the first American four-cylinder motor­cycle, the meticulously hand-built Pierce Four, with the finest quality components. It debuted in 1909 at an expensive $325 as “vibrationless” and complete with many high-end features at the very top of the market. Radically different from any other motor­cycle on the market, it was also far more expensive. It had a strong, large-diameter copper-lined steel frame that hid gasoline, oil, and control cables. Unlike the FN, the Pierce had a T-head sidevalve engine and cam-driven intakes. It also featured a shaft drive and a sprung front fork—a significant improvement over the FN Four. Capable of reaching speeds over 60 MPH, they were used for long-distance endurance events, often won by Percy Pierce himself.

The 1910 Four would improve even further with the addition of a clutch and two-speed transmission. A No­vem­ber 12, 1910, Pierce advert­ise­ment describes: “The Four Cylinder, we scarcely need to point out, is the world’s leading motor­cycle. The rider who wants the best will always buy the Pierce Four. There is no motor­cycle which approaches it in smooth running qualities, in hill climbing qualities, and road touring capability. This machine is built for the severest kind of usage. It will give service and satisfaction everywhere and under all conditions.” In Sep­tem­ber 1911, their advert­ise­ments boasted that a Pierce motor­cycle was the “only motor­cycle known to have climbed Simplon Pass (One of the highest peaks in the Alps.)” and the “Only American machine that holds a Grand Prize award. (Won at Buenos Aires International Centennial Exposition. Pierce sole winner against European competition.)”

Costly to produce, the price increased to $400 in 1913, making the innovative motor­cycle the selection of “more prosperous sportsmen.” The market expanded to include 14 countries outside of the United States, from Japan to Argentina, and Pierce boasted of “a few hundred” US dealers. However, it was said that the motor­cycle cost more to produce than even that high price tag. By 1914, they were bankrupt, having produced fewer than 500 motor­cycles. Pierce-Arrow would continue manu­fact­uring automobiles until the Great Depression caused its decline in 1938, but Pierce motor­cycles became a chapter of history.

Pierces are now considered classics, having been included in the AMA Motor­cycle Hall of Fame’s Classic Bikes. Due to their high cost and low demand, fewer than 500 Pierce motor­cycles were ever built, and surviving examples are rare. Of the remaining examples, most known bikes are still functioning today.

This 1911 Pierce Four, engine number 1442, is offered with period-correct accessories following a fresh, professional restoration. It is believed to be one of only approximately a dozen Pierce four-cylinder bikes still surviving after more than 100 years, most of which reside in museums. It is very rare for a Pierce Four to turn up on the open market, despite being highly sought after.

The Story

From Mecum Auctions

“Among the most curious and novel approaches to have emerged amid the flurry of early motor­cycle concepts, this excellent and exceedingly rare 1911 Pierce Four remains one of the most unique motor­cycles ever built. To encounter one of the few to have survived the century since is to witness the boldness of a young industry learning to walk on its own, deeply shaped by mechanical experimentation and the restless curiosity of the first to venture into two-wheeled trans­port­ation. Although the production of the Pierce Four lasted only five short years, from 1909 to 1914, its impact reverberated throughout the American motor­cycle industry, leading to the creation of an elite class of motor­cycles. Led by an inspired William G. Hender­son beginning in 1912, Hender­son expanded and improved upon the platform first made possible in the United States by Pierce, establishing a legacy of the mighty American inline-4 and creating some of the most coveted motor­cycles in history.

Long before the Pierce name adorned motor­cycles and grand touring automobiles, George Norman Pierce built a reputation for fine craftsmanship, first in household goods and later in bicycles during the 1890s cycling boom. His fascination with new technologies sent him repeatedly across the Atlantic, where he studied the latest technologies emerging in Europe, bringing home a head full of ideas that would lead to the creation of Pierce automobiles. It was on one of these trips that his son, Percy Pierce, discovered the FN 4-cylinder motor­cycle. Like his father, Percy returned home inspired to create a new type of motor­cycle for the American market.

Percy unveiled his own interpretation of the sophisticated Belgian design in 1909 as the Pierce Four, proudly advertised as a “vibrationless” motor­cycle in an era when smoothness was a luxury few machines could offer. While its lineage was clear, the Pierce Four was no mere copy. Its T-head inline-4, with an external flywheel, mechanical intake valves and enclosed shaft drive, revealed Pierce’s engineering confidence. The hallmark feature, however, was its remarkable frame: a massive 3.5-inch tube, internally partitioned to carry oil and fuel, and utilizing the engine as a stressed structural member. It was elegant, advanced and uniquely Pierce, but in a rapidly consolidating market focused on high-volume production, its premium, complex nature resulted in a tragically brief run. This glistening, meticulously restored 1911 Pierce Four, complete with an optional factory 2-speed transmission and clutch, stands as a celebration of the rare marque, a masterpiece of innovation, ambition and exclusivity that embodies the dawn of American motor­cycle culture itself.”