La puissante White de la Maison Blanche

I am aware that there was more than one car manufacturer named White. However, a small number of White commercial chassis reached the UK. Do the factory records survive showing the numbers built and the identification of customers?

In 1909, Taft reportedly ordered two White Model M Tourers to be used for state occasions as official White House cars, although use of two government 30-h.p. White steam cars had already begun during Roosevelt’s presidency when they clearly impressed Taft who was photographed and reported in one in September 1907:

“Two White steam-cars form the Government passenger transport service between Oyster Bay railway-station and Sagamore Hill, where President Roosevelt spends part of the summer months. When Mr. Secretary Taft, the War Minister, recently visited America’s great man, he described the White steam car as “a regular Government star route-conveyance” and wished Sagamore Hill had been farther away from the station. Then the President suggested that he could travel back all the way to Long Island City in the White, and this he did; but so keen was he on the travel of the car that he continued over the Ferry, across New York, and over the second Ferry to Pennsylvania Station at Jersey City.” Also, the cars “meet every train and, in addition, perform countless other missions for the Secret Service men and other officials at the ‘Summer Capital’.“

There are photos of the President Elect and his family, with a chauffeur, out in one or other of the Whites in January 1909 – it does not have a government coat of arms on the doors and Taft’s cars appear to have slightly different rear body and lighting details to the one shown here.

Newspapers reported that Taft’s other official cars in 1909 were Pierce-Arrows. The first was a 6-cylinder 48-h.p. suburban, ordered in February 1909 and used by his family to attend the inauguration ceremony and subsequently by him. It had an extra open touring body made for it for summer use and it was kept in readiness 15 hours per day (Taft was said to sleep only six hours per night). A second smaller P-A ordered from Buffalo in April/May 1909 was a 36-h.p. landaulet, which like the first was paid for with money appropriated by Congress. Both these cars were dark blue with a russet side stripe; the enclosed first had blue broadcloth upholstery and the open second, grey whipcord. Both had the Government coat-of-arms emblazoned on each door panel, as does the White shown here.

Hence, perhaps with a full head of steam up or maybe gas-pedal to the metal, President Taft was observed in May 1909 exceeding the 20mph speed limit on the new boulevard between Baltimore and Washington, “which indicated that some pressing affair of state required his immediate attention several miles up the road." And he broke the law knowing that his wife had been at some risk from such lawlessness when driving herself in her own small car; presumably why he had already ordered yet another gas-engined one for her to be driven in instead...

For, in April 1909, Mrs. Taft had demonstrated that she was an accomplished driver when she “escaped by a hairsbreadth” a collision with a larger touring car in Washington by a deft flick of the tiller of her “electric runabout motorcar”; presumably one similar to those in your recent post about recharging Baker Electric runabouts.

It's interesting that 'The garage will be in charge of George Robinson' rather than George being in charge of the garage. Not much of a manager then?