The Gestring Ghost: Gestring White Wagon

By David Sneed
Published on July 20, 2010
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This "white" Gestring wagon likely dates to a period between 1885 and 1890. Numerous features point to its use as a one-of-a-kind promotional vehicle.
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The eye-catching box was built of Rosewood inlaid with Brazilian Holly.  Thirty-five medals won by Studebaker during its first forty years were also inlaid into the box.  The cost to build this piece was more than $2,100 – ten times the typical farm wagon prices of the day.
The eye-catching box was built of Rosewood inlaid with Brazilian Holly.  Thirty-five medals won by Studebaker during its first forty years were also inlaid into the box.  The cost to build this piece was more than $2,100 – ten times the typical farm wagon prices of the day.
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This remarkable Studebaker wagon was built and shown during the 1893 Columbian Exposition (World’s Fair).  It is known as the “Aluminum Wagon” since almost all the metal parts were ornately fashioned from aluminum during a time when that metal was considered especially precious and difficult to work.
This remarkable Studebaker wagon was built and shown during the 1893 Columbian Exposition (World’s Fair).  It is known as the “Aluminum Wagon” since almost all the metal parts were ornately fashioned from aluminum during a time when that metal was considered especially precious and difficult to work.
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The brake ratchet on this Gestring wagon carries a patent date of April 11, 1876. It’s just one of a number of older design traits on this vehicle. Square nails, square-edged tires, taller rear wheels, greater ground clearance, wider floor boards, custom metalwork, and a healthy dose of other features all work together to help pinpoint a general manufacturing timeframe.
The brake ratchet on this Gestring wagon carries a patent date of April 11, 1876. It’s just one of a number of older design traits on this vehicle. Square nails, square-edged tires, taller rear wheels, greater ground clearance, wider floor boards, custom metalwork, and a healthy dose of other features all work together to help pinpoint a general manufacturing timeframe.
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The brake ratchet on this Gestring wagon carries a patent date of April 11, 1876. It’s just one of a number of older design traits on this vehicle. Square nails, square-edged tires (the metal rim covering the outside of the wheel), taller rear wheels, greater ground clearance, wider floor boards, custom metalwork and a healthy dose of other features all work together to help pinpoint a general manufacturing timeframe.  
The brake ratchet on this Gestring wagon carries a patent date of April 11, 1876. It’s just one of a number of older design traits on this vehicle. Square nails, square-edged tires (the metal rim covering the outside of the wheel), taller rear wheels, greater ground clearance, wider floor boards, custom metalwork and a healthy dose of other features all work together to help pinpoint a general manufacturing timeframe.  
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This "white" Gestring wagon likely dates to between 1885 and 1890. Numerous features point to its use as a one-of-a-kind promotional vehicle.
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The white Gestring wagon, in very fine original condition.
The white Gestring wagon, in very fine original condition.

For some, the sight of an old wooden farm wagon is nothing special. Like many things misunderstood, these antique workhorses are often viewed with disinterest and filed away as insignificant relics from an antiquated past. But for those who study these vintage works of art, there’s an appreciation for a sophisticated industry that was not only privy to some of the most historic events and happenings in our country but was also absolutely essential to the growth, development and birth of America as a world power. 
Like any business segment, early wagon brands differed in many respects from design and uses to history and age. The industry was massive with tens of thousands of makers and just as many different ways of doing things. When it comes to timeframes of manufacture, most collectors, historians and western vehicle enthusiasts will concur that it’s become increasingly difficult to locate true, nineteenth century factory-built wagons outside of a museum.
It’s an amazing truth especially in light of the fact that hundreds of thousands – if not millions – of wagons were built during the nineteenth century in America. So, when a previously unknown set of wheels from the 1800s comes to light, it not only presents an opportunity to immerse oneself in the can-do spirit of our nation’s roots but also glean scarce information about the early transportation industry in the U.S.    

The look of leadership
When I first saw the “White Wagon,” as it’s often called, a number of things intrigued me. First and most obvious, the original coloring and paint patterns on the vehicle are quite different from traditional color schemes. Second, it’s dominated by nineteenth century construction features. Third, the solid, usable condition of the wagon is amazing, considering that it’s almost certainly well in excess of a century in age. Rarely, do we have the opportunity to discover truly unique pieces, but this is clearly an exception to the rule. 
The wagon brand is a Gestring (pronounced guess-string). With the factory located on the block between Mound, Broadway and Brooklyn streets in St. Louis, the company’s beginnings date to the mid to late 1850s. Outlasting virtually all of its largest competitors, Gestring’s operations ceased during the mid-1930s. The company is particularly significant since it competed head-to-head with legendary St. Louis wagon makers Joseph Murphy, Louis Espenschied, Henry Luedinghaus, and Weber & Damme, while simultaneously outfitting businesses, ranches, military expeditions and emigrants moving west.   
For those familiar with traditional farm wagon designs, the color of this particular Gestring is radically different. Typical wagon boxes from the late 1800s and early 1900s were green with red, orange or yellow gears (undercarriages). The rich paint hues were reinforced with a durable lead base to help withstand the rigors of use and nature’s elements. Close examination of this “white wagon” reveals that it was originally a bone or light cream color. Over time, the lighter pigments have faded and chalked from the pressures of the elements. It’s just one of the reasons wagons were not generally painted in such a way.

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