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• - Browse neighboring items by call number.
• Collection: Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record/Historic American Landscapes Survey

• Title: 1951 Mercury Sport Coupe Custom, Orange, Orange County, CA
• Other Title: Hirohata Merc
• Creator(s): Historic American Engineering Record, creator
• Related Names:
     Barris Kustoms
     Hirohata, Masato
     Barris , George
     Von Dutch
     Howard, Kenneth
     McNiel, Jim
     Barris, Sam
     Mercury
     Behrens, Thomas M. , project manager
     Lockett, Dana , project manager
     Maxon, Casey T. , historian
     Historic Vehicle Association , sponsor
     McPartland, Mary , transmitter
• Date Created/Published: Documentation compiled after 1968
• Medium: Measured Drawing(s): 2
• Reproduction Number: ---
• Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on images made by the U.S. Government; images copied from other sources may be restricted. (http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/114_habs.html)
  
• Call Number: HAER CA-2328
• Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
• Notes:
  • Significance: By the end of the Great Depression in the 1930s and early 1940s, a number of creative blue-collar car enthusiasts primarily in California began "restyling" standard production cars to evoke the high style of the custom coach built cars. The builders and enthusiasts of these restyled cars called them simply as "custom cars" or "kustoms." This would be the dawn of the distinct custom car trend focused on restyled ordinary cars rather than "custom coachbuilt" high-end luxury cars with tailor-made bodies. When WWII ended and Southern California was flush with returning Gls with disposable income, these restyled custom cars became a massive industry and hobby that then spread across the country. Although coinciding with the post-war hot rod boom and sharing enthusiasts and progenitors, customs were distinct in their focus on aesthetic improvements rather than performance modifications. The most noteworthy examples of custom cars from this era were built by brothers George and Sam Barris at their shop, Barris Kustoms in the Los Angeles area. The Barris brothers began before the war and were pioneers in setting the style of the custom car. The ultimate example built at Barris Kustoms was the "Hirohata Merc." The Hirohata Merc was a 1951 Mercury Sport Coupe that received its name from its owner Masato (Bob) Hirohata who had the car restyled by the Barris brothers when it was virtually brand-new in 1952. It featured extensive body modifications, trim from a Buick, and pinstriping by legendary artist Von Dutch (Kenneth Howard). The Hirohata Mere appeared in numerous magazines and won countless awards, becoming one of the most ell-known customs in the era. The famed Mercury was also in the film Running Wild in 1955. The Mercury's low roof line and smoothed edges came to define the custom car trend and set the basic style that many knowingly or unknowingly mimicked when building their own modified cars.
  • Survey number: HAER CA-2328
  • Building/structure dates: 1951 Initial Construction
  • Building/structure dates: 1952 Subsequent Work
  • Building/structure dates: after. 1980- before. 1989 Subsequent Work
• Subjects:
  • vehicles
  • custom vehicles
  • automobiles
  • transportation
• Place:
  • California--Orange County--Orange
• Latitude/Longitude: 33.787914, -117.853101
• Collections:
  • Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record/Historic American Landscapes Survey
• Part of: Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)
• Bookmark This Record:
     https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/ca4307/

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• Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on images made by the U.S. Government; images copied from other sources may be restricted. http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/114_habs.html
• Reproduction Number: ---
• Call Number: HAER CA-2328
• Medium: Measured Drawing(s): 2

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You can download online images yourself. Alternatively, you can purchase copies of various types through Library of Congress Duplication Services.

HABS/HAER/HALS materials have generally been scanned at high resolution that is suitable for most publication purposes (see Digitizing the Collection for further details about the digital images).

• Photographs--All photographs are printed from digital files to preserve the fragile originals.
• Make note of the Call Number and Item Number that appear under the photograph in the multiple-image display (e.g., HAER, NY,52-BRIG,4-2).
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In the rare case that a digital image for HABS/HAER/HALS documentation is not displaying online, select images for reproduction through one of these methods:

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• P&P reading room staff can provide up to 15 quick copies of items per calendar year (many original items in the holdings are too old or fragile to make such copies, but generally HABS/HAER/HALS materials are in good enough condition to be placed on photocopy machines). For assistance, see our Ask a Librarian page OR
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• Call Number: HAER CA-2328
• Medium: Measured Drawing(s): 2

Please use the following steps to determine whether you need to fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room to view the original item(s). In some cases, a surrogate (substitute image) is available, often in the form of a digital image, a copy print, or microfilm.

1. Is the item digitized? (A thumbnail (small) image will be visible on the left.)

   • Yes, the item is digitized. Please use the digital image in preference to requesting the original. All images can be viewed at a large size when you are in any reading room at the Library of Congress. In some cases, only thumbnail (small) images are available when you are outside the Library of Congress because the item is rights restricted or has not been evaluated for rights restrictions.

     As a preservation measure, we generally do not serve an original item when a digital image is available. If you have a compelling reason to see the original, consult with a reference librarian. (Sometimes, the original is simply too fragile to serve. For example, glass and film photographic negatives are particularly subject to damage. They are also easier to see online where they are presented as positive images.)

   • No, the item is not digitized. Please go to #2.

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