#FrankHarrison

J. Frank Harrison Jr. was a prominent Tennessee industrialist and senior executive within the family-owned Coca-Cola bottling enterprise based in Chattanooga, part of the pioneering network of independent Coca-Cola bottlers that grew out of the first franchise established by his grandfather in 1902. The company’s role was to bottle, package, and distribute Coca-Cola under franchise in designated territories, making it a cornerstone of the brand’s early expansion across the American South. A deliberately private man, Harrison avoided public association between his business and his racing activities, often describing himself simply as a glass manufacturer, and his competition cars were known as Harrison Specials rather than carrying Coca-Cola branding. In motorsport he was one of the classic American “sportsman” entrants of the 1950s and 1960s, progressing from SCCA regional racing to USAC professional road racing and even Formula One and Indy-style competition, fielding Maserati 450S and Tipo 61 “Birdcage” sports cars, Lotus 18 and 19 single-seaters and his own Harrison Specials for leading drivers such as Jim Hall, Lloyd Ruby and Carroll Shelby, while also racing Formula Junior cars himself. He spent heavily on the sport over roughly a decade, more out of passion than financial return, and became known as a thoughtful, technically involved team owner who expected his equipment to be treated with care. The Harrison bottling legacy is continued today by his grandson, J. Frank Harrison III, who leads Charlotte-based Coca-Cola Consolidated, a major Fortune 500 Coca-Cola bottler in the United States.

We'll publish a biography on him on the occasion of his anniversary or when it will be reached a sufficient number of cars.

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The census of all the cars related to this topic is in progress.