Between World War I and the Great Depression, it was trendy for high-end automakers to introduce “junior marques,” which offered the same quality and beautiful design as the larger models, but in a smaller and more affordable form.

Essex was created to serve that role for the Hudson marque and quickly proved itself by outselling its parent courtesy of several AAA speed and endurance records earned at the Cincinnati Speedway.

Essex was early to recognize the growing interest in closed cars and eventually offered the nation’s lowest-priced version starting in 1922.

The sales success of the Essex contributed significantly to Hudson being the third-largest producer of American automobiles in 1929 but, by 1933, the Essex name was dropped entirely in favor of a new model called the Terraplane.

Essex first offered its novel boattail Speedabout in 1927.

After skipping the 1928 model year, the Speedabout returned for 1929.

Hudson officially labeled the Essex for 1929 “Essex the Challenger...