Rare Canadian Mercury: 1956 Monarch Springs Back to Life After Years in a Barn

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a monarch is "a person who reigns over a kingdom or empire." But did you know it was also an automobile marque produced by Ford of Canada? Well, now you do!

The Monarch name was actually used by an American company founded by Joseph Bloom in 1913. Headquartered in Aurora, Illinois, the Monarch Motor Car Company built vehicles in Detroit, Michigan, for about three years. It went bankrupt in 1916.

The Ford-related Monarch brand was established in 1946. The cars were based on contemporary Mercury models, but featured trim elements developed specifically for the Canadian market. The Monarch line was discontinued in 1958 when Ford debuted the Edsel brand, but Ford of Canada reinstated the marque in 1959. Monarch was dropped for good after the 1961 model year.

One of Ford's lesser-known brands, Monarch was created so that smaller Canadian towns with a single dealer could offer a medium-priced automobile above Ford. Much like Lincoln-Mercury introduced the Meteor brand to offer a more affordable alternative. 

Much like Meteor and any other Canada-specific car line, the Monarch sold poorly compared to its American counterparts. Existing records show that the brand delivered only 95,450 units over 15 model years. Yes, these Canadian-spec Mercury models are quite rare.

The 1956 four-door sedan you see here, for instance, is one of only 700 units built. It was assembled in Oakville, Ontario, and it's a Richelieu model, which makes it a top-of-the-line sedan. The Richelieu slotted above the mid-priced Lucerne and the entry-level Custom.

What's really cool about this Monarch is that's it's an unrestored survivor. It's also a low-mileage classic; the odometer shows only 18,000 miles (28,968 km). The vehicle was reportedly parked in a barn for over a decade and was purchased by the new owner at auction sight unseen. Needless to say, they scored a pretty nice gem.

Like most barn finds, the Richelieu emerged with weathered paint and an interior that needs proper detailing to shine again. But it is in far better shape than many contemporary classics that have been neglected for decades. The sedan still has the original 312-cubic-inch (5.1-liter) Y-block V8 under the hood, which our hosts managed to revive.

Granted, this Monarch is still many hours of work away from being road-worthy, but it's great to know that it's getting the love it deserves. You just don't find unrestored survivors like these anymore.

Monarch produced a total of 7,998 automobiles in 1956, a notable drop from the 9,623 units shipped in 1955. This particular model was called the Phaeton, which denoted a pillarless four-door body style. This roof was only available on the range-topping Richelieu version, which also came in an exclusive convertible variant. The Richelieu was very similar to the US-made Mercury Montclair.