In the summer of 1891 Mondula “Mon” Leak, the showman-like head of San Francisco’s Leak Glove Co., took his custom-designed “advertising car” on a whistle-stop tour through Oregon.

Along with peddling his own firm’s wares, Leak brought with him representatives from “some of the best known and enterprising firms” who, at each stop, gave out “large samples of Royal Dutch Cocoa, Folger's Golden Gate Baking Powder, Sperry's Germea, etc.” He also brought along “a force of 18 painters” who splashed advertisements on fences, barns, and anywhere else they could lay their brushes. The traveling team also included “an electrician, cook, steward, book keeper, stenographer, and last but not least, the estimable wife of Manager Leak.”

Leak’s bespoke vehicle cost a whopping 30,000 dollars to build, so to subsidize the cost he swayed representatives from Placer County to pay five hundred dollars a month for the car to be dubbed “Placer County on Wheels.” The sides were painted with dramatic, Placer Co. related scenes and visitors to the train were shown flecks of real California gold, offered fresh fruit from the area, and given real estate brochures and other promotional materials.

In 1894 the vehicle was converted to the “Santa Clara on Wheels” and by 1897 Leak had added (to the already crowded train car) an authentic beached whale from the shores of the Monterey Bay.