UPDATE: Last posted October 02, 2017.
Bob Legee, of Unique Variety Service, a business that provided mowing, snow plowing, and other landscaping services, wrote this testimonial for Jeep in 1946.
1946 Jeep Testimonial by Unique Variety Service
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Features Research Archives
Nelson, Nevada, Ghost Town Tour Video
Roger Martin shared this video from “Remote Trooper” that explores the ghost town of Nelson, Nevada, a place full of abandoned vehicles and other items. The tour includes a quick clip of an early Maverick Willys wagon complete with the rare emblem (at the 3:18 mark).
1946 Testimonial from the Wachusett Country Club
December 6, 2023 • CATEGORIES: Advertising & Brochures, Documents, Features, Old Images • TAGS: 1946-testimonials.
UPDATE: Last posted October 12, 2017
The photo of the jeep underneath the letter shows it without bow holders, but with an extra spare tire carrier. Does this mean the country club ordered it this way? Were the bow holders ever installed? There have been a couple early 2As that appeared unrestored, but without bow holders. I’ve wondered if they could be ordered that way.
Willys-Overland Porcelain Sign Johnston, RI $2750
Andy shared this sign, originally with neon. This would have been an early post-war sign.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/24697321019851283/
“3×6’ porcelain neon skin.”
Africa U.S.A. and Jeeps
UPDATE II: Here’s another Africa USA Postcard. It’s a available on eBay.
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UPDATED Aug 04, 2020: This post is an aggregation of Africa USA postcards and articles. Another postcard from the form adventure park popped up on eBay, this time with a CJ-5 pulling the trams:
View all the information on eBay
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Posted June 2019 on eBay, a CJ-3B pulling trams:
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From 2015: Africa USA, was part of a theme-park movement in the late 1950s that included New York’s Freedomland, Disneyland, Wisconsin’s Fort Dells, and others. By 1959, these parks were collectively generating revenue of $2 billion.
There is a feature article about these parks in the August 1, 1960, issue of Life Magazine. The picture below is from that article. You can take a ‘virtual’ jeep-train tour of Africa USA here (don’t expect much). 
This article appeared in the December 1955 issue of Willys News. That’s the jeep train behind the animals.
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Baier Lighter and Ashtray Gresham, OR $165
Blaine shared this lighter and ashtray from Baier. This one seems to be one of the more common ones, with no map on top. Compare it with these twohttp://www.ewillys.com/2020/11/24/baier-jeep-lighters-sold-on-ebay/#more-400806 or this one http://www.ewillys.com/2011/01/08/a-flatfender-ashtray-and-lighter-woods-cross-ut-80/. And here is a list of all the ones I’ve documented: http://www.ewillys.com/?s=baier
https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/atq/d/gresham-wwii-germany-ges-gesch-willys/7692050573.html
“Vintage WWII GERMANY GES-GESCH Willys JEEP Petrol Lighter & Ashtray Trailer. Very cool, made of aluminum with rubber tires. Under the top you would have kept your cigarettes. Measures 9 inch in length and stands 3 1/8 tall.”
What 1946 Willys Overland ‘Jeep’ Owners Say ….
UPDATE: This was first published September 13, 2014.
These testimonials are from a Willys Overland Sales book dated 1946.
Some Jeep Slides on eBay
December 2, 2023 • CATEGORIES: CJ5, DJ-3A, FC150-FC170-M677, Features, Fire/Police/Industry Vehicles • TAGS: Tour-Jeep.
Here are some slides with jeeps currently for sale on eBay. The first one is an unusual tour jeep that I hadn’t seen previously. It’s somewhere at least semi-tropical, based on the upper right tree.
1. Here’s an FC-170 setup as a tour jeep. It appears to include a bed-extension on the back.
2. This slide shows a yellow CJ-5 and a ticket office at Harney Peak Black Hills SD:
3. This next two slides share images from 1962 of a Maine Forest Service MB. This is slide one:
4. This is slide two:
5. And, finally, this slide shows a rare yellow DJ-3A used by the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce. I don’t have many vintage photos showing a DJ-3A in the original yellow color (though they do appear on several brochures).
1946 Testimonial from Maine
November 30, 2023 • CATEGORIES: Advertising & Brochures, Documents, Features • TAGS: 1946-testimonials.
UPDATE: This was originally posted May 17, 2014.
Louis Mattar and His Cadillac Fleetwood
Scott spotted a story about Louis Mattar and his amazing Cadillac Fleetwood, which he and friends drove non-stop from the west coast to the west coast and back. Later, he drove it from Alaska to Mexico City, again non-stop. The article is worth a read!
Here’s the article from Haggerty: https://www.hagerty.com/media/automotive-history/more-than-70-years-ago-louie-mattar-drove-6320-miles-non-stop-in-his-fantastic-perpetual-motion-machine/
And, I found this video:
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And this earlier video from 1954, which shows them changing the front tire:
Finally, here’s a more modern CBS report about the car’s new home at a San Diego museum:
Testimonials: Williams Brothers Engineers
UPDATE: This was first posted February 13, 2014.
The testimonial is good, but the picture less so.
Ford GPA Seep Model Canby, OR $200
Blaine spotted this cardboard-like model built to be a Ford GPA. The seller provides a variety notes related to it.
https://portland.craigslist.org/clc/clt/d/canby-model-vintage-1946-wwii-ford-gpa/7688459653.html
“Vintage model, World War II Ford GPA amphibious jeep, aka “seep”, built in 1946
*** No replies to text messages
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If you are researching this or a similar item on-line please thank those who have provided detailed information (quality, in-focus photos, drawings, measurements, history, etc.) on various websites by contributing your DETAILED information so others may benefit from your experience. Pay it forward.
DESCRIPTION –
How unique is this?
A surviving BUILT WWII-era model … and not an airplane or boat.
And this model is hand-dated on the bottom: “DM Aug 13-14, 1946”.
It does not appear to be a Leddy (tires are different, also shorter and narrower), Mod-AC (longer than 7 inches), or RedYCut (longer than 7 3/4 inches) model.
Continue reading
Super Jeep Crock Jug Promo Item $750
November 28, 2023 • CATEGORIES: Features
I’ve never documented one of these crock jugs, but there was a coffee cup with the same logo that was on eBay back in 2012.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/504222807022283/permalink/1516580865786467/
“SUPER JEEP crock jug very rare promotional item $750”
November 1962 Jeep News
Sadly, this is the last issue from the batch of Jeep News issues purchased last month. I’ll watch for more to hit eBay …
The eight pages of the November 1962 issue of Jeep News directs most of its pages to the new jeep models, which isn’t too surprising. Apart from that, page six covers the 3rd Annual Jeepathon race at Las Cruces, New Mexico, while page seven highlights more support for the Hatari movie.
Liberator Belgique Wood Jeeps
I won the ebay auction for these two interesting wood jeeps. Each measures 6-1/2″ long x 4′ high x 3″ wide. I tried to look up some information about them, but didn’t have any luck. That said, I just had a gut feeling that there was something interesting here, so I bought them. Anyone know more about them?
September 1962 Jeep News
This September 1962 eight-page issue of Jeep News begins with Lloyd Bridges. He headlined a half-hour show called “Kaiser Presents The Lloyd Bridges Show”; not exactly a catchy name!
I was surprised to see on page two that it wasn’t until mid 1962 that the Go-For-Digger trencher officially became a ‘Jeep’-approved special equipment item (other official ‘Jeep’ trencher being the Jeep-A-Trench). Page five highlights the second annual Jeeporama, held in Denver.
Page six re-highlights the Hatari craze, encouraging dealers to continue promoting the movie.
Note the CJ-5 in the upper right of Page seven. The top looks someone like a Koenig hardtop, but the rear side glass appears to be a custom size. I don’t recognize this top. Anyone else? Lower on Page seven is the 1962 World’s Fair Jeep Surrey. Two days ago I found my mother’s caricature drawing made for her at the ’62 fair. I’ll ask my aunt if she remembers this jeep.
Page eight shares a pic from the 10th annual Jeepers Jamboree, along with announcing the 4×4 Explorers, a ‘jeep’ club organized in Missouri.
August 1962 Jeep News
November 21, 2023 • CATEGORIES: Advertising & Brochures, Features • TAGS: =[, jeep-train, Jeep-Willys-News.
This eight page August 1962 Jeep News Issue leans heavily Hatari. Pages one, four, five and six all focus on Hatari-related images and stories.
Page two notes that the Post Office order for FJ-3s had grown to 7,082 multi-stop vans, of which almost 6,000 were already operating in over 600 cities. Pages three, seven, and eight offer a potpourri of jeep-related images and captions.
Oct. 1944 Pop Mechanics Sidewalk Jeep Instructions
The October 1944 issue of Popular Mechanics included instructions for building a “Sidewalk” jeep for kids (pgs 105-108). It also included on page six this image of an MB turned into a fire jeep.
Now, for “Coasting in a Sidewalk Jeep”:
Willys Dealership Sign in Moab, Utah
Paul was browsing Facebook when he ran across this image from Moab, Utah, on the Canyon County Zephyr FB group page that includes this early 1950s Willys dealership sign (left side of image). You can see this sign in this 1952 signage brochure (WO11): http://www.ewillys.com/2021/02/13/1952-willys-signage-brochure/
There are some ads by this entity on Newspapers.com, but you’ll need a subscription to see them.
June 1962 Jeep News
This eight-page issue published for June of 1962 starts with the movie Hatari! Pages two and three are all about dealers (and some love for Tornado engines). Most of pages four through seven cover more Hatari info. Page eight highlights the seventh annual Truth or Consequences (NM) ‘Jeep’ Derby. I plan to go back at some point and figure out when the ‘Jeep’ News began covering club and race information. At some point during the late 1950s – early 1960s the notion of jeeps as “fun”, rather than just utility workhorses, enters both the ‘Jeep’ news and Jeep’s advertising. I’m want to learn more about that subtle shift.
Slides of Wagon and Travel Trailer from 1959-1963
These four slides on eBay show a wagon that pulled two different travel trailers over four years.
1959 Jan – 35mm Slide 1950s Willys Jeep Utility Wagon & Travel Trailer:
1960 – 35mm Slide Two 1950s Willys Jeep Utility Wagons & Aristocrat Travel Trailer:
1960 Nov – 35mm Slide 1950s Willys Jeep Utility Wagon & Aristocrat Travel Trailer:
1963 Feb – 35mm Slide 1950s Willys Jeep Utility Wagon & Aristocrat Travel Trailer:
Testimonial: Willys of Providence
UPDATE: This was originally published November 03, 2013.
Here’s another testimonial, this time from Willys of Providence, Inc.
May 1962 Jeep News
The first few pages of this twelve-page issue cover the introduction of the Tornado engine. For some reason, there’s a small portion of page 3-4 that’s been cut out. I’m not exactly sure why. Page five highlights a row of FCs delivered to the New Jersey Turnpike, while another article discusses Mrs. Delta Burrece’s use of four jeeps to deliver aid tosome Cherokee Indians. Page eight introduces the movie “Magic Tide“, which included a Surrey. The movie was a featurette that seems to have disappeared into obscurity. Page nine shares more information on Kentucky nurses, something covered by these news articles I originally shared in 2018 (or see post below). On page twelve is an article about jeeps operating on a Hawaiian Ranch.
Kentucky’s Frontier Nursing Service & Jeeps
The Frontier Nursing Service in one of their jeeps.
Thanks to Bus for spotting this interesting story. Stared in 1925 by Mary Breckinridge, the Frontier Nursing Service (FNS) provided healthcare to rural folks in Kentucky. At first, horses and saddlebags helped them gain access to remote areas, but during WWII the group turned to jeeps. As these photos show, over the years FNS used a variety of different jeeps. There is even a 1931 documentary about the group (with additional information here):
In the late 1930s Edsel Ford donated a reconditioned Model A to the Service, which Mary named Henrietta. Several years later Ford replaced Henrietta with Henrietta II, a jeep. At some point the FNS secured another jeep, a WWII jeep Mary named “Jane”, named for a benefactor Clara “Jane” Ford”.
According to the Henry Ford website, this jeep was “Jane”.
March 1962 Jeep News
November 14, 2023 • CATEGORIES: Advertising & Brochures, Features • TAGS: jeep-train, Jeep-Willys-News.
This eight-page-issue starts with jeeps at the Chicago Show (see page 2 for a wide-photo of the display). As part of my thoughts for a jeep museum, I envisioned a world in the center of a circular room (sort of like what is shown in the front page pic below) and rope attached between the earth, pointing to where a manufacturer was located, and the the other end of the rope connecting to the wall with images and pics related. Then, for more topical related items (such as the jeep’s use with coffee in Colombia) there would be smaller strings connecting the spot on the planet with information on the wall. The northern hemisphere would be on a second floor and the southern hemisphere on the first floor. In my head it works, lol.
Page three has a reference about an FC that was taken to Alaska by Wells M. Fox and his sister Mrs. Leo J. Miller.
Pages four and five have many dealer references.
Pages six, seven, and eight show off a variety of jeep uses, including a tram setup pulled by an FC-170 with front wheel drive only. There were two of these trams made.
