This photo of a CJ-5 with a bed extension (possibly Kent Frost’s jeep) was taken in the Needles District of Canyonlands in 1963 or 1964. It can be viewed more in-depth at the Utah State Historical Society’s website.
Features Research Archives
1945 Article About Jeep Drivers
This October 14, 1945, article by Earl Albert Selle (more on him below) in the Honolulu Advertiser shared a few stories about the dangers faced by jeep drivers in the Pacific Theater. Brown University has a collection of Earl Selle’s correspondence, articles, photos, and other materials. The collection also contains materials from William Henry Donald, about who Selle wrote a book called “Donald in China” in 1948 (which sounds like an interesting book, also available here). There are pics of the book on Etsy.
Earl Albert Selle, was born around 1887 in Seattle. His early life was full of adventure. During WWII he went blind, as was probably blind when he wrote the above column. But, that didn’t stop him from being adventurous. It is claimed he made news in 1961 when he wrote about becoming an aviator and flying a plan with the help of a seeing-eye-pilot. You can learn more about Earl in this obituary:
1942 Photo of Gunnery Target at Wendover Airfield
Thanks to Roger Martin for spotting this photo on Facebook. This 1942 photo shows a jeep carrying an elevated target to help with shooting practice at Wendover Airfield. The photo was posted on Facebook by Damon Viola after he visited the The Historic Wendover Airfield Museum in Utah. He added, “This is a WWII Army Air Base dedicated in part to training the flight crew of the Enola Gay for the atomic bomb drop in Japan. If you’re ever in Western Utah I urge you to stop and check it out.”
Photo of a Fire Department Jeep in Parade on eBay
UPDATE: This is back on eBay.
This looks to be a press photo of a fire department jeep from the city of Columbus, Georgia, The date of the photo appears to be March 27, but I can’t make out the year on the right side of the photo (maybe ’53). I think the posters on the grille read “Don’t let FIRE lick YOU”.
View all the information on eBay
“Press Photo Fire Department Jeep Col92671 10X8 Photo Photo Is Undated.”
Marx M-38A1 Toy Jeep w/Box Winchester, KY $125
Tom spotted this toy M-38A1 with what appears to be the original box.
https://lexington.craigslist.org/tag/d/winchester-1960s-marx-jeep-in-box/7193799628.html
“Made for Marx Buddy Charlie, GI Joe, and other 1/6 scale figures. Jeep is in extremely good condition. Box in very good condition with cardboard inserts. Only real box damage is on a end flap. Tear on corner. $125 firm.”
1945 Article About Americans Out of Luck on Buying Jeeps
This article appeared in the June 19, 1945, issue of the Tucson Citizen out of Arizona. One bit of info mentions that a Chicago junk dealer bought “a small mountain” of smashed jeeps. Could that have been the King of Jeeps himself Hyrum Berg?
Jeeps in Japan Given Facelifts
An article from January 4, 1947, in the Honolulu Advertiser (and other publications) shared the news that the Japanese were customizing jeeps for civilian use.
1946 Ad in Alabama for the new ‘Jeep’
This June 27, 1946, ad by the Little Motor Company in Alabama’s The Baldwin Times Bay newspaper is one of the better full-page adds that I’ve seen.
1946 Article About Buying a Jeep in Europe
It’s not clear to me who the author of this article is, but he describes the “red tape” he and other must overcome to purchase jeep in Europe. His story appeared in the May 30, 1946, issue of the Tipton Daily Tribune out of Tipton, Indiana.
1946 Opening of Carl’s Motor Company in Wilmington, CA
UPDATE: Well, clearly the exhaustion got the best of me on this post. I thought this was a North Carolina story, when in fact it was a California story.
This November 11, 1946, article in the Wilmington Daily Press Journal highlights the opening of Carl’s Motor Company. I’d love to see an original of that photo.
1946 Article on Jeeps (& etc) Keeping Docs Busy
This article in the April 14, 1946, issue of the Daily Oklahoman, highlighted jeeps, among other issues, with causing injuries in Tokyo.
June 1946 Surplus Jeep Sales w/ Serial Numbers
UPDATE: I’ve added high-resolution examples of each of these articles. You can download the zipped file here: jeep-serial-numbers-sale-in-hawaii.zip
This is a cool find. It announces the first sale of jeeps to veterans in Hawaii for personal use (as well as business). There have got to be a few jeeps still around that originated at this surplus sale. This was published in the June 01, 1946, issue of the Hawaii Tribune-Herald (page 4). I’ve divided up the list into multiple images. At the bottom of this post is a link for the entire clipping.
FC-150 Outside Bar & Grill in Rawlins, WY
No Updates today, but Ann flew into MN and will accompany me back, so there should be some updates in a day or two.
While trying to locate a place for Betty Page to pee on the way to MN, I ran across this FC-150 outside Big City Bar & Grille in Rawlins, Wyoming.
And from this angle …
Jack & Doreen’s 1958 Wagon Trip from Australia to England
UPDATE: Gil’s hoping to reconnect with he Shakespeare family, so I’m reposting this in the hopes some family member might see it.
Original Post January 18, 2017 — Bill shared the video below from Jack and Doreen Shakespeare. Together, the couple recount their 1958 journey in a late 40’s wagon from Australia to England. The trip took them 114 days. Fortunately for us, they filmed much of the trip. It’s a great story.
1969 Jeep Wagoneer **SOLD**
This 1969 Jeep Wagoneer was spotted by Dan. It’s already sold, but still worth a look:
July 1946 Jeep Surplus List
Some of the serial numbers are the same, but it also appears to include some new ones (I only did a cursory comparison). This appeared in the July 11, 1946, issue of The Honolulu Advertiser.
September 1946 Jeep Surplus Sale
This ad appeared in the September 06, 1946, issue of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. I have not compared this list to the previous lists, but it sure appears that a lot of jeeps sold over the summer of 1946. This list also contains more non-jeep vehicles.
Quick Trip to MN
UPDATE (late Monday night): Well, it being 2020, this plan went awry. A few hours before we were going to leave, Ann’s mother had a breathing episode (she has COPD), so Ann couldn’t join me. That means I’m doing a solo trip with our 10-month old puppy and returning with a second puppy.
We’ve decided to get a full sister for our newest pup, as we don’t think our older dog will be around much longer (he’s got a bad heart). So, we’ll be on the road the next few days to Minnesota and back. Updates will continue, but I likely won’t be very responsive to email. We don’t plan on any reader stops or fun explorations, so I expect there will be little to report. Our goal is to beat the coming cold weather, avoid the virus, and return quickly so that Ann’s mother isn’t by herself for too long (we’ve lined up support for her while gone).
July 1962 No-Low-High Road Brochure
I like the full-layout image of the country and jeeps on this brochure. It’s form number is DM 62-07.
1942-1943 Photo of Lt. General Walter Krueger on eBay
There’s no date associated with this photo, but General Krueger made Lt. Gen. in 1941. Given the jeep appears to be an MB, then this is most likely a 1942 or 1943 photo.
While in Louisiana, according to Wikipedia, the General adapted quickly to modern warfare, In at least two different phases of mock battles, the Lt. Gen. out gamed his opponents. He’d later use similar strategies to confront Japanese forces in the Pacific Theatre. After the war, he authored From Down under to Nippon: The Story of the Sixth Army in World War II.
View all the information on eBay
“Press Photo Lieutenant General Walter Krueger and Soldiers with Army Jeep. This is an original press photo. When a three star general roams the maneuver country, no cushioned limousine will do the job. Lieutenant General Walter Krueger, left above, confers with Staff Sargent M. Hanson about the ground-covering capabilities of his “war” Jeep, complete with two-way radio, siren, and – just to clear the road – the General’s three-starred flag. Both the Jeep and General have a task ahead – for General Krueger, as Commanding General of the Third Army, will direct strenuous maneuvers in the battle-tough Louisiana area.Photo measures 9.25 x 7.5inches. Photo is dated –None.”
8 Wagon Ads Between 1947-1951 on eBay
These eight ads featuring wagons have a good starting price of $14.95. You can use the links below to date the ads.
- 1946-1947 Ads: http://www.ewillys.com/2019/05/15/1946-1947-w-o-saturday-evening-post-ads/
- 1948-1949 Ads: http://www.ewillys.com/2019/05/18/willys-overland-sat-evening-post-ads-1948-1949/
- 1950-1951 Ads: http://www.ewillys.com/2019/05/21/1950-and-1951-ads-from-the-saturday-evening-post/
View all the information on eBay
“EIGHT original 10×13″ magazine ads in very good condition.”
1956? Kaiser-Willys of Canada Ad on eBay
I”m guessing this ad is from 1956 given it’s sharing the news of the new CJ-6. The seller has incorrectly dated this to the 1930s.
View all the information on eBay
“Kaiser-Willys Jeep AD. Condition is “Used”. Shipped with USPS First Class.CJ-6 4wd 1930s”
1956 Sierras Jeep Trip Article
This July 30, 1956, article in the Sacramento Bee gave a brief description of the late July jeep trip over the Sierras.
Art Hasler’s 1945 Experiences in Germany
A search for something else led me from a jeep photo (below) to a post about Major Art Hasler’s experience in Germany. The post is mixed with original and period photos, a few of which include jeeps. His story about Karl von Frisch’s work on bees was fascinating to Art, and later to the Nobel Price Committee, as he won the Nobel Price for his work on the social behavior of bees.
Read the full post here: http://haslerhistory.blogspot.com/2016/07/adh-1945-strategic-bombing-survey-photo_26.html
1946 Letter About Troublesome Hunters in Jeeps
It wasn’t all rainbows and unicorns when civilian jeeps arrived. This August 20, 1946, article highlights hunting conflicts in the woods. I can’t blame these hunters for being angry …