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Carl Sandburg’s 1962 CJ-6 in Flat Rock, North Carolina

• CATEGORIES: Features This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Pulitzer Prize winning poet and author Carl Sandburg was the owner of a CJ-6 which can still be seen at his form home, now a National Historic Site, in Flat Rock, North Carolina (presently closed to tours due to Covid). It looks like a beautifully persevered CJ-6.

carl-sandburg-home-national-cj6

From this page which has some beautiful photos of Carl’s estate: https://lavilo.com/travel-book/carl-sandburg-home

According to a 2016 comment on Pinterest, “This 1962 Willys Jeep was a gift to Carl Sandburg for his help in writing the script for the movie The Greatest Story Ever Told. It is on display in what was once the Goat Dairy building at Connemara, his home and farm for the latter years of his life in Flat Rock, NC.”

 
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1953 Photo of Mighty Mite w/Helicopter

• CATEGORIES: Features, Mighty Mites, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This photo appeared in the August 19, 1953, issue of the Dayton Daily News (Ohio). Interestingly, the original press photo does not have the helicopter in the background …

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PHOTO CREDIT: August 19, 1953, issue of the Dayton Daily News (Ohio)

Here’s what appears to be the original photo:

View all the information on eBay

“Photo is 10″x 8″in size.”

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Old Photo (Negative) of CJ-2A w/ Wilt Ranch Lettering

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This photo sold recently on eBay for $15.49. I tried to learn more about Wilt Ranch, but was unsuccessful.

“1940s era photo Negative Willys Jeep AUTO Car WILT RANCH Owner gives TOUR.”

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1953 Article on the Air Force’s M-38 “Jiffy Fix-it” Jeep

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Anyone seen other pics of this modified jeep?

1953-08-19-dayton-daily-news-m38-jiffy-fix-it-jeep-lores

 
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Grandpa Crosses the Golden Crack

• CATEGORIES: Features, videos This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This video from 2019 proved popular enough that several folks have sent it to me. Stock jeeps can do some impressive things, especially when driven by someone who knows what their jeep can and can’t do.

 
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1947 Photo of Nita Electric “House Jeep”

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Wood bodies This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Steve spotted this photo from the University of Kentucky’s archives. It shows a modified MB/GPW with a ‘house’ over it for weather protection.  I assume the owner of the jeep was also the owner of Nita Electric. The image below shows only the jeep; you can view the full photo here.

Someone spent took some care to do a nice refurb of this jeep. The bolt details on the rims and frame look really good.

 

 
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1953 Willys-Overland Dealer Ad Mats for Newspapers

• CATEGORIES: Advertising & Brochures, Features This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

In 1953 Willys-Overland shared these mat examples of ads on one page (15″x20″) with its dealers. I’m amazed that any of these surprised, as it is printed on newspaper.

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Photo of Tour Jeep Navigating the Chimney Rock Jeep Trail

• CATEGORIES: Features • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: Started as a private endeavor, Chimney Rock was a tourist attraction for most of the 20th Century (more history here). In 1963 a Jeep Trail was added to the Chimney Rock and a tour jeep began ferrying tour groups up the mountain. The tour company had three modified CJ-6 tour jeeps. This photo was likely taken between 1963 and 1977, when the jeep trail became a walking trail. In 2006 Chimney Rock became a North Carolina State Park.

The photo below was taken from the website, but no longer appears on the history page itself.

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This same photo is available on eBay

“You are bidding on an original press photo of Forest Jeep Trail Chimney Rock Park North Carolina. Photo measures 8 x 10 inches and is not dated.”

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There’s another press photo that is also available on eBay which shows a tour jeep at Hickory Nut Falls, a stop on the way to Chimney Rock:

View all the information on ebay

“You are bidding on an original press photo of Hickory Nut Falls Tourist Jeep Chimney Rock Prk North Carolina. Photo has creases right corners & slight waving top edge due to too much glue being used to attach the information sheet onto the back of the photo. Photo measures 8 x 10 inches and is dated 8/5/1969.”

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Wannatoy Wagons by Dillon Beck Manufacturing

• CATEGORIES: Features, toys This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE II: I managed to track down all four colors of wagons on eBay.

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The four known colors of the Wannatoy Wagons by Dillon Beck Mfg.

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UPDATE Posted July 2020:  It turns out that I I had “Wanna Toy” as two separate words, but the brand name is actually “Wannatoy”. 

From Chriscollectibles.com: Wannatoy, the trademark of Dillon Beck Manufacturing Co., produced toys made of acetate plastic.  Based in New Jersey, they manufactured numerous toy vehicles (as well as doll house furniture, pot and pan sets and possibly other toys) after the end of WWII through the late 1950s.

From “O’Brien’s Collecting Toy Cars & Trucks” book, 1990, “Wannatoy was among the first toy makers off the starting block at the end of World War II. Of the millions of children born during the war, and the millions more who arrived soon afterward, a good percentage played with Wannatoys.

What seems to have been the company’s first offering, the twenty-five-cent futurist Coupe, was a hit toy for Christmas of 1945, selling a million units that season. With streamlined, Deco-influenced body and bible top, the Couple continued to sell well into the 1950s.”

Here’s an ad (thanks to Andy) from 1952 (available on eBay). The ad suggests there were only three colors of wagons, but doesn’t indicate what those were. So far, I’ve identified four colors (red, green, blue, purple … see them at the bottom of this post).

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And this is an example of the packaging. The company targeted both girl and boys:

wannatoy-packaging

And this is an example of a display box (available with toys on eBay):

wannatoy-boy-display

And now for the wagons …Here’s a photo of a blue wagon I just picked up.

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And, this is an example of a (florescent looking) green wagon that I hope to acquire in a few days:

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Cutlas 1961 Power-Lock and Selective Drive Brochures

• CATEGORIES: Advertising & Brochures, Features • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

The Form-104 Selective drive brochure I’ve seen previously, but I’ve not seen the 1961 Power-Lock brochure.

This Power-Lock brochure is a tri-fold brochure that folds from 3.5″ x 5.5″ to 10.5″ x 5.5″

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This folded Cutlass Selective drive brochure has a form number of 104, but lacks a date. It is small, only folding in half from 3.5″ x 5.5″ to 7″ x 5.5″

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The “Jeep Club” of El Paso, Texas

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

A January 18, 1953, article in the El Paso Times shared the story of seven young men who formed “the jeep club”. There was no fancy name attached to it. They guys liked to explore the surrounding mountains, hunt jack rabbits, trap coyotes, and play with their jeeps.

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On the same page as the jeep article was an article about the first mail route in the United States, one that operated between Roswell and Torrance, New Mexico. The mail (and the occasional passengers) were ferried on the YELLOW DEVIL, an assemblage of discarded auto parts; that kind of sounds like a few jeeps I’ve known.

Obviously, this article was written before the aliens reached Roswell, because, rather than known for “progress of modern development (was it really known for that?)”, it’s pretty much famous for other-worldly visitors.

Make sure to reach the final story, one in the far right lower corner. Need rats for an experiment? One scientist discovered an easy way to get them …

1953-01-18-el-paso-times-first-mail-delivery-lores

 
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A CJ-2A Joins the Circus Ballet

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This photo from July 04, 1946, in the Portola Register (out of Portola, California) shows famed clown Emmet Kelly helping Aileen Darnay step out of a CJ-2A, a jeep that was new to the circus. I wonder if the “WILLYS JEEP” painted on the hood was a form of advertising that reduced the cost of the jeep to the circus?

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Postcard of Wisconsin Deer Park on eBay

• CATEGORIES: Features, Postcards • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: Here’s another example of a Wisconsin Dells Jeep Train, probably from the mid-1960s.

View all the information on eBay

“3-1/2 x 5-1/2 (Standard Size) postcard.”

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Originally Posted April of 2017: Seth spotted this postcard depicting a jeep pulling visitor trams at the Wisconsin Deer Park at the Wisconsin Dells. Opened in the 1950s (see history here), the park still operates, but there’s no evidence that the trams are still used, The closest thing to a jeep tram is a kids train.

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1945 Photo Gen. Omar Bradley and Mar. Ivan Koev on eBay

• CATEGORIES: Features, Library Collections, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: Here’s a second version of this press photo.

Also, Thanks to Lester (who found a front view of this same jeep in the Concord Armor At War series # 7058 titled The US Army Jeep at War by Steven Zaloga on page 70) we also now know that the inscription reads: To the Commander of the First Ukrainian Army Group from Soldiers of the American Armies of the 12th Army Group ….  Lester believes the same thing is painted in Russian on the hood. The jeep also has the insignia of the major formations of Bradleys command on the cowling between the hood and windshield. Finally, apparently the picture in the book clearly shows the two extra holes in the front bumper making it a GPW model.

Here’s another press photo that captures the gift of a jeep by General Omar Bradley to Marshal Ivan Konev of the Russian Army. Six days later, Marshal Konev responded in kind with the gift of a horse to General Bradley, the inspection of which was captured in the latter half of this video.

View all the information on eBay

“This is an original press photo. Bradley, Omar (General) (United States of America). General Omar Bradley, commander of the United States Twelfth Army Group, presents an American carbine and jeep foreground to Marshal Ivan Konev of the Russian Army following banquet celebrating the victories of their troops, near Berlin, May 5. This photo was taken by William C. Allen Associated Press Photographer with the wartime still picture pool. Photo measures 10.5 x 7.25inches. Photo is dated 5-5-1945.”

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Here’s another photo of the two with the jeep from Pintrest, which originally found it within the Truman Archives. The there are other jeep photos in the archives:

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Marshal Koniev (foreground, second from left) receives a United States Army Jeep as a gift from General Omar Bradley (foreground, left). General Bradley, commander of the United States 12th Army Group, had crossed over into Russian lines to meet Marshal Koniev, commander of the Russian 1st Ukrainian Army Group’s headquarters which was then located southeast of Torgau. All others are unidentified.

This photo is part of a series of photos shared by the families of famous Russian/Soviet families. There are other photos on this page that captured the first documented meeting of Russians and Americans on April 25,1945, near the German town of Torgau on the Elbe river.

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Wooden Kids Wagon with Trailer Princeton, IL $2800

• CATEGORIES: Features, Models, toys This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: Still Available.

(07/12/2020) Looks fun.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/315228506185780/

“1951 Willy’s Jeep replica. Wood body 18 1/2 horse Briggs motor. Fun toy for all ages. Hand made”

wood-wagon-princeton-il2 wood-wagon-princeton-il3 wood-wagon-princeton-il4

 
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1957 Article on Wheeler-Walker’s Printshot

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This April 30, 1957, article highlights the speedy service it’s red-themed jeeps and other delivery vehicles make possible. Attempts to learn more about this shop were unsuccessful, as there is a singer from the region named Wheeler Walker, so his stuff dominates the search returns.

Clipping from The Miami News - Newspapers.com

 
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CJ-5 Dealer Promotional Jeep **SOLD**

• CATEGORIES: Features, Models This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: This sold on eBay Sunday night for $57.01 Plus $8.50 shipping. It had some damage in the tail gate area.

“I am offering for sale, a 1950’s-1960’s, Jeep Dealer Sales Promotional Model, Cast Metal. It is in Very Good Condition, Original, 5 3/4 inches, rubber tires, opening hood, folding windshield, heavy, tip of left side of front bumper broke off. Not sure if it was a dealer sales award or what. Nice looking Jeep”

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CJ-5 Farms Jeeps at Farm Jeep

• CATEGORIES: Features, videos This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

In his pursuit of CJ-5 Farm Jeep information, Barry shared the story of two CJ-5s jeeps used with a hay bailer out of California. The post includes many stills and a some youtube video from the jeeps in action.

https://www.farmjeep.com/robert-millers-hayfield-hero-jeeps/

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https://www.farmjeep.com/robert-millers-hayfield-hero-jeeps/

 
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2 Photos Showing CJ-6 at Hell’s Half Acre on eBay

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.
Hellís Half Acre Marker

Hell’s Half Acre Marker, Hell’s Half Acre, Wyoming … this photo was posted to the Historical Market Database, which I didn’t know existed.

The following two Polaroid photos show a CJ-6 available for a jeep tour of Hell’s Half Acre in Wyoming. The tour was located at Hell’s Half Acre’s post office, which opened in 1940. This page contains a photo of the post office from 1947; souvenirs were available, but no jeep tours at that time. The post office appears to have been leveled sometime in the 1990s or later.

View all the information on eBay

“2 Original Vintage Snapshot Photos Hell’s Half Acre Post Office & Hamburgers “
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There is also this partial, color slide from 1960 that was likely taken about the same time:

View all the information on eBay

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Chimpanzees and Battery Powered Jeeps

• CATEGORIES: Advertising & Brochures, Features, Old Images, Old News Articles, Postcards • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: A newspaper article from May 20, 1950, published in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, provides more information about the jeep-driving circus chimp named Nero. He passed away later in the year.
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Originally Posted January of 2013: This 1950 postcard shows some chimpanzees driving a battery powered jeep.  They were part of a Chimpanzee show at the St. Louis zoo started in 1925. Chimps were taught to ride bicycles, tricycles, motorcycles, ponies, a Great Dane, and more. You can learn more about them in the January 8, 1951, issue of Life Magazine.

“VINTAGE POSTCARD – CONDITION: VG. DATE/ERA: 1950s-60s. Standard Size 3.5×5.5.”

View all the information on eBay

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You can view some additional pictures at Jalopy Journal (scroll part way down the page). The quality seems good enough that they may be from Life Magazine, but I tried, but failed to locate their original source. Here is one of the images.

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On December 13, 1950, several newspapers announced that Nero had passed away. Here’s an article from the Southern Illinoisan:

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1961 Photo of a CJ-2L(?) Pest Control Jeep

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This 1961 photo of a lengthened CJ-2A pest control jeep with a sprayer unit can be found in the Wyoming Digital Archives. Given CJ-2L’s, those extended CJ-2As that appear to have been modified in Spokane and sometimes re-stamped as CJ-2L, were sold out of both Spokane and Montana (see ad examples at the bottom), it is highly probable this could have found its way from either location.

This particular jeep likely has a Porter-Reed aluminum half-cab.

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View the photo in the Wyoming Digital Archives.

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View this example at the Wyoming Digital Archives.

CJ-2L long-wheel-base and CJ-2A extended ads:

This January 1953 ad seems the clearest in terms of a long-wheel-base CJ-2A. Other dealers in the Spokane and Missoula areas carried “lengthened”, “extended” or “long-wheel-base” CJ-2As as well. I believe the ‘extended’ jeeps were likely ones with extended rears, though whether that meant a permanent extension or a bolt on extension is not clear to me.

Fields Motor Company was in Dishman, Washington, which has since been absorbed by suburban Spokane.

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January 19, 1951, Spokesman Review

Here’s an example from 1949. Sandifur Motors was profiled earlier this year:

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December 11, 1949, Spokesman Review

Here’s an example of one ad from 1951. Burhart was a dealer out of Spokane, Washington.

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February 18, 1951, Spokesman Review

 
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1963 Jeep News International Vol. 9 No. 7

• CATEGORIES: Advertising & Brochures, Features • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

I have a two year gap between my 1961 issues of Jeep News and this one from late 1963. During that period, the name was changed from Jeep News to Jeep News International. The use of months as part of the dating system were dropped in favor of using a volume and issue number.

Not surprisingly, the introduction of Wagoneers and Gladiators changed the focus to the full-size jeeps, but there are still legacy jeep photos and articles.

Photos Photos Photos Photos Photos

 
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October 1945 Photos that Include a Willys MA

• CATEGORIES: Bantam-FordGP-WillysMA-EarlyJPs, Features, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This October 30, 1945, photo coverage from the Rocky Mount Telegram, out of North Carolina, highlights the start of the 8th War Loan drive. It included a photo of a Willys MA leading a series of elephants.

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1951 Article w/ Jeep Helping Circus

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This May 10, 1951, article  in the Abilene Reporter-News shows a newly acquired MB/GPW hoisting a circus tent for the Gainesville Community Circus. The jeep was modified to drive stakes, pull stakes, and hoist canvas. Though the circus had been active since the 1930s, this May event was the first time the circus had travelled outside the Gainesville, Texas, area, according to the article at the bottom of the post. Three years later, in 1954, the circus was destroyed by fire.

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Six months earlier, this November 11, 1950, article appeared in Billboard Magazine:

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FC-170 Photo on eBay

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Steve spotted this photo. It looks like the FC is about to pull a camper shell out of a garage.

View all the information on eBay

“Pleased to offer an original 1950’s photograph. Photograph measures approximately 5 x 4 inches and has wear consistent with age.”

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