Roberto Flores shared this image from another group of an older jeep pulling floats. The hardtop is unusual and was usually seen in Europe, but it’s my guess that this was taken in California somewhere. I was able to use Google search to locate the same pic on Jalopy Journal.
Old Images Research Archives
1945 Photo of Jeeps in Vienna on eBay
This Signal Corps photo dated November 27, 1945, shows jeeps following the additions of hardtop and likely other winterization changes.
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“PHOTO CAPTION: Jeeps are lined up after the winterizing process at the Stayr plant in Vienna, Austria. 11/27/45.”
1950? Photos of CJ-2A
These just sold on eBay for $9.99. This CJ-2A was equipped with a rear PTO.
Photos of a “Dummy” Jeep
UPDATE: Blaine shared this Ghost Army image of a jeep that appeared on the Messynessychic.com blog back in 2015.
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Original post March 13, 2021: This pic reminds me of the Ghost Army documentary I mentioned back in 2019. The photo below shows a combled-together fake jeep. I’m still hoping to find some better photos of a Ghost Army inflatable jeep. Dummy tank photos are much easier to find. The photo was taken November of 1944 in Wongabel, Queensland, Australia.
This photo appeared on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2382510764/permalink/10158078411510765/
4 DJ-3A Gala Photos from Las Brisas on eBay
The seller wants $59 for this, which seems a bit crazy, but the reason these photos caught my eye is that they show DJ-3A Galas crossing entering (crossing?) the water. Unclear whether this was for fun, for experience or a purpose. It may be some kind of beach-based road that floods at high tide? No description provided.
1946 Berkey Aux Fire Dept Testimonial
UPDATE: This Fire Department testimonial was initially posted October 28, 2017.
This testimonial included a detailed list of fire jeep specs.
Jeepsters and the Sunkist Lady
UPDATE: This Jeepster photo is making the rounds on Facebook; this post provides a little more info.
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Posted December 24, 2020: This article provides more information about this stunt Jeepster and plane. It was published in the March 20, 1949, issue of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:
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Originally Published Dec 8, 2012:
The Sunkist Lady was an Aeronca 15AC Sedan airplane flown by Dick Riedel and Bill Barris used to set a world-record for endurance flight. They spent a total of 1008 hours and 2 minutes aboard the airplane, ending their flight in April of 1949. Unfortunately for them, their record was broken six months later.
What makes this relevant for jeep fans was that to keep the plan in the air, the crew used Jeepsters borrowed from local dealers to race down the airport runway so the crew could hand fuel and food to the two pilots.
Thanks to Colin for forwarding the story!
Here is a link to a story and a video about the flight (124 MB): http://www.cityoffullerton.com/depts/airport/the_sunkist_lady.asp
Here is a second article: http://vintageairphotos.blogspot.com/2012/03/saga-of-sunkist-lady.html. The picture below is from that article.
1946 Images of CJ-2A on eBay
3 of the 5 images in this small photo collection show a CJ-2A with a canvas top taken in 1946. The CJ-2A was new or near new in them.
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“5 Colonel Leck & Willys Jeep CJ Black & White Photos 1943 & 1946”
Photo of CJ-2A w/ Koenig Hardtop on eBay
Priced at $10 OBO, this is a nice looking CJ-2A. Not obvious date.
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“Beautiful photograph from roadside America. Jeep CJ-2A with full hard top. Super-clean vehicle. Post-war period, photo is undated. Suburban background subject matter. Pic is chemically produced on glossy scalloped-edge photo paper and is a good black and white. Rectangular pic measures 3.5″ x 5.25″ and is in excellent condition.”
1962 Photo of Sprayer on CJ-3B on eBay
The caption reads “Fruit Fly Spraying: Dick Burke getting things set on jeep sprayer before going out to the home where fruit flys were found”
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“This 7.5 x 9.25 inch photo has corner and edge wear. The image has spotting, creasing, and scratching. June 16, 1962. George Wheeler, Miami Herald Staff Photo.”
1943 Press Photo Demoing the Jeep on eBay
The date of this photo could probably be tracked down more precisely given the description below.
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“Soviet official show guest with Secretary Morgenthau. Washington, D.C. Major General A.I. Belyaev of the Soviet Air Force, now chairman of the government purchasing division of Russia in the United States, second from right, and Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau, right, visited the Army-Treasury Back The Attack War Show at the Monument grounds. Here they are watching a jeep perform. The monument is in the background. USA-Army history. Photo measures 8.5 x 6.75 inches. Photo Is dated 1943.”
1962 Photo of Jeep Truck with Tall Ladder in Florida
Tom Jirik posted this photo to Facebook. That ladder had to have been wobbly??
“From the 1962 Yearbook of Agriculture published by the USDA. Caption: “In Olustee Experimental Forest in Florida, slash pines selected for high yield of naval stores gum are control-pollinated to produce superior trees.””
Year? Photo of PFC Richard Schweers in Jeep
I tried to find out more information about Richard Schweers, but had no luck linking a person with this name to military service.
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“This is an original press photo. Pfc Richard Schweers uses field radio in Army jeep. Photo measures 10 x 8.25 inches. Photo is dated”
Some Vintage of Photos of Folks w/ Jeeps
Blaine spotted this thread on Curbsideclassic.com that shows some vintage photos of average folks and their jeeps.
More on Military DJ-5s
Gayland shared these photos showing the military DJ-5s offered by AMC in the early 1970s. Time has tinted the images. The “brown” Army jeeps are actually OD green for the Army, while the Navy “white” jeeps may actually be haze gray.
US Army Jeep Photo:
US Navy Jeep Photo:
3 or 4-Door Hy-Rail(?) Wagon
Steve shared this photo from the Just-A-Car-Guy website, which was in turn was shared from a French(?) website. This looks to be a three or four-door Hy-Rail wagon. You can learn more about these at Willyscountry.com.
Service Jeep Photo
Speaking of service jeeps, Glenn shared this photo of a neat looking dually service jeep off of Facebook.
The caption reads: “Here is a postcard of the Pig Hip Restaurant and Edwards City Service station (later the Phillips 66), 101 West Oak St., Broadwell, Illinois on Route 66.”
Photo: Max Capacity 5 Person Stencil
John shared this photo detailing a stencil on the windshield: Max Capacity 5 Person. He hoped it would help any folks doing a restoration.
He wrote, “Over on a Warbird forum someone posted this photo of a B-17 crew in the UK late in the war. I have blown up the photo for details….specifically, the tire pressure stencil on the base of the windscreen frame…and the “Max capacity 5 persons” notice..Might be of interest to someone restoring a wartime vehicle. The photo is from the national archives… so no copyright.”
Here is the original photo:
Before Canyonlands Was a Park
“Before Canyonlands Was a Park” is a story built around a presentation given by Alan “Tug” Bates in 2014 and published January 07, 2024, by the Canyon Country Zephyr. It includes a variety of jeep photos from the Canyonlands area.
You can read the story and see pics here: https://www.canyoncountryzephyr.com/2024/01/07/1950-before-canyonlands-was-a-park-the-other-place-no-one-knew-by-tug-wilson/
One excerpt is particularly interesting:
“In the first 10 years of exploring what would become Canyonlands National Park, we encountered a total of five people: We encountered one party of two in 1952; Dad gave them directions to find what later became known as Angel Arch, the icon of Canyonlands. Once, in 1953, we came across a lonesome cowboy, on his way from the West fork of Salt Creek to Cave Springs. And finally, in the fall of 1958, we met up with Kent and Fern Frost. They were in their green jeep, in Horse Canyon, checking out the area for future tours. But that was it…. FIVE.”
When my ex-wife and I moved to Utah thirty years ago (Yikes!!) in the summer of 1994 the population was 1.9 million (by comparison, as of 2021, the population was 3.38 million and the state is still one of the top five growing states). Lacking a jeep at that time, I got to explore southern Utah when you could still hike Desolate Arch in Arches NP and not see anyone! The experience Bates describes was mine at times. There were no signs stopping me from unrolling a sleeping bag on a piece of slick rock outside Moab and spending the night (now, lots of no-camping signs), which I did several times, with stars so bright I didn’t need a flashlight. And, if off the beaten path, you were guaranteed to feel all alone in desolate country.
Thirty years later, the Utah I experienced has changed dramatically. The restaurants are way better, the culture more diverse, the events more varied, but the resulting traffic and the crowds have become, at times, too much for my tastes. I guess I am getting old!!
Various Photos
- Blaine shared this photo of a Bell Telephone engineer working in Europe during WWII.
- Blaine also shared these links for the teardrop Mustang, developed in the late 1940s. While many of us have seen these pics, what I didn’t realize was that the Mustang utilized some jeep steering parts. As this MotorBiscuit article notes, “McCarty wanted to build his car with existing components adapted to his unique vision. He decided that the steering from a Willys Jeep, a Continental or Hercules engine, and Spicer rear axles would be the basis for his car.”
- This photo of a customized GPA was posted to g503 by Morihisa Ochi:
- Grant Howe shared images of his customized jeep on Facebook, built for bird hunting:
Photo of GPW From Warbird Website
John shared this neat photo from the Warbird Website. You can even see the Ford tires on it. I tried to find the hood number (20145236), but it appears the G503 search has changed. Maybe someone else can have more luck determining if it is in the database.
Photo of Elvis & Bazooka
Mark shared this image of Elvis holding a Bazooka posted to the Armory Life website. Even more interesting, this M-38A1 has a rare defroster mounted on the windshield.
1962 Press Photo of CJ-3B Fruit Fly Sprayer on eBay
This June 16, 1962, photo shows Dick Burke setting up a fruit fly sprayer on a CJ-3B.
Photo of Dysarts Truck
Glenn shared this image of a fancifully decorated Willys truck from Facebook. According to this short history, Dysarts has been a restaurant and store in Maine since the 1960s.
1946 Testimonial from the Wachusett Country Club
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.