emailNeed to contact me and don't have my email? Click on email button.
Welcome to eWillys.com, a website for vintage jeep enthusiasts. I update this website nearly every day with jeep deals, jeep history, interesting reader projects, jeep related info, and more.
These quick searches can help you find things on eBay. People list in the wrong categories all the time, so don't be surprised to see brochures in the parts area for example.
The links to posts below show jeeps grouped by models, condition, and other ways. Some of these jeeps are for sale and others have been sold. If you are unsure whether a vehicle is still for sale or not, email me at d [at] ewillys.com for more info.
There are plenty of interesting, unusual, historic and surprising stories related to Jeeps and their owners. In addition, some of these features have nothing to do with jeeps. This link will display all featured stories starting from the latest.
Looking for parts and not sure where to go? There are a variety of large and small new and used parts sellers both online and offline.
Importantly, the allure of buying a project jeep can be romantic. The reality of restoring a jeep can be quite different, expensive and overwhelming without the right tools and resources. So, tread carefully when purchasing a "project". If you have any concerns about buying a vintage jeep, or run across a scam, feel free to contact me for help, comments or concerns .
Joe shared these two Albany Police Department police photos posted by Albany’s Times Union online newspaper. The CJ-2A riot jeep is pic #30 of 35. The Wagon is pic #2 of 35.
Roger Martin shared this photo of, most likely, a CJ-2A or CJ-3A that was modified and outfitted with a camera. He spotted on Facebook. It was used on the set of the original Road Warrior Movie.
I was unable to find another photo of the camera jeep, but I did find a modified CJ-3B used for the Road Warrior (Fury Road) remake.
Bill shared this photo taken by a young Jefferson Siegel during the 1968 Democratic Convention. He wrote about being a 16yo photographer during the eventful convention.
6am, the morning after intense street battles in downtown Chicago. Photograph: Jefferson Siegel
UPATE: **SOLD** Was on eBay.
A color slide from 1941? That’s a rarity.
“Original 35mm film slide.
Subject: U.S. Army MP Willys Jeep at Camp Sibert (or Siebert) in Boulder City, NV.
Date: Oct. 1941
Mount/Film Type: Kodachrome, red border
The scan below has not captured all detail, but shows the relative sharpness of the slide. The green text reading “embitt scan” was superimposed after scanning.”
An October 18, 1949, article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram announced Daniel M. Towns decision to drive a jeep from Magallanes, Chile, to Fairbanks, Alaska, then drive to Washington, D.C. He is hoping to be able to cross the Darien Gap rather than boat around it. He plans to use tracks on a jeep to get through the Gap. As of the date of the article, Willys-Overland (or a dealer) had already agreed to supply a jeep.
A few weeks later, Towns received some advice from Frank Buck, as described in a November 07, 1949, article in the Forth Worth Star-Telegram. Frank Buck died a few months later.
These three photos appear to show a CJ-3B with a Beck half-cab. Based on the background, my best guess is the photos were taken somewhere in the Colorado Plateau region. The price is good.
View all the information on eBay
“Lot of 3 Smae Image Original Vintage Snapshot Photos Jeep CJ on Farm dated 1956 largest Size is 3.5×5″ inches.”
Just this one post for Tuesday …
A search of Jeep parades at Newspapers.com revealed endless WWII and post-WWII jeep parades for a myriad of causes. Below is a sample:
This August 08, 1943, photo and article published in the Charlotte Observer highlights a jeep parade held for Army Air Force recruitment.
A June 17, 1942, blurb in the Marysville Journal Tribune noted that Marlene Dietrich and 100 jeeps would be parading in Toledo for a War Bond drive.
Sinbad the dog, a decorated 8-year veteran of the Coast Guard, got his own jeep parade according to a January 09, 1946, article in the Marysville Journal-Tribune out of Ohio.
The March 06, 1946, issue of The Leader-Post out of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, reported that the first 100 jeeps to be imported into Colombia formed a parade in Bogota.
This April 21, 1953, article in the News-Pilot out of San Pedro, California, gives some background on the Annual Jeep Cavalcade trip to Borrego, California. The group totaled 175 jeeps and 600 hundred people.
The article’s author makes a pretty blatant plug for the vehicle one of the reporters was driving, noting that the “powerful new Chrysler Sedan provided by Kroll Motors handled with ease and driving comfort that are characteristic of Chrysler engineer.” (insert eye-rolling emoji here) ….
Sounds like this young lady was a handful!
View all the information on eBay
“This is an original press photo. Boyle, Hal (Correspondent). Tiny Shinn Chung Sook, better known as “Snooky,” looks bewildered as she sits in a jeep in the Seoul area with Associated Press correspondents Hal Boyle (foreground) and Bill Waugh (right), two of the American newsmen who adopted her. In left background is Snooky’s real uncle, Bill Shinn, Korean reporter for the Associated Press. Waugh, designated as the child’s official godfather, gave Boyle the assignment of escorting her to safety in Taegu. Waiting at latter city for Snooky, who had twice before disappeared, was her real father. Photo measures 8.75 x 6.75inches. Photo is dated 1-3-1951.”
These three Kaiser-Willys ads demonstrate a national campaign ad offering to dealers who wanted to share the news that Kaiser and Willys vehicles were being sold under the same brand. Though the purchase was announced in the spring of 1953, the ad campaign was introduced until the fall of 1953 after the sale was completed (See the June 1953 ad at bottom that introduces a new dealer, but doesn’t mention Kaiser).
The imagery and order of the blocks is interesting. Though Kaiser purchased Willys-Overland’s assets, for the extensive network of Willys dealers the experience was the opposite; they were adding Kaiser products to their Willys sales portfolios. I expect this explains why the Kaiser block is pictured being added to the Willys block rather than the other way around.
This ad was published on November 05, 1953, in The Times out of Shreveport, Louisiana, by Dixie Kaiser-Willys.
This ad was published on October 08, 1953, in the Birmingham News, out of Birmingham, Alabama, by the Roy Bridges & Co., Inc.
This ad was published on November 15, 1953, in the Great Falls Tribune, out of Montana, by Robinson Motor Co.
A June 5, 1953, full-page ad out of California introduced Haley Motors, a new “Willys” dealer. Though the merger had been announced, it wasn’t finalized until the fall of 1953; this likely explains why there was no mention of Kaiser in this ad.
Steve shared this photo. Though it is an undated reprint, it’s one I hadn’t seen. The photo is only 5″x5″. I’m surprised it isn’t reproduced as a 8″x10″ photo.
View all the information on ebay
“This is a nice reproduction of an original World War Two photo showing US soldiers in a Jeep reading a sign prepared by French citizens expressing gratitude for the liberation of France from the Nazi’s. Great photo! Size of photo is about 5″ x 5″.”
The photo above sent me on a quest to find another example of a medic/ambulance jeep with a cross painted onto the grille. I finally found one on a model, one built to replicate a Brazilian Expeditionary Force jeep ambulance from 1944 Italy. The author of the post did a good job retelling the history of the jeep (and didn’t fall for some of the incorrect history on the internet).
http://panzerserra.blogspot.com/2013/04/jeep-14-ton-4×4-ambulance-brazilian.html
This illustration is one of the inspirations for the model.
Andy McIntyre built this model jeep with ingenuity and scavenged parts to help teach his two daughters, Ann and Phyllis, how to drive and use hand signals. He also planned to introduce them to local law enforcement. Eventually, he wanted to teach all the kids how to properly drive, as he noted in the article “Children of today are born into an age of speed … Everyone needs to sharpen his wits to keep step with this age of machines.” It sounds like Andy and his wife raised their girls to be tough and independent!
It sounds like the family had a third daughter, Joy, who passed away in 2008, proceeded by the deaths of her parents Andy and Cora McIntyre. The older sisters, Ann and Phyllis, were still alive as of 2008.
August 16, 1953, article in The Independent Record, out of Helena, Montana.
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 …
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.”
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.”
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.
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.
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 …
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?
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.”
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:
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.
========================== Continue reading
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.
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 “
There is also this partial, color slide from 1960 that was likely taken about the same time:
View all the information on eBay
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.
======================
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
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.
On December 13, 1950, several newspapers announced that Nero had passed away. Here’s an article from the Southern Illinoisan:
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.
View the photo in the Wyoming Digital Archives.
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.
January 19, 1951, Spokesman Review
Here’s an example from 1949. Sandifur Motors was profiled earlier this year:
December 11, 1949, Spokesman Review
Here’s an example of one ad from 1951. Burhart was a dealer out of Spokane, Washington.
February 18, 1951, Spokesman Review
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.
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.
Six months earlier, this November 11, 1950, article appeared in Billboard Magazine:
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.”
