Old Images Research Archives

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1942 Photo Soldiers Preparing For Mustard Gas

July 4, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

I can only imagine how awful those suits were to wear in the California desert, even in March. My wife tells me that even the modern-day chemical warfare suits are terrible.

View all the information on ebay

“SOMEWHERE IN CALIFORNIA — Even deadly mustard gas holds no qualms for these soldiers in the chemical warfare service who are ready to fight poisonous, skin-burning gas by wearing clothes–treated in a secret solution–which resist and neutralize any dangerous vapor. They’re shown here decontamination a jeep which was sprayed with mustard gas. 03-19-42”

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1949 Article on the Jeep’s Forest Fire Fighting Potential

July 3, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Fire/Police/Industry Vehicles, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

(Given fireworks have arrived, this article seemed appropriate …) This August 07, 1949, article was published in the Spokesman Review out of Spokane, Washington, but it likely originated from a Wisconsin news report. The article mentions Nicolet National Forest, which is located in Northern Wisconsin, and the event was sponsored by E. W. Schwartz Motors out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. One interesting statistic noted was that conservative estimates put the number of jeeps in service in state and national forests at over 1,000 jeeps by the summer of 1949.

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Early Documented Post War Jeep Races

June 28, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles • TAGS: Yakima Ridge Runners. This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Doing some random searches, I learned that during the summer of 1946 several jeep races popped up across the country. One of them was very organized (#2), one was more of a performance (#1), one was impromptu (#4), and one provided no additional information (#3)

On the night of June 1, 1946, in Ogden, Utah, jeep races and jeep-jumps-jeep events were planned by the local American Legion, along with other event. The jeep events were part of Lt. Dick Ryan’s traveling jeep rodeo, so I’d argue they were more of a performance than an organic race. (Ogden Standard-Examiner, June 1, 1946).
A mid August 1946 five-mile jeep race for veterans was organized for the Plumas County Fair in California. Only standard jeeps and qualified WWII veterans could participate. Four jeeps were entered, with Clayt Joslin of Quincy winning the event (As reported in the Feather River Bulletin August 22, 1946). First prize was $100, while second price was $50 (Indian Valley Record, Greenville, California, August 1, 1946).
Around September 14, an impromptu jeep race was held at the West Tennessee District Fair. It was organized by folks were were driving jeeps that were servicing the race track for the fair (The Jackson Sun September 15, 1946).
In October, jeep race(s) were held on October 04, 1946, at the Montana Youth Fair, in Kalispell, Montana. I could find no results or more information. (The Daily Inter Lake October 01, 1946, Kalispell, Montana)

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In unrelated news from 1953, this Yakima Ridgerunners photo hit some newspapers across the country. The example below was published in the June 24, 1953, issue of the Spokesman-Review, out of Spokane, Washington. Chet Thompson and Wally Klingele, both names synonymous with the early days of the Ridgerunners, are shown practice-racing for a July 4th event.

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Some Zamboni Articles with Photos

June 25, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Old Images, Old News Articles • TAGS: Zamboni. This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

The threes article and photos appeared over a series of years. Each shows a different model of the Zamboni Ice Resurfacer. You can learn more about the jeep-chassis models in this post.

MODEL E CJ-3B Version: Based on the ice-delivery-chain-system design on the front, I’d say this is a CJ-3B version of Model E. You can learn more about the CJ-3B versions here.

1956-12-09-boston-sunday-globe-zamboni-article-lores

December 09, 1956, Boston Sunday Globe.

MODEL E CJ-5 Version: This model was the last one to include the jeep body, in this case a CJ-5 body.

1955-03-09-the-gazette-montreal-canada-zamboni-article-lores

March 09, 1955, The Gazette out of Montreal, Canada.

MODEL F: This photo and caption shows a good example of the final jeep-related Zamoni Ice Resurfacer.

1957-12-06-the-record-argus-greenville-pa-zamboni-article-lores

December 06, 1957, The Record-Argus out of Greenville, Pennsylvania.

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1945 Article on the Jeep Demonstration

June 21, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

A July 19, 1945, article in the Dayton Herald, out of Dayton, Ohio, covered the jeep demonstration at Charles Sorensen’s farm. Two things about the article stuck out to me. 1) I was surprised to learn that there had been no sales price shared with reports as of the demonstration. 2) The reporter who wrote the article noted that the most interesting piece of equipment was the John Bean Haymaker, which apparently never became a Willys-Overland Special Equipment item, at least not one of which I’m aware. I did find a brochure from a few years later that covered the John Bean Haymaker (see the cover at the bottom of this post).

1945-07-19-dayton-herald-oh-new-farm-jeep-does-its-tricks-lores

July 19, 1945, Dayton Herald out of Dayton, Ohio.

What the above article doesn’t mention is that Willys-Overland had hoped to build 20,000 jeeps over the remainder of 1945, at least according to an article in the Cincinnati Enquirer on July 18th:

1945-07-18-news-messenger-fremont-oh-new-jeep-20000-1945-lores

July 18, 1945, News Messenger out of Fremont, Ohio.

So, why wasn’t the company able to see the 20,000 production figure and instead produced only 1824 CJ-2As? One big factor was that Warner Gear had gone on strike for 12 weeks, stopping production of transmissions that Willys-Overland needed to complete the jeeps. There were probably other reasons as well, but had W-O been able to produce over those 12 weeks what they subsequently manufactured throughout 1946, the company could have come very close to the 20,000 production figure for 1945. In other words, there likely would have been a lot more VECs!

1945-12-22-daily-times-new-philadlephia-oh-strike-halts-jeep-production

December 22, 1945, Daily Times out of New Philadelphia, Ohio.

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October 1956 Article Introducing the Jeep Dispatcher

June 20, 2020 • CATEGORIES: DJ-3A, Features, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This article appeared in the Miami News on October 09, 1956. That seemed a late date for an “introductory” announcement. The article highlighted the low operating cost, the 30,000 mile maintenance guarantee, the four body styles, and the wide range of duties the new jeep could perform.

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Photos From the UTA Digital Collections

June 20, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Bantam-FordGP-WillysMA-EarlyJPs, Features, Library Collections, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

These photos come from the University of Texas at Arlington Digital Archives. You can see a some additional photos with jeeps here: https://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery-beta/subject/jeep-automobiles

Let’s start with this photo of a Willys MA dash:

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, University of Texas at Arlington Libraries. 56th Cavalry Brigade war maneuvers. (1941). Retrieved from https://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery-beta/img/20048164 … Brigadier General Walter B. Pyron, of Houston, Texas, commander of the 56th Brigade, shown behind the wheel of a jeep. He is wearing a military uniform and a small brimmed hat. He has his hands on the steering wheel and is looking behind him. Willys MA.

A lineup of Ford GPs:

1941-06-uta-texas-ford-gp-manuevers2-lores

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, University of Texas at Arlington Libraries. Camp Bowie Army Maneuvers . (1941). Retrieved from https://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery-beta/img/20048968 … The 18th Field Artillery Brigade’s 77th Field Artillery joins in retreating from an attack during a military training exercise at Camp Bowie. The first battalion is lined up for an evacuation, riding on “blitz buggies.” This battalion is from Fort Sill, Oklahoma. The rest of the 77th is stationed at Fort D. A. Russell, Marfa, Texas. The 77th and 142nd infantry are howitzer units of the brigade. Ford GPs.

Good side shot of a Ford GP:

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, University of Texas at Arlington Libraries. Camp Bowie Army maneuvers: Lietenant General Walter Krueger with Major General Claude V. Birkhead and others. (1941). Retrieved from https://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery-beta/img/20053219 … Camp Bowie Army maneuvers. Four military officers and one military personnel are pictured here. Lieutenant General (LIEUT. GEN.) Walter Krueger, seated in the front passenger seat, Third Army Commander, was in the field almost as much as the participating troops. Here he’s leaving 36th Division command post after a conference with Major General (Maj. Gen.) Claude V. Birkhead, division commander, standing by the baby jeep. In the rear seat are, foreground, Lieutenant Colonel (Lieut Col.) George R. Barker, Third Army G-3, and Captain (Capt.) R. H. Chard, Krueger’s aid. Driver is Private (Pvt.) Harvey Belote. All are dressed in military uniforms. Published in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram morning edition, June 15, 1941. Ford GPs.

Here’s an early Slat Grille MB:

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, University of Texas at Arlington Libraries. Army Day Maneuvers: Rides in Dixie Jeeps. (1942). Retrieved from https://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery-beta/img/20053248 …. Army Day Celebration. Jeep rides were given citizens when the 31st (Dixie) Division held open house here Sunday as part of the observance of Army Day. On this ride at Farrington Field were Alice McDonald (left) and Jaymie Dobbs, both of Fort Worth, Texas. Members of the Service Company, 155th Infantry, in the jeep are, left to right, Corporal (Corp.) J. H. Reeves, Private (Pvt.) Sam Burroughs, Private (Pvt.) Clyde Russell and Private (Pvt.) Hanson Dunegan. The group are riding in a jeep through Farrington Field. Background showing a goal post and stadium bleachers. Published in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram evening edition, April 6, 1942. Willys MB Slatgrille.

Post WWII pic:

1946-10-14-uta-texas-circle-park-school-lores

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, University of Texas at Arlington Libraries. Circle Park School Parent-Teacher Association carnival . (1946). Retrieved from https://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery-beta/img/20058866 … Mr. R. M Baxter is giving a carnival preview ride to 2 pupils of Circle Park Elementary School, Donald Eagle, son of Mr. and Mrs. Don Eagle and Beverly Jean Burns, daughter of Mrs. and Mrs. C. A. Burns. Mr. Baxter will run a jeepney-ride concession at the Circle Park Elementary School Parent-Teacher Association annual carnival. His jeep has a banner of the PTA. Published in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram evening edition, October 16, 1946.

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January 1956 DJ-3A Jeep Dispatcher Introduction

June 19, 2020 • CATEGORIES: DJ-3A, Features, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

The article suggests that the Jeep Dispatcher only came in three models, with one listed as a “basic model with or without a top”. The marketing department must have decided that the single model with or without a top was better off as two models distinct models.

1956-01-20-pittsburgh-sun-telegraph-dispatcher-dj3a-article-lores

January 20, 1956, Pittsburgh Sun Telegraph

On the same page as the Dispatcher article was an ad for multiple jeep dealers in the Pittsburgh area. The new ad included the DJ-3A with the fiberglass-reinforced hardtop.

1956-01-20-pittsburgh-sun-telegraph-jeep-ad-lores

January 20, 1956, Pittsburgh Sun Telegraph

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1943 Photos of a ‘Jeep’ Named Squeekie

June 18, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

A one-of-a-kind ‘jeep’ named Squeekie was built from photos by William Mason in 1942. In 1943, this press photo was taken, then circulated around the country, two of which can be seen below.

Mason worked at Oakland’s Independent Iron Works, Inc. I wasn’t able to uncover too much about Mason, other than he filed a patent for an arc welding machine, on behalf of his employer in October of 1956.

This photo was shared on a vintage photograph Facebook Group by Bob Cunningham. He included the following text, though I’m unaware of where the text originated (maybe based on an original press photo caption?):

Per the Facebook post: “In 1942, William Mason, an iron works superintendent in Oakland, California, used newspaper photographs to create “Squeekie,” his version of the Army’s new wonder car, the “jeep.” Although Mason built the 2-horsepower car for his son, Billy, his wife often used it for ’round-the-town grocery shopping during the days of gas rationing, since it got a thrifty 35 miles per gallon and rolled on unrationed, small sized implement tires. The little “jeep” was once stolen and abandoned in a farmer’s field, and the U.S. Army was notified that one of their prototypes had been found. At the time, most civilians had never seen an actual “jeep,” so the mistake was understandable.”

Here are two newspaper photos and captions:

1943-03-13-oakland-tribune-ca-squeekie-william-mason-lores

Published March 13, 1943, in the Oakland Tribune.

1943-03-18-la-cross-tribune-WI-squeekie-william-mason-lores

Published March 18, 1943, in the La Crosse Tribune, out of La Crosse, Wisconsin.

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1946 Photo of Kids in Jeep

June 18, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

$AR406-6-423$

Cropped version of the bottom photo.

This photograph was published in the April 29, 1946, issue of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram. It’s located in the University of Texas at Arlington’s digital archive library.

https://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery-beta/img/20033476

$AR406-6-423$

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, University of Texas at Arlington Libraries. Brooklyn Heights School jeep “test run”. (1946). Retrieved from https://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery-beta/img/20033476

“Twenty neighborhood children took a “test run” in a jeep to be used for a carnival at Brooklyn Heights School. Driving the jeep is Jack Scott, and sitting beside him is Howard Victry, president of the school Dad’s Club. The children and Mr. Victry are facing the camera and Mr. Victry’s hand is raised. Published in The Fort Worth Star-Telegram Morning Edition April 29, 1946.”

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1942 Photo of the Fitch Jeep Station Wagon Car

June 17, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Unusual • TAGS: Odd Body. This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE II: Marc noted the the rear of the vehicle is based on a Renault Juvaquatre. It just so happens this car is somewhat based on the German Opel, which Wally King used to create his Jeepster-like vehicle in Germany following WWII.

PHOTO CREDIT: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault_Juvaquatre#/media/File:Renault_Juvaquatre_photographed_in_1984_in_central_France.jpg

UPDATE: UndiscoveredClassics.com had some additional insights into this vehicle. I tried to learn more about Captain Richard C. Fitch of the Second Regiment Mechanized Cavalry Reserve, Los Angeles, but didn’t have much luck. I did learn he was a design engineer for the Army and was responsible for the MT Tug design (see below post). Below is a photo of how it looked in a newspaper.

1942-03-18-sacramento-bee-richard-c-fitch-jeep-station-wagon-lores

March 18, 1942, issue of the Sacramento Bee, page 14.

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Originally published March 2014: I wonder what ever happened to this prototype? Marc spotted this unusual photo. The vehicle doesn’t seem very jeep-like, except in its compact design and front clip similarity. It doesn’t appear it was four wheel drive.

The image was picked up and published by a couple newspapers. Below are links to Newspaper.com that show a small image of the page. The caption vary slightly:
1. The Amarillo Globe (Amarillo, Texas) March 18th, 1942, on Page 2
2. The Statesville Record and Landmark (Statesville, NC) March 16th, 1942, Page 4

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1942 Press Photo of MT Tug

June 17, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: This photo of an MT Tug (aka “Super Jeep”) with the Ford GP grille was published March 16, 1942, in the Roseville Press out of California. Richard C. Fitch also designed this Victory Car.

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Update Posted on March 2, 2017: Here’s another MT Tug Press Photo. See one sold on eBay in 2014 at the bottom of the post.

“1942- Very rare example of a 6×6 Ford MT Tug “Super Jeep” designed by Captain Richard Fitch of the 2nd Regiment Mechanized Cavalry Reserve. The MT Tug was built in 1941 experimentally for units of the U.S. Army’s Tank Destroyer Command as a light fast vehicle capable of mounting the 37mm anti tank gun..unfortunately series production of this Jeep was not eventually authorized as the gun needed two people to operate it, and the vehicle with gun fitted, could only carry two men so the driver had to act as gunner, which did not make the vehicle a good idea ”

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1959 Hemet De Anza Borrego Cavalcade

June 16, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old Images Jeeping, Old News Articles • TAGS: cavalcade. This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

1959 marked the 11th annual Hemet to Borrego via De Anza trail Cavalcade. That year over 400 vehicles joined the adventure. The author and photographer of the below article, Del Schrader, was transported over the trail via two German DKWs. The article was published in the March 22, 1959, issue of the Los Angeles Times.

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Fire Brigade Trucks From Australia

June 16, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Fire/Police/Industry Vehicles, International, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Cool photos. I would guess these were Personnel Carriers converted into fire trucks. However, they may also have been a cab-only chassis as well. The serial numbers would tell us more. You can see a few more photos at the bottom of this CJ-3B page.

https://www.alamy.com/st-george-fire-brigade-car-1-july-1962-st-george-fire-brigades-car-1-converted-from-a-willys-jeep-truck-the-queensland-government-supplied-these-units-to-small-rural-towns-in-1961-the-chassis-were-built-by-willys-motors-australia-pty-in-brisbane-and-the-bodies-by-enoggera-motor-body-works-image188710782.html

“St George Fire Brigade Car 1, July 1962. St George Fire Brigade’s Car 1 converted from a Willys Jeep Truck. The Queensland Government supplied these units to small rural towns in 1961. The chassis were built by Willys Motors Australia Pty in Brisbane and the bodies by Enoggera Motor Body Works.”

1962-photo-st-george-fire-brigade-australia

PHOTO CREDIT: https://www.alamy.com/st-george-fire-brigade-car-1-july-1962-st-george-fire-brigades-car-1-converted-from-a-willys-jeep-truck-the-queensland-government-supplied-these-units-to-small-rural-towns-in-1961-the-chassis-were-built-by-willys-motors-australia-pty-in-brisbane-and-the-bodies-by-enoggera-motor-body-works-image188710782.html? .. It can also be found on Flickr.

This example calls Mattaburra, Australia, home:

Here’s another example. The pic is small.

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1954 Jeep Calvcade Visits Austin, Texas

June 13, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles • TAGS: cavalcade. This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Two articles in the Austin American shared the news, both with a photo,that a calvacade of jeeps would be visiting Austin, Texas, Calvacades were also planned around the world for 1954, with jeeps visit 25 countries outside the United States.

This first article appeared in the April 21, 1954, issue of the Austin American-Statesman and featured a CJ-3B fire jeep:

This second article appeared in the April 22, 1954, issue of the Austin American-Statesman and featured a CJ-3B climbing a vertical wall:

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1952 Article “The World’s Most Versatile Car”

June 12, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Magazine, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

In the January 14, 1952, Newsweek put out an article about the jeep’s versatility. There are some interesting tidbits, such as the Chinese’s nickname for the jeep was “the vehicle of 10,000 capabilities”. The jeep was used to spear barracudas in the Virgin islands, play tag in Yakima, ski via jeep-joring in New England and Ontario, Canada,, and in Burma it was claimed that a jeep was once used to pull an elephant’s tooth.

This photo and caption was also included in a seemingly random area of the magazine, despite the fact that the same image appeared within the article.

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August 1945 Farm Journal Article “What About The New Farm Jeep?”

June 7, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

It reads more like a press release than an article. Given its timing in conjunction with the release of the CJ-2A, it most likely was.

The cover image:

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4 Photos of Family and Later Model CJ-2A on eBay

June 7, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This auction is set of four negatives showing a family and a late model CJ-2A, determined by the stenciling on the tailgate which didn’t appear until around August of 1947.

View all the information on eBay

“HERE ARE FOUR B&W NEGATIVES THAT LOOK LIKE THEY WERE TAKEN ON A FARM. LOOKING AT THE CLOTHES GUESSING 1950’S. ON THE JEEP YOU CAN SEE WILLYS AND 4 WHEEL DRIVE. THESE MEASURE 2 3/8″ X 3 1/2″.”

Chris notes that this photo is reversed, as the spare tire is shown on the driver’s side.

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Introducing the Jeep Surrey

June 5, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles • TAGS: Surrey. This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: Here are a couple more articles introduction the Jeep Surrey. The first one notes that women will like it for its fashion while men will like it for its fine engineering. I’m less convinced that the term ‘fine-engineering’ should be applied to any of the DJ-3As.

The second was widely disseminated in various arrangements and reminds us that “A similar model, the “Jeep” Gala, was introduced to the export market early this year .“ This documents that the Gala was the export model and the Surrey the domestic model.

This first article was published October 08, 1959, and comes from Utah’s Orem-Geneva Times:

This October 04, 1959, article published in the Cincinnati Enquirer.

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1945 Image of Jeep Exiting Glider on eBay

June 2, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Neat press photo of a jeep exiting a glider at Wold-Chamberlain Field in Minnesota. The photo was taken February 27, 1945, by ‘Ted’ at 2pm.

View all the information on eBay

“Jeep rolls out of nose of large glider after coming into a landing”

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Roy Rogers Sugar Crisp 3D Viewer and Photos

June 1, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, toys This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Each photo (photos front and back, so 4 photos total) is 4.25″ wide. The glasses are just under 4.25″ wide.

Unable to travel much this year, I’ve had a little extra cash to investigate the odder eBay finds. These Roy Rogers photos are a good example of that type of purchase. I’ve learned that if you see something on eBay that has been with a seller a while, put it on your watchlist. Sometimes the seller will respond with a discount offer. In this case, I countered with an even lower offer, explaining that I didn’t collect Roy Rogers stuff and only wanted the images for the one jeep image. That seemed to work, as the seller accepted my counteroffer.

My eyes failed me … I never did get the image to look really 3D. I also didn’t want to disconnect the glasses from the photos.

Once delivered I was surprised by two things. First, the 3D viewer was much smaller than expected, but then I realized, duh, they are for kids. For me to view the image wasn’t all that easy through the tiny glasses (4.25 inches from end to end). It also didn’t help that my eyes (I’ll be 55 on Friday) are a little too old; I needed to wear glasses when looking through viewer at the focal length required, but that whole thing became awkward and I never could get the full 3D effect.

All three items were still connected as they originally were. Above them is an 8.5″ piece of paper to give a sense of size.

The second thing that surprised me that the glasses were still attached to the two images and the two images were still attached to each other, meaning these images and viewer had never been used. All three items still folded up into a neat little, compact package.

I just don’t know how stuff like this has survived more than 50 years!

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1946 Photo of Freddy Holmqvist on eBay

June 1, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Is Freddy Holmqvist someone that was famous? Does the Swedish caption provide any clues?

View all the information on ebay

“Swedish students after passing exams, Freddie Holmqvist driving home
1946-05-07
sodra latin, Stockholm, Sweden
Photo size:
6″ x 8.2″ inches”

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1955 Swedish Photo of Jeep and Log-Peeler on eBay

May 31, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: I called this a saw when it was actually a peeler.

This photo out of Sweden shows a CJ-5 with a ventilating windshield with a bark-peeler trailer behind it.

View all the information on eBay

“THIS IS AN ORIGINAL VINTAGE PRESS PHOTO. ONLY THIS ONE COPY AVAILABLE ORDER SOON SO YOU DON’T MISS OUT
The forest in the center. Jeeps and Barkers
1955-09-16
Sweden
Photo size: 6.6″ x 9.2″ inches”

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Prototypes at Fort Custer, Michigan

May 30, 2020 • CATEGORIES: Bantam-FordGP-WillysMA-EarlyJPs, Features, Old Images, Old News Articles This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Fort Custer, Michigan, appears to have been a testing ground for Ford and Willys prototypes. Along with the articles below, there are press photos posted from years passed. You’ll also note that some of the press photos have captions that are printed identically, but pencil-marked up differently. It’s possible someone was selling those as originals when they may not have been.

Here’s an article and a photo showing a couple Ford GPs being run hard, originally printed in the March 09, 1941, issue of the Battle Creek Enquirer:

1941-03-09-battle-creek-enquirer-fordgps-lores

It didn’t take long for the offload vehicles to become a hit with soldiers. This article appears in the March 25, 1941, issue of the Detroit Free Press:

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And, just to set the record straight, at Fort Custer a jeep was a jeep and not a ‘peep’.

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These press photos have been gathered from older posts. First, a couple Willys MA photos from eBay:

This was posted on ebay in June 2017: “1942 Photo WW2 Era Fort Custer MI Versatile Jeep Military Push Ball Game Rare. You are bidding on an original Press Photo from a newspaper archive. The photograph measures 6×7 inches and is dated 9-25-1942.”