I know I started driving on dad’s lap when I was young, but John might just be the youngest jeep driver I’ve ever met.  Thanks for sharing John.  Here’s his story.

John writes, “Hi Dave, this is my story. At the age of 2years 10 months, I was put behind the steering wheel of a 1946 CJ2a (this was in 1955). My Dad had me with him one sunny fall day sowing wheat in the north 40. It was the field with a 1/2 mile lane to it. In the back of the willys were wheat seed bags.

As Dad would run out of wheat in the grain drill, he would walk back & bring the Willys to the drill fill it up and continue on. I got to nap on the seed bags, laying in the sun.  As I napped, Dad could watch me as he would make his rounds with the drill.

As Dad finished up the field we were on the opposite end from the gate out of the field. So, here comes my first Willys drive. Dad stood me up on the seat, put it in low range, pointed the jeep to the gate, and away I went. He drove along side me till we got to the gate, where he stopped me, and said “move over I’ll get you through the gate!”

He said I made a fuss about moving over, but, after he got the Willys through the gate, he turned me loose again for the 1/2 mile drive up the lane. Dad said I would lay on the steering wheel and let it roll me around.

My love of Willys Jeeps are deep rooted, and this story is special as it was told to me by Dad only a month before he passed away. Mom said if she had known this back then, I’d would never had gotten to go out with Dad again.

John Waddle
The Waddle Family Farms Fayette Co. Ohio, Concord Twsp. est. 1853.

(We still have the 41 Ford Ferguson 9n, but the Willys has long been sold & Dad passed away in 1997, cancer got him at the age of 71.)