The Diamant Family from Great Britain toured the United States during the summer of 1966 using a Jeep Gladiator. They saw quite a bit of the country and had a fantastic adventure.
Features Research Archives
Defeated By Mosquito Pass
Making a long story short, Ann and I drove to Omaha (non stop for 24 hours) to retrieve her son Daniel. On our way back we decided to take a slightly scenic route (he’s never seen Colorado or Utah).

After all our driving on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, we knew how those Pony Express riders felt as they raced across America! This was taken Wednesday evening at a rest stop near the board of Nebraska and Colorado.
With that in mind, we left Colorado Springs on Thursday on a northwest course to Alma. I then planned to head east over 13,000ft Mosquito Pass, drop into Leadville, and continue onward to I-70. Mosquito Pass sounded like it would be a harmless little pass, but we discovered the name belies the difficulty.

We started in Colorado Springs and drove west toward Grand Junction. I’d hoped to cut across Mosquito Pass.
Mosquito Pass’ history is as old as Leadville. It was built in 1877 for $25,000 by the president of the St. Louis Smelting and Refining Company to serve Leadville miners. The wagon road was desperately needed to bring in supplies from the Denver area and ferry smelted ore out of the Rockies. the road was crucial for Leadville’s transformation into a boomtown by the late 1870s. In 1879 my great great grandfather joined the crowd and built the Billing & Eilers smelter (which became the Arkansas Valley Smelter, the last smelter in Leadville).
In 1881 my then fifteen year old great grandfather Karl Eilers and two of his Denver friends decided it would be neat to visit Leadville. So, during the summer they hopped on some horses and rode the one-hundred-mile route. They traveled from Denver to Breckenridge, up over Hoosier Pass, and then over Mosquito Pass. How many kids get to do anything like that these days??
Leadville and the tales of my grandparents fill some of the pages of my newest book, so I wanted to make the journey over Mosquito Pass to see what they saw. Since the weather was perfect and the pass was open, I decided this was a great time to do it. I just didn’t know I needed a better 4×4 vehicle!
A-Bomb Tests & Willys Vehicles
This was one of several articles published about atomic tests and Willys vehicles. This article was published in the April 1955 issue of Willys News.
Odd Jeepster-like Jeep Hot Springs, AR **SOLD**
UPDATE II: This *might* have evolved into a scam. The seller agreed to sell to one buyer and provided directions to get the vehicle, but now is avoiding the buyer’s calls.
UPDATE: **SOLD** Was $900
Here is an odd one I spotted on Facebook. It reminds me of Bob’s odd Jeepster-like vehicle.
“This is a very strange “Jeep like” vehicle that is not a Jeep. I was told that it was possibly a specialty vehicle built in the 60s and that it originally had a 4 or 6 cylinder engine that the previous salvage yard owner removed and sold. 2 wheel drive. No seats or top frame. It has full length curved metal running board fenders that Jeeps never had. It also has a center console that housed the shifter. It was originally painted a coral pink color so the possibility exists that it was a resort shuttle vehicle. It is NOT, repeat NOT, a Jeep Surrey model! They look nothing like this “thing”. No engine or transmission. I saved it from a salvage yard over 10 years ago. It has 14 inch “A.J. Foyt” mag wheels that probably are original. Rusty but restorable. Buy it for $900 firm, fix it up, and have the only one out there.”
1963 Article About the Name-Change to Kaiser Willys
On March 6, 1963, the Toledo Blade shared the news that Willys Overland was changing the name of its jeep division from Willys Motors to Kaiser Jeep.
Jeeps at the Tennessee Museum of Aviation
Someone posted these photos from the Tennessee Museum of Aviation (Sevierville, Tennessee) on the G503 Facebook page. I didn’t get the guy’s name and the post is too old for me to locate him. Looks like a fair number of jeeps there. The CJ-3B originally from Stillwater, Oklahoma, might be the most interesting of all the vehicles. I wonder how it landed in Tennessee.
2 Spanish Jeep Ads on eBay
These look in good shape.
“TWO JEEP 1950s
IN SPANISH ADVERTISING – ORIGINAL
SIZE 8×5 inch
These is an original print magazine advertisement, not a reproduction.
Original and authentic collectible magazine advertisement”
2 Vintage Pee-Chees with a Jeep on eBay
UPDATE: There are two of these rare early Pee Chees on eBay.
“Vintage, these have wear consistant with use and age. Small tears at the bottom edges where the inner pockets start, subject names written in pencil at the top edges. Overall, good condition for their age.”
View all the information on eBay
Halloween in San Antonio
This photo appeared on the G503 Facebook page. It was taken in San Antonio, possibly at Ripleys Believe It or Not.
1943 Photo of early Ford GPA on eBay
This photo has appeared in various publications.
“1943 Amphibian Jeep Tested in Detroit Original News Service Photo
A new amphibious Jeep is tested in Detroit before delivery to the Army, can carry 5 men and can plunge into water and propel itself like a boat. Associated Press Photo – 7” x 9-1/8””



















