Associated Press Reporter Sigrid Arne was 47 years old when she rode in a Bantam BRC-60. By that time she was an experienced journalist, a fearless investigative reporter with the smarts to decode and explain New Deal programs to the point that the authors of the programs asked her to join their efforts. She traveled all over the United States, even buying a baby for $50 in Oklahoma at one point to expose how babies were being sold like groceries.

Her report on her first jeep ride sounds like she was thrilled/awed by her experience, but I’m unsure how she concluded that the Bantam had 9 speeds. Sigrid’s article landed in the Montana Standard on May 05, 1941, as well as other newspapers.

This ride wasn’t her last in a jeep, as we will see tomorrow morning.

1. Ford GPs on assembly line: This March 28, 1941, image shows Ford GPs on the assembly line. It is posted on a Henry Ford’s history page.

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2. Ford gets Priority over Bantam for axles: This January 22, 1941, article in the Indiana Gazette notes a claim by the President of the United Automobile Workers–CIO that Ford was given priority over Bantam on orders for axles, forcing Bantam to miss its deadline for filling their order for the BRC-60s.

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3. Duke of Kent: This photo shows the Duke of Kent riding in a Ford GP at Holabird, Maryland. The photo appeared in the Salem News (Ohio) on August 29, 1941:

UPDATE: The Herald-News of Passaic, NJ, published an image of a Ford GP going through its paces. Given the chained tires and other similarities, it appears this photo was likely taken at the same time as one published at the bottom of this post.

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Originally posted May 30, 2020, as part of this post: 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:

An April 12, 1941, article from the Escabana Daily Press out of California shows that it wasn’t always easy producing the Ford GPs. In this case striking works (and some reported sabotage of machinery) delayed manufacturing.

Long article from the same paper: Continue reading →

This article was published in the July 15, 1945, issue of the Journal Herald out of Dayton, Ohio. The title of the article is “Jeep Has a Rendezvous With America’s Postwar Era”. It proceed the official press release kit by a few days, so neither photo came from that first press kit.

The jeep shown on the right is a Willys MA. Back in 2013, a full press photo was sold on eBay. Curiously, the headlight on the driver’s side was missing.