A 1950's Visit to the Past

[TexasBred]

Move curser over pictures to identify.

A 1950's visit to the past:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blast_of_the_past/

 

[Shantilly]

My Dad had a '56 Mercury in the back yard.. I have never seen another one like it since the day my Mom paid a guy $15 to get it out of her backyard. My dream car is a '57 Chevy Bel Air convertible ..candy apple red with black interior with all OE parts ... Thanks for sharing those pics

 

[john250]

That site has good pix. I was there for all of that.
We had a 56 Chevy, but it was the cheapo Biscayne model. No chrome, and it leaked around the top of the windshield. Still, it ran pretty good.
A '57 Chevy Bel-Aire will set you back--well, you'd better have a $100K if you're going to bid. I'd like one, too--while you're buying.
In truth, today a Kia is a better car than those beautiful Cadillacs and Buicks. Disc brakes, fuel injection and all. Gasoline was so cheap when those cars ruled.
But no Kia ever will fetch those prices. Today's kids, may fondly remember their first Kia as equal to their first Iphone. Or their first tattoo or tongue piercing. I don't know whether to trust them, but I guess I've got no choice.
I remember when dealers covered the next model year on the showroom floors, and then had "grand unveiling" events when the model year switched over.

 

[chippie]

thanks for sharing the link. I enjoyed it

 

[Ryder]

My Dad had a '56 Mercury in the back yard.. I have never seen another one like it since the day my Mom paid a guy $15 to get it out of her backyard. My dream car is a '57 Chevy Bel Air convertible ..candy apple red with black interior with all OE parts ... Thanks for sharing those pics

A guy from a town abut 8 miles below us had a red '57 with two 4's on it. I wouldn't call it candy apple. It was sort of a dark red. Sometimes a bunch of us would go down to a drive-in where he would be and just hang out. After a while he would start it up and we would just listen in awe to that motor. It had a distinct sound to it. :nod:

What else was there to do on a Saturday night? It was a more wholesome activity than stealing chickens or blowing up mailboxes. :roll:

 

[Caustic Burno]

That 55 Ford Fairlane brings back memories spent a many an hour in one.

 

[Angus Cowman]

you guys might know what model it was
My Brother in law had a 50 something Pontiac or buick can't remember which 2dr it had the indian on the hood that lighted up when you had the headlights on that was a neat car it was all original with a straight 8 flat head in it
it was in real good shape I don't know what happened to it I know when he passed away it wasn't with the rest of his cars I guess he sold it

 

[Caustic Burno]

AC if I remember right that was on several models as Pontiac was an Indian chief that the brand was named after.

 

[TexasBred]

you guys might know what model it was
My Brother in law had a 50 something Pontiac or buick can't remember which 2dr it had the indian on the hood that lighted up when you had the headlights on that was a neat car it was all original with a straight 8 flat head in it
it was in real good shape I don't know what happened to it I know when he passed away it wasn't with the rest of his cars I guess he sold it

Here you go AC....do you see it here??

http://www.flickr.com/photos/orrin/gall ... 257879129/

 

[greybeard]

AC if I remember right that was on several models as Pontiac was an Indian chief that the brand was named after.

In a second hand sorta, kind of way. Pontiac Michigan was named after the Chief, and the car brand named after the town it was originally built in.

The Pontiac car company draws its name from the town of Pontiac, Michigan, where Edward M. Murphy first established the Pontiac Buggy Company in 1893, which specialized in making horse-drawn carriages. Several years later, in 1907, when Murphy realized the future was in motor driven vehicles, he turned the buggy company into the Oakland Motor Car Company.

This company was bought by General Motors in 1909 after the timely death of its founder. The first Pontiac car was the Five Passenger Coach in 1926, introduced to the public at the new York Auto Show. It was a six-cylinder engine meant to be powerful enough to outrun the 4-cylinder cars on the road at the time, but still be cheaper than most models.

The first Pontiac automobile, named "The Pontiac" was introduced that fall by the Pontiac Spring & Wagon Works. It was a highwheeler weighing 1,000 pounds (450 kg) and powered by a two-cylinder water-cooled 12 hp (8.9 kW) engine. A prototype was displayed in October 1907 at an exhibition sponsored by the Carriage Dealers' Association in New York City's Grand Central Palace. In December of the same year several of the new Pontiacs were exhibited at the Chicago Automobile Show. Well received by the press, the car featured final drive by double chain and a friction transmission. The wheelbase was 70 inches (1,800 mm), front wheels 38, with 40s in the rear, and solid rubber tires. The first deliveries were probably made in early 1908.

On Aug. 28, 1907, Edward M. Murphy incorporated the Oakland Motor Co. Murphy is said to have chosen the Oakland name for his automobile venture because the company was located in Oakland County, Michigan. Crosstown rival Pontiac Spring & Wagon Works already was making a high-wheel motor wagon under the Pontiac name.

In January 1909, General Motors President William C. Durant purchased a 50% interest in the Oakland Motor Car Company. Later that year GM bought out the other 50% after the unexpected death of Edward M. Murphy at the age of 45.

While technically the first car model named after the city,Pontiac Spring's early use of the Pontiac name is not at all related to the production history of the later make by General Motors.

I toured the Pontiac plant in 2009 as part of the 25th anniversary Fiero show. The plant has since been demolished when Rattner, Summers, Geithner and Obama ordered Government Motors to drop Pontiac and other brands.