The fascinating history of American cars . . .one story at a time.
Author: Deb Tracy
I am a reformed attorney who has returned to my first loves, American history and classic cars. Raised in a family of automobile fanatics, my Dad is one of those guys who can look at a set of tail lights and tell you what car they belong to and follow that with a story about one he owned. Forget the “new car” smell, I love the smell of old cars and old garages. My husband (retired law enforcement and former U.S. Marine) and I turned our hobby into a business a few years ago and now happily deal in classic cars and their various parts. We live in rural Nebraska with our amazing teenage daughter and a houseful of border collies.
I collect all sorts of things associated with American automobile history, and that includes old accessory lighting like these examples:
National Electric safety and emergency lightWilliams spot light
So, when I found this light at the bottom of a box of car stuff purchased at an auction, I was seriously intrigued. It has clamps for attaching to a car battery and a bracket for hanging the light under the hood. Must be an old trouble light, right?
Wrong. Well, sort of wrong. It is marked “EDISON SAFETY LAMP MFD. BY THOMAS A. EDISON, INC., WEST ORANGE, N.J. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,” and that, I discovered, means it was originally a light for a miner’s hat. The early 1900s were deadly years for miners with one disaster after another. Many of these disasters were explosions caused by the open flames used in miner’s cap lamps. To eliminate the danger of the open flame, Edison created an electric light that attached to the miner’s cap and was powered by a rechargeable battery pack that attached to the miner’s belt.
I guess some enterprising automobile owner converted this light to one that could be used under the hood. After all this time, it still shines as brightly as ever, proving yet again that they just don’t make ’em like they used to.
Sources:
“Blame Lamp For Blasts.” The Orlando Morning Sentinel, 23 May 1929, p. 1.
“Edison Safety Lamp Wins.” El Paso Herald, 5 July 1929, p. 14.
“Edison’s Safety Lamp Will Save Lives.” The Ford Wayne Sentinel, 24 February 1913, p. 5.
This 1953 Chrysler New Yorker was on the auction block at an estate sale we stopped by the other day, and ’53 was really an interesting year for Chrysler. It was the first year the car’s electrical system went to 12-volt, and it was the first year to feature a new one-piece wrap-around curved windshield. This Chrysler also had one of the earlier hemi engines (they first appeared in 1951) with a 3 13/16″bore x 3 5/8″ stroke and a piston displacement of 331.1 with a compression ratio of 7.5 to 1. It was called the “Firepower” engine and had 180hp.
1953 was notable for Chrysler, but it was downright historic for American automobiles because it marked the first time in history that eight-cylinder engines outsold six-cylinders. Ten makes were offering V-8s: Ford, Desoto, Dodge, Chrysler, Studebaker, Lincoln, Mercury, Oldsmobile, Cadillac and Buick. Straight-eights were being offered by Packard and Pontiac (and a special line of Buicks). The biggest selling six was Chevrolet, of course. The four-cylinders that once dominated now accounted for only one percent of the market, primarily sold by Willys-Overland and Kaiser-Fraser.
Other “firsts” for this Chrysler:
Let’s hope this straight, solid beauty went to a good home!
Sources:
Advertisement. Chrysler. The San Bernardino County Sun, 20 March 1953, p. 9.
“Chrysler Gains Wide Acceptance.” The San Bernardino County Sun, 20 March 1953, p. 9.
“Chryslers for 1953 Feature Beautiful Body Stylings.” Lancaster Eagle Gazette, 1 November 1952, p. B-8.
“Eight-Cylinder To Top All Models This Year.” The El Paso Times, 18 February 1953, p. 25.
“New Era Seen for Automobile Engines, With Eights Expected to Outsell Sixes.” Valley Evening Monitor (McAllen], 16 February 1953, p. 6.
I am just crazy about this station wagon that was part of the Rod & Custom Car Show in Stuhr Museum’s Railroad Town:
It is a 1960 Chevrolet, and one contemporary ad referred to it as “Man’s best four-wheeled friend.” I don’t know about that, but I could haul all three of my actual “man’s best friends” with room to spare. Seriously, this wagon has 10 feet of space from the back of the front seat to the tailgate, a whopping 90 square feet!
Engine choices included the 235 6-cylinder, 283 V-8 or a 348 V-8 with up to 350hp.
The ’60 wagon was available in five models, a Brookwood available in either two or four doors, a 4-door Parkwood, a 9-passenger Kingswood and a Nomad:
For 1960, Chevy abandoned the “cat’s-eye” tail light used in ’59 in favor of round ones. It looks like this wagon is sporting Caddy tail lights. Nice touch!
This tinsel-covered ’58 Olds was my hands-down favorite at the local car show a few weeks ago:
Photo credit: Delaney Tracy
The Oldsmobile was completely re-styled for 1958 and sported loads of chrome. It had a recess-type grille with thin aluminum louvers and a contour bumper with parking lights at each end.
Photo credit: Delaney Tracy
Inside was a yuuuge steering wheel. An option was a “Trans-Portable” radio that could be removed from the car and used elsewhere (running on dry-cell batteries that provided 160 hours of playing time).
Photo credit: Delaney Tracy
It looks like it would be slow, doesn’t it? Not really, since it came equipped with a 371 cubic-inch Rocket engine. The entry level Dynamic 88 featured an Econ-O-Way dual carb and 265 hp, but the Super 88 and 98 came with a quadri-jet carb and 305 hp. Better yet, available as an option was the J-2 Rocket with a six-pack and 312 hp. The gas cap, which you would be accessing often, was found behind the left tail light.
Photo credit: Delaney Tracy
The Jetaway HydraMatic Drive was touted as smoother for ’58, and a true air suspension called New-Matic Ride (I love these names) was another option. It cushioned the car on four chambers of compressed air, one at each wheel. Oldsmobile’s name for this whole beautiful package was “Oldsmobility”, and it is a gorgeous remnant from the rocket age.
My jarhead husband reminds me that I can’t talk about Columbus (home of the Gottberg Auto Co. building) without mentioning the Andrew Jackson Higgins National Memorial. Higgins, creator of the “Higgins boat”, was born in Columbus and was the man Dwight D. Eisenhower said “won the war for us.”
Andrew Jackson Higgins National Memorial, Columbus, Nebraska
The Higgins boat, or LCVP (Landing Craft, Vehicle and Personnel) was key to the success of the Allies’ amphibious invasions during World War II, including D-Day. It was a small, light wooden boat with a protected propeller and diesel engine capable of carrying 36 men or a dozen men and a jeep.
The Navy didn’t initially see the value, but the Marine Corps did and was willing to lobby for it. By September of 1943, the Navy had 14,072 vessels and 12,964 had been designed by Higgins. Fortunately for the Allies, Higgins was able to produce so many boats because he had possessed the foresight to purchase the entire 1939 mahogany crop from the Phillipines. A great American, he also once demanded that a Navy contract be renegotiated downward because he was making too much money while American boys were dying. The display, located in Pawnee Park, is a beautiful and fitting memorial, consecrated with sand from beaches around the world where the Higgins boat saw action.
Andrew Jackson Higgins National Memorial, Columbus, Nebraska
Sources:
Andrew Jackson Higgins Nebraska Historical Marker, nd, Andrew Jackson Higgins National Memorial, Columbus, Nebraska.
Greenberg, Paul. “D-Day Museum Helps Honor Man Who Helped America to Win WWII.” The Clarion Ledger, 9 March 2001, p. 11A.
Ringle, Ken. “The Miracle Boat That Won A War.” The Hartford Courant, 6 June 2000, p. 1.
Watkins, Billy. “The Man Who Won the War.” The Clarion Ledger, 6 June 2004, p. 1.
What is it about old car dealerships that tug at your heartstrings? When we are road-tripping, I look for these glimpses into the past on the main street of every town we pass through. It is always a pleasant surprise to find such a structure that has been preserved and given new life, and one superb example of such a property is the former Gottberg Auto Company dealership (now Dusters Restaurant & Gottberg Brew Pub) in Columbus, Nebraska.
This structure, built in 1920, features the front ends of four automobiles, made of stone, at three upper corners. Each stone car has a “G” on the grille:
This dealership was built by a man of vision named Max Gottberg. Gottberg had been a farmer since 1881, but a discussion with a local attorney in 1905 changed his career path. Gottberg had purchased his first automobile, a Ford Model A 2-cylinder, a couple of years earlier at the St. Louis World’s Fair. The attorney owned the same type of car, but it had broken down and the attorney had hired a “mechanic” to fix it. The alleged mechanic had fled after strewing pieces and parts of the automobile across the yard, leaving both the attorney and his poor car in a bind. Gottberg, who was in town on jury duty, agreed to attempt to re-assemble the parts. He had the car “running like a top” within a day and a half and soon decided to open his own repair shop.
By 1907, Gottberg was ready to open a Ford dealership in Columbus. The first of any kind established in that city, it was also one of the earlier Ford agencies in the United States. The first few years of business were lean, however. Gottberg once recalled, “The first year I sold 22 cars, and, after all was said and done, I had lost $64.” Livery work helped to keep the doors open until America fell in love with the automobile, and soon Gottberg’s business was thriving.
In 1929, Gottberg established an airfield north of Columbus. An aviation enthusiast, he had purchased an American Eagle biplane. At that time, Ford was manufacturing a $50,000 tri-motor and encouraged Ford dealers to take an interest in aviation with a view toward the production of smaller aircraft.
Gottberg driving up the steps of the local YMCA to showcase the Ford’s power in 1911.
Gottberg Auto Company celebrated their 25th anniversary in 1932 and was one of the oldest Ford dealerships in the country at that time. It remained in business until Gottberg’s death in 1944.
It makes my heart happy that this uniquely beautiful building has not only been preserved, but is also being honored. Dusters Restaurant (named for the garments worn while driving the earliest automobiles) & Gottberg Brew Pub is a restaurant, banquet facility and micro-brewery featuring lagers, ales, root beer and cream soda. When my family and I stopped there for lunch not long ago , the food was great and the root beer was fantastic. If you are anywhere near Columbus, be sure to take the time to appreciate the building as well as the brews.
Sources:
Advertisment. Gottberg Auto Company. The Columbus Telegram, 30 June 1916, p.
“Auto Repair Shop Opened in 1907.” The Columbus Telegram, 23 May 1956, p. 6.
Dischner, Francis M. “Pioneer Auto Dealer Recalls Early Experiences.” The Columbus Telegram, 6 March 1931, p. 3.
Krepel, Terry. “Discover Columbus History Looking Up.” The Columbus Telegram, 20 December 1987, p. 1.
“Max Gottberg Among Oldest Ford Dealers.” The Columbus Telegram, 31 August 1936, p. 4.
“Second Airfield To Be Established North of Columbus.” The Columbus Telegram, 1 July 1929, 8.
“To Observe 25th Anniversary of Gottberg Agency.” The Columbus Daily Telegram, 22 April 1932, p. 8.
Speaking of Fox Bodies, look at this 1984 Mercury Capri that is going on the auction block as part of the Kearney Cruise Nite Annual Classic Car Auction.
It has the 302 V8 with a 5-speed and, get this, only 12,740 miles! Other cars that will be sold on Friday night include a ’40 Chevy Tudor, a ’69 Goat, and a ’33 Ford Vicky, and you can check out all of them at Rhynalds Auction. Despite local flooding, all events associated with the 32nd annual Kearney Cruise Nite (including this auction) are proceeding as planned because “‘A rumbling engine and some tail fins and chrome can be very therapeutic,’ said Cruise Nite committe member Joshua Sikes. ” It certainly works for me!
