History Ever wonder about your cars first owner?

My cutlass 66 that i have owned since 86 were sold new in Stockholm to a shop owner
and i are the 19th owner on the new plates from 73 and there was 2 owner before on the old type of licence plate.

 

I dont know about the first owner but I know that the guy who owned my 49 ford 30 years ago showed up at the shop that was chopping its top while the procedure was going on. He had torn it down for whatever reason and never put it back together. He sold it and ultimately it ended up as a pile of parts in a building materials warehouse. After a hurricane remodeled the warehouse I got the car. Someone tipped him off it was being chopped and he went to see it. He said he thought it would never see the road again. He left with tears in his eyes.

 

Some cool stories, I really need to work on collecting more info on more of my families cars.

My 64 C10 stepside was my dad's secretary's dad's farm truck bought new. When my dad picked it up it had been sitting under a tree filled with pecans. It has been since restored to original.

My dad's 40 Plymouth coupe he bought from the original owner in 1965.

My 82 Caballero I got from a lawyer my dad knew.

My 72 Tbird I bought from the original owner who bought th car new in Georgia, drove it to Texas in the 70s, and had it restored a few years back. He didn't drive it much or always have it covered, so it needs a little refreshing.

 

I have the history of my 1932 ford from 1948 until now. It was in the thread I started about the car called "a spin on a 32 roadster" Learning the history of a car I own has been just as much fun as driving it.

 

I hope he was happy as a king.

I hope he had a day in the sun.

 

I researched the ownership of my '51 Merc custom, and found out that during the 1960's, it belonged to a tax accountant who lives only about five miles from my office. He and his wife took it to Niagara Falls on their honeymoon, and he gave me a couple of photos of them leaving town, driving the Merc. I invited him and his wife to come and see the car at a local car show, but warned him that it wouldn't look anything like he remembered it. They came to the show and he thought it was pretty cool that the car had been saved, but I don't think his wife thought much of my custom job.

 

So how do you go about searching the history of a car. if the person you bought it from doesn't any history.

 

In 1927 with it's original owner at Daytona Beach, he was a doctor, then passed down in 1966, same family though til 2011 when I got it at their estate sale

 

Pictured is my first car. A 1964 Impala SS 409-340HP. My grandparents raised me from the time I was 3 years old. My grandfather died in 1972 and willed me the car. I was in 7th grade and I still have it today. It has 66,000 miles.

I was just a little guy but I still remember the day they walked uptown and ordered it. I also remember the day the salesman delivered it to house. He dropped off the Impala and left in our trade in, a 1955 turquoise and white Mercury Montclaire.

Thanks Grandpa

 

It would be really interesting if we all could have a simple way of finding out the list of people that owned the cars and why they sold the car . maybe even meet some if there are still around to show them the car they bought new back what ever year it was . i can bet you the original owner would be happy to see their new car was still around . I am not sure they would like to see them cut , chopped ,decked and so on . It still would be nice to find out the cars history .
You just never know if your car was used in a bank robbery , maybe some kid got real lucky with the cheerleader the back seat , maybe it was the kool kid in town car or some damn dork that owned the car or maybe it was used by a kool gang or who knows what ! I just think it would really be interesting to get the history of the car and then that might answer all the strange things you found in your car in or on your car .
Just a thought !

Retro Jim

 

Now that is one great story ! It's really good that you have the car your grandfather bought new , then he left to you plus it's still with you and still looking good ! That car must mean the world to you ! Sounds like your grandfather must have been like mine was . A true gear head ! My grandfather had a 1970 Mustang Mach 1 with a big block and loved to take me for a ride in it on the highway ! I wish I had talked him into letting me have it when he was ready to get rid of it for another car ! He also had a lead foot !
Kool Story !

Retro Jim

Retro Jim

 

I consider myself the '2nd owner' of my '62 Galaxie XL. The original owner hadn't put very many miles on it, and it still had the original paint & interior. The original owner had passed away, and his son had inherited the car, but promptly sold it to someone else without driving or registering it. Then the other guy sold it to me without driving or registering it either. This all happened within a few months.

A few years ago, while watching Hitchcock's "The Birds", I saw in the background a white '62 Galaxie just like mine.

I like to fantasize that it's the same car. Who knows...?

 

I would love to know the history on my 64 Bonneville. I got it about a year ago, and the only history I've really got is the 1980 Oklahoma plates. The boxed framerails were all packed full of some kind of silt, and the rear springs were some super-overload (sta wag, ambulance?) There were shell casings everywhere when I gutted the interior. I gotta thank the previous owners for the 1970 455/th400 combo though, and the large bullet hole in the passenger floor board. It made a nice drain when my heater core blew.

This is the only recent photo I have of it with new bumpers and paint...time for a photo-op day.

 

4 speed or Powerglide? Either way that is way cool. Original paint and interior? My family still has my grandparents 61 Impala sedan although nowhere near as cool as a SS 409.

 

The 64 Fury in my avatar was bought new by our next door neighbor the same year I started in Elementary school. In about 1972 or so, he was retired and I used to go sit and talk with him. I was a big Richard Petty fan, and had probably built a dozen or more of the old Johan 64 Petty Plymouth kits into various different versions of street, drag, and Stock car racers. The 64 Plymouth became one of my favorite cars at that young age. I told him that I wanted the car when he was ready to sell it. (I was 14 years old.) He said he would like me to have it one day, but they were still driving it. We moved away, and he passed away a couple of years later. I went back to visit a couple times when I was in High school, but his wife was still driving it. I saw her around town in it occasionally for a couple more years, then it seemed to disappear. Went by the old house with the 1 car garage the Plymouth was kept in, and everything had been sold to a new owner. The car was gone for good, I thought! I was out with friends in 1986 and the Plymouth pulled into the McDonalds we were at!! Turned out that the son had inherited the car and had it out for a drive that day. After I talked to him for a while, he remembered me talking to his Dad back in the seventies, and remembered that his Dad said he wanted me to have the car one day! He wasn't willing to sell it at the time, but called me about a year later. I bought it sight unseen without even driving it! I wanted it when I was 14, and finally got it when I was 29! It aint going no where.....

 

I know who the original owner of my 50 Chevy was as I have the original sales receipt. It came with a load of documentation and receipts.

 

I traced my 55 back to 1972, when it was in Somers Point N.J. At that time it was sold to a guy from Canton ILL. who had just finished his service in the U.S. Navy. He needed a car to drive back home and this 55 was for sale locally. He bought it, drove it back to Canton, where it went through a few more owners, until I bought it in 1977.

I have the name of the owner in N.J. Marion Benson, in Somers Point. Even found a name, address, and phone number through the internet. The person's age even matched up. I called the number and left a message on the answering machine, but no one ever called back. From the age, they might have been the original owner. Attached is a pic from 1972, and one from this year.

So.....Does anyone know a Marion Benson from New Jersey????

 

And another story about one of mine. My OT 1967 Coronet R/T was bought new by a mechanic at the local Mack truck dealership. He drove it a couple years, then sold it to his younger brother who is a mechanic at the same dealership. Younger bro sold the car in 1976 and I bought it in 1977. I went to work at the same Mack dealership for a while in 1980. Started a lot of conversations when I came driving the R/T in to work one day! I got to hear a lot of the old war stories from back in the day. Apparently my car was able to put down most of the other guys cars in the "stop light drags"! LOL

 

My 66 C10 Stepside was originally owned by the Air Force.

 

i have 2 cars that i knew the first owner . my tbird was owned by the guy that owned the local bultaco motorcycle dealership. it is still known as bills car by a large number of people. the 2nd is my ex mother inlaws car , a nova, when my ex lost her house from stupidty she either had to pay to have the car hauled off or give it to me. the old car hadnt sit outside a day in its life but had sit for about 7-8 years. threw some gas down its throat and a fresh battery and drove it home. bills car and leonas car are now allens cars. still fun to think of from time to time

 

for those who dont have history on their car: google is your best friend. our car came with its original title. Name of the original owner & address. I started by googleing her name and address and such and random things would come up. If you know the original owner's name and where the car lived; youd be surprised what google turns about about people. I actually got US Census records so i know about how old she was when the car left her hands in 1965.

Contacting the historical society or the town/city of which they lived can turn up valuable info too

 

It took some digging, but I found out alot about the history of my Delivery. The nephew of the original owner owns our local grocery store. Clyde was a very large man according to those that remember him. He enlisted in the army in 1917 and served in WWI. Clyde lived in Ingam, Ne. (now a nonexistant mining town) until 1928. Then moved to Gothenburg and started his well bussiness. In 1934 he sold everything and went to California with his wife and kids. Clyde died in 1954 of a massive heartache. It is very likely my Great Gramdpa and Grandpa knew him based on the locations here and the time frame. I have copied and wrote down several accounts of things with him before the history is all lost. The original signage will be repainted on the car when I am done and is likely to spur several locals interest. Rod

 

Tracked down the original owner of my '62 Corvette in the late 1980's.

I'd gone back through several owners then it dead ended. Pulled the seats one day to clean it really good. Found a gas receipt under the seat from 1964. Address was 90 miles away. Got in the San Diego phone book and there he was. Set up a meeting and he said he had something for me.

He still had the wheels, worn out original tires and hubcaps to my car since he'd installed chrome rims when it needed new tires. Also the original owner's manual, warranty book and the dealer receipt from 1961. He traded it all to me for a drive in the car.

 

my '64 was bought new in Marlow, Oklahoma on 22 November 1963 by a lady named Lena Hale who lived north of town on Countyline Road. her husband, Jess, was a water well driller who paid cash for the car at Robbins Ford.

a friend and I first saw the car in 1984 while riding dirt bikes near her place. Mrs. Hale put the car up for sale in late 1986 for $800. the car had about 87,000 miles at that time. my Granny tried to buy it from her for $500 so that I would have my first car. Mrs. Hale declined the offer.

a few months later, on a whim, during a miserable February rain storm, my Granny called Mrs. Hale and repeated the $500 offer. Mrs. Hale sighed and said, "I gave the car to my grandson last week but he has it parked outside under a drip. If he doesn't think any more of it than that I will let you have it for $500. Come get it."

after paying Mrs. Hale, she handed me the title and told me to look at the date the car was sold new: November 22, 1963. I was 17 and clueless. she said, "Son, that's the day Kennedy was shot! when I turned the radio on that was the first thing I heard!".

that afternoon my Granny and I went to get insurance on the car. the agent looked at the car and asked, 'Is that Mrs' Hale's old car?'. when I said, 'yes'. he asked if I knew the car had been sold new the day JFK was shot. when I said 'yes' and asked how he knew that he replied that he had been working at Robbins Ford that day and had actually written up the sale. (years later I stopped at the machine shop of a Duncan, Oklahoma man named Dewight Sanford who looked at my Ford and asked, 'Is that Jess Hale's old car?'. when I said 'yes' he asked if I was aware the car had been sold the day JFK was shot. I told him I knew that and asked how he knew it. he replied, 'I was working at Robbins Ford that day. I did the detail work on it'.)

Mrs. Hale kept tabs on me after I bought 'her' car and always made sure I was taking care of it. she passed about fifteen years ago but her farm remained in the family. her husband's '41 Ford 1 ton drilling rig still sits there as does a junked '59 Ford custom tudor. when she died she was driving a circa 1985 LTD (not a Crown Vic but that goofy slanted nose thing) and still owned an early 1970s Maverick that her husband had also purchased for her. guess they were hardcore Ford folks.

 

My 54 Ford tudor was a police car in Gore, Oklahoma.

 

My grandpa told me in the late sixties he bought an early sixties chrysler new yorker, 61 i think. He said one day when he was cleaning it he found some of the original paper work from the dealer under the seat and it said the car was originally sold to Chester Nimitz, 5 star admiral in the Navy.

 

Wow, a lot of really incredible stories folks. I love the history!

 

My 28 was used to haul chickens, somehow they took the back body panel out and used barn door like hinges to open the back like a delivery.

 

Ran a trace through the department of motor vehicles on my 56 Chevrolet and found out it was last titled to the previous owners estate sale in 1967. It had been a hot rod at some time because of the holes sawed in the dash for gauges and hole drilled on the top of the dash for a tach. Huge hole hatcheted in the floor pan for the 4 speed shifter too. Had a 59 Impala steering wheel and someone had installed aftermarket seat belts too. Sometimes I wish the car could tell me a little about its past. A friend of mine picked it up from a scrap dealer who was going to crush it. I was glad to give it a second chance.

 

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