I recently purchased this nice og 55-6-7 Ford chassis parts catalog from Oregon. There is an old dealership stamp on the cover which has been wiped off and remains are very blurry. would be interested if anyone out there remembers a dealership possibly called:
California Motors
Brand Blvd ??
Glen(??)dale, CALIF.
the stamp is very hard to read, almost impossible. I could also be totally wrong with my interpretation. could also be Palmdale or else.
adress could also ready HYLAND BOLR HWY ??
what do you guys think ?
Brand Blvd., in Glendale, CA. has been known as the mile of cars forever. Lots of auto dealers are on that street. I was not living here during the mid fifty's so don't know who the Ford dealer was at the time.
John
thanx for the input, John. I did look up Brand Blvd in north LA/Glendale and there are still many car dealerships there, even a huge Ford/Lincoln dealership. too bad the street number isn't legible at all on the catalog stamp.
I'll check the Hamb..........gotta be the worlds best auto trivia resource. With what you guys figured out, I'll bet they'll not only have a name, but maybe even a picture.
I lived in Glendale from 1959 to 1970 and used that dealer for parts, that name doesn't ring a bell and I just can't remember the name right now. :005:
From the Hamb..........Galpin Motors possibly. They established themselves in San Fernando in 1946, but that's about 20 miles away. They opened a second location in '58, but I couldn't find an address for that.
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/50s-glendale-trivia-question.1143304/#post-12999729
There was a Ford dealer named Brand Ford, they weren't in Glendale though, closer to downtown LA. Brand Ford was responsible for getting Don Prudhomme into a SOHC dragster back in the later 60's.
If no one comes up with the answer by Monday I should be able to find out from the guys at morning coffee.
lots of great info already, thx guys! now I am even more interested what we can find out !
If it is Glendale, there is a Glendale in almost every state :003:
Good point Jim made, do we know it was California's Glendale? But then Brand Blvd is a unique name I would think...never saw it before.
The Hamb guys who lived in Glendale back in the day say the Ford dealer was Los Feliz Ford (now Star Ford). others have said Galpin Motors is not close to the Brand blvd Glendale area.
Quote from: RICH MUISE on 2019-03-17 16:52
Good point Jim made, do we know it was California's Glendale? But then Brand Blvd is a unique name I would think...never saw it before.
The Hamb guys who lived in Glendale back in the day say the Ford dealer was Los Feliz Ford (now Star Ford). others have said Galpin Motors is not close to the Brand blvd Glendale area.
Rich, the best I remember it was some other name before Los Feliz, It was at the corner of Brand and Los Felis Blvd. Correct. Galpin isn't even close to Glendale. Not remembering I feel dumber then a box of rocks..
I am very positive that last word in lower line is 'CALIF.' It reads quite clearly. city reads ???NDALE.
Although it is hardly visible in the scan, I do believe that Company name on top indeed states CALIFORNIA MOTORS.
I looked through the book, because I have found that most of these old og manuals are also stamped somewhere inside, but no luck here.
"Brand Boulevard of Cars had its beginnings in 1915, when Jesse E. Smith opened a Ford dealership", thats the only other Ford dealer my old friends remember. I think it lasted until the 60's. It was at a different location then Los Feliz Ford. So I have no idea what California Motors was..
.????ndale.......any Ford dealers in Irwindale from back in the day?
Quote from: rmk57 on 2019-03-18 17:33
.????ndale.......any Ford dealers in Irwindale from back in the day?
Thats a possibility, or maybe Lawndale?
From John Viera: these are original plate frames found at Pamona swap meet both made by the same company in Downey Cal.
(https://i.imgur.com/fQeFZCT.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/mfZcpta.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/X4CMRJZ.jpg?1)
(https://i.imgur.com/1gp9qJI.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/7s9BLQb.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/eqgZIyS.jpg)
No need to look further! Gunther's first guess was right on. cool.
WOW !!!!! that is incredible! If John reads this, many thanks to you !!! thanks for posting Joe !
I can't believe what this forum and members can turn out in a few days, amazing, to say the least! that license plate frame is way cool !
It's even more precious to me now because I was cruising Bobs Big Boy in Downey in 2013 with my Del Rio. to know where the parts catalog came from and where the company had their plate frames produced sure is a neat little adding to my 57 collection. Thanx everybody !
(http://up.picr.de/13791415mc.jpg)
(http://up.picr.de/13791416ba.jpg)
Thats amazing, I wonder what years California Motors was in business?? I can't recall them at all, maybe before 1959 when I first moved there.
What's really amazing, is that John Viera called me yesterday and asked if he could drive down to my house and meet me so that we could photograph these items and post them up for everyone. :library:
I take my hat off to John for a valiant effort on his part to share this info. :icon_salut:
Guys, my pleasure I'm glad everyone enjoyed and again thanks to Joe. John
The California Motors plate frame looks larger than the Sach's and Sons frame. The California license plates "were larger" up until 1956, when they became to uniform size we have today. Maybe it's just a optical illusion in the photo, but if it's actually larger, that would be a clue as to when the California Motors company was in operation.
John
Quote from: John Palmer on 2019-03-20 21:32
The California Motors plate frame looks larger than the Sach's and Sons frame. The California license plates "were larger" up until 1956, when they became to uniform size we have today. Maybe it's just a optical illusion in the photo, but if it's actually larger, that would be a clue as to when the California Motors company was in operation.
John
Didn't the earlier plates also have rounded corners? I noticed the frames have them also.
Sharp eye the Cal. Motors plate s. to s. is 13 1/2", t to b is 6 3/4, and more radius in corner. The Sachs L/M is s to s. 12", t. to b. 6 3/4 also.The face opening Cal. is 11 3/4,"s.to.s, t.to b. 4 1/2. Sachs is 11" s.to s. with 4 1/2" also. Yes I do know that Pomona is spelled with a Po not Pa it has something to do with being in Mass. for 73 all most years. John
Quote from: jviera on 2019-03-21 09:54
Sharp eye the Cal. Motors plate s. to s. is 13 1/2", t to b is 6 3/4, and more radius in corner. The Sachs L/M is s to s. 12", t. to b. 6 3/4 also.The face opening Cal. is 11 3/4,"s.to.s, t.to b. 4 1/2. Sachs is 11" s.to s. with 4 1/2" also. Yes I do know that Pomona is spelled with a Po not Pa it has something to do with being in Mass. for 73 all most years. John
Thanks.
Well......that puts the year of operation for the dealership at 1955, "or earlier". Vintage California license plates jumped around in both size, and round corner, versus square corner. Lots of information is on line supplied by the vintage license plate guys. It's very unusual to find, (read as expensive) the larger sized "square, or round" corner cast metal dealer frames. My guess is they were not widely installed by dealers in the early days, or they simply did not last this long.
I have been looking for a round corner 1947 California dealer frame, for my 1948 Spartan trailer. They are few and far between, and I've seen prices north of $300 for a single frame. I have a stainless reproduction frame in the vintage size, but when your a vintage car guy, you always "need the real thing with patina". LOL
very interesting info all around. the old pre 56 California plates were just beautiful by design, they indeed do look so good on a period car.
Also John's California Motors license plate frame is pure fifties with the diamonds and color choice. also neat Dearborn logos. it is absolutely beautiful !
About the catalog, it is the Sept 56 issue, including 55, 56 and all of the new 57 Fords. the catalog looks mint, ie unused. no fingerprints, no stains, no discoloration. so it appears to never have been used at all. If that has something to do with the company's folding, then I'd say it was in late 1956 or 1957. That might be a reason why little to nothing is known about this dealership.