Jake's Fabulous Fords

Back in the 1990s, I worked as a shop foreman

for a Jaguar dealer in Hempstead, NY.

At the time, the owner (Jake)

had a couple of old Fords that he stored

in one of the buildings on premises.

Although they were in pretty good running

condition, he decided one day to restore them

in preparation of driving them on special occasions

or possibly selling them.

I was the lucky guy who got to oversee the work

and drive them from time to time.

Naturally, I found a nearby park one day and

took some photos for posterity.

Very little for me to comment on here; just look

and enjoy some classic Americana from Detroit.

(Click on images to enlarge a bit.)

This was a 1941 Ford convertible painted a dark blue,

probably an original Ford color.

The car was factory stock with the exception of the

white Carson Top (covering the rear/side quarter windows

and having a small glass to see behind while driving).

The '41 engine was a 221 cubic-inch flathead V8

rated at 90 horsepower.

The three-speed manual transmission gear shift

was on the column.

Jake's other fabulous Ford was this '49 convertible,

also painted a dark blue close to the original color.

Sorry I didn't get a photo of the engine but it was

similar to the 1941 engine,

a flathead V8, but increased to 239 cubic-inches,

and rated at 100 horsepower.

Ancestral Home in Hoechstadt an der Aisch

In doing my genealogy research I had found my maternal grandmother came to America from Germany and was originally from somewhere in Bavaria. But, without knowing exactly which town in Bavaria, I could not begin to search further since records were traditionally kept in the Churches of the individual towns.

Last year, I located Peter, a distant cousin in Germany whose grandmother was a sister to mine. Not only did he tell me that the women were originally from Hoechstadt an der Aisch (on the Aisch River, in Bavaria) but he also traveled to the town to take some photographs to send me.

St. Georg Church, in Hoechstadt, where our grandmothers were baptized.

(Photo downloaded from an online site)

Peter took the above photo of the site where our grandmothers' childhood home stood.

While there, he met a woman who lived above the first floor store and told her why he was photographing the building. She told him she had an old photo of the previous building that occupied that location and gave him a copy (reproduced below).

(Click on photos to enlarge.)

Although the photo appears to be from the 1960's (judging by car in the driveway, and the miniskirt on the woman) the house was basically the same as it was in the 1800s.

On The Streets of Queens, NY, 1963-1964

Sorry it's been so long between posts. Here's a sampling of some of the '55 and '56 Chevys running around on the streets of Queens during 1963 and 1964- all belonging to friends of mine (or friends of friends).

Accuracy in the spelling of names is not guaranteed but if someone knows the current whereabouts of anyone mentioned in my posts, please let me know... thanks!

(Click on any image to enlarge)

This beautiful, nearly stock-bodied '55 belonged to Billy Squires of Glendale. The hood and deck were partially shaved and it was painted emerald green.

The suspension was beefed up with heavy duty springs and shocks.

From the side, you can see the "plumbers' pipes" behind the front wheels (removing the caps allowed the exhaust to exit before the mufflers, when you went to the drag strip). Also quite obvious are the traction bars before the rear wheels, designed to keep the rear end from twisting during hard acceleration.

The engine in Billy's car was a 348 cu. in. Chevy, with three carbs, running through a 4-speed transmission. (Note the two electric fuel pumps that supplied the engine's needs on the far-side fender well in photo.)

Al Banome, of Richmond Hill, owned many hot cars during the late '50s and '60s. This teal blue '55 was parked in front of my parents' house when I shot the only photo I have of it in August, 1964. The body was extensively modified but still being worked on at this time. Note the dechroming, extended rear fenders with new tail lights, split rear bumper, and radiused rear wheel openings. Under the hood was a late model Buick engine.

A lot of guys hung out at the home of Frank Gesualdo, of Ozone Park, (otherwise known as "Alley Oop" to his friends). This '55, shot in Sept., 1963, was owned by one of his buddies (name unknown) and was called, "All Business." The body was partially dechromed and the rear wheel openings enlarged with a cutting torch (!) to make changing the rear slicks easier at the track.

The engine in "All Business" was a late model Chevy 409, featuring a Racer Brown flat tappet cam and a big four-barrel carb.

Another of Alley Oop's friends, Joey Cosanza, owned this '55 which was, again, partially dechromed and a "work-in-progress."

The engine in Joey's car was a late model Olds, featuring a Giovani high-lift cam (note the bulges on the valve covers to allow the rocker arms more room to travel) and a Bendix electric fuel pump supplying three carbs. Transmission was an Olds "hydro-stick"; car reportedly turned 105 mph in the quarter-mile.

Norm Schlosser, of Richmond Hill, owned this really clean, stock-bodied '55 painted red and white. Wheel covers were from a late-model Plymouth, a popular choice for many cars in the '60s, due to their simple and elegant style.

Under the hood was a '59 Chevy 283 engine and an Olds Hydro-stick transmission.

I met Chuck (from Flushing) at the White Castle on Atlantic Avenue, in Highland Park, Brooklyn, when I had my Mint Julep I. He liked the black scallops I had painted on my mint green Merc and discovered I also did pin-striping. As a result, he asked me to pin-stripe his fire-engine red '56 convertible in white. His car was nosed & decked, and featured a louvered hood, straight-bar grille, and spun aluminum wheel covers.

From the rear, custom tail lights and long chrome Lakes Pipes can be seen.

Rosenberg bei Danzig

During my genealogy research, I found that my mother's father's family originally came from Rosenberg bei Danzig, and Langenau bei Danzig. Danzig (or Gdansk) was a German Free State on the coast of what is now Poland. "bei" means "near" (Rosenberg and Langenau were smaller towns to the south of Danzig).

For many years, I would look at several old photo albums my mother kept and wonder about all the people and places depicted in the photos; many had no names or descriptions and some had German writing I couldn't read. I recently located Peter, a German relative, who has helped me translate some of the writing on many old items, including the post card (from about 1915) shown here. (Click on any photo to enlarge)

Some introductions: my grandfather had 11 brothers & sisters; two of the women married brothers with the surname Gehrt and moved to America around the turn of the 20th century. One of his other sisters, Anna, stayed in Rosenberg and had a daughter, Alma (my grandfather's niece); Alma had three children including a girl, Kate. My grandmother's name was Franze and my mother's was Lena (diminutive name is Linchen).

The translation:

“Dear Uncle Otto. Herewith I’m sending to you your native city. This picture was taken from the church tower by Kate’s teacher. In front there is the school. The street goes to Langenau. Can you see anything on the street? That is mother, I, and the kids. We are going to the station.

Where I made a cross there is Gehrt’s tavern. It’s newly built. The old one you will remember. Otherwise we feel tolerably. We are all healthy. Last week (unclear name) Gehrt visited us. She tells almost nothing, you have to ask for everything.

Mother will write on Sunday.

Best wishes to aunt Franze and Linchen

and warm regards to you from your niece.

Alma and family.”

So, I had an actual photo of the town my grandfather came from, and one in which my relatives are visible on the road (granted, they're just tiny black dots) and, all along, I had no idea what it was.

The Last of Ken's Cool Cars - '47 Ford Coupe

The last "cool" car I owned was this '47 Ford coupe, purchased around 1967 from a guy in Smithtown, Long Island. I had always liked this model and, when I saw it advertised in the Selling Post for $200, I had to buy it. (Click on any image to enlarge.)

It had been sitting for a long time but the body was in really nice shape. There was a gallon of water in the crankcase when I initially looked at it but I didn't care; that old flathead wasn't going to stay in there for very long.

I rented a tow hitch and towed it some 4o miles back to Elmont. I drained the water from the crankcase, put in a new battery, and the damn thing ran great for many months–until I decided what I was going to put under the hood.

My goal was to keep the car looking relatively stock but improve the driveline, suspension, and appointments so it would be a dependable, everyday driver, capable of going anywhere.

I left the body nearly stock, removing only the top hood ornament and filling the holes. I replaced several pieces of chrome and the gravel guards on the rear fenders with new old stock or replacement parts from Joblet Automotive (the Ford specialists), in Queens Village.

I had it painted a blueish-green; I think it was a GM color but can't remember the name. After these photos were taken, I had the hood louvered by Henny's Welding, in Jamaica, New York. When I drove over there and told them what I wanted, they had to move a ton of crap to get at their louver punching press; it had been a long time since anyone had asked for a louvered hood and it was buried!

I worked at a Chevy dealer at the time and acquired a 327 cubic inch block from a '67 Corvette; I then located heads, manifolds, and everything else I needed over a few months time, and assembled everything. I put a Turbo Hydromatic transmission behind it, and installed a '56 Chevy rear end assembly, including brakes, with matching leaf springs. When I initially built the engine, I installed a racing cam but found it was too hairy for street use with an automatic, so I swapped it out for a tamer cam with hydraulic lifters after a few months.

I installed a Ford Econoline front axle assembly, including brakes, with leaf springs and a steering damper like they have on Jeep Wranglers; 15 inch wheels were used all around. I rewired the car and converted it to 12 volts. The engine ran really well with just a four-barrel carb and a Stewart-Warner electric fuel pump mounted by the tank.

I used black leather bucket seats in front but can't remember what they came out of. The back seat and door panels were reupholstered with black vinyl, and a new black carpet installed with soundproofing under it. A nice stereo unit was added, and I fabricated an air-conditioning system using parts from a '65 Chevy and an aftermarket kit; the evaporator was mounted right behind the glove box door. I hand-made the ductwork that fit under the dash from sheet aluminum. That sucker got so cold, it spit ice-cubes out at times!

This was probably the car I owned the longest: about 5 or 6 years. After putting it up for sale, I sold it to the first guy who came to look at it, around 1973.

Ken's Green '55 Chevy 2-Door Sedan

Sometime after I sold the white '58 Impala (see earlier post) around late 1964, early 1965, I got this green '55 2-door sedan. (I think I might have sold the Impala to the guy who owned this green 2-door and this car was part payment.) It was a six-cylinder, stick... a really basic car. (Click on any image to enlarge.)

It had been repainted mint-green by a previous owner, and the body was fairly straight, but suffered from some rust on the fenders over the headlights. I meant to do some body repairs and customizing on it so I took off the chrome from the hood and deck but never filled the holes. I removed all vertical bars from the grille except the center one (cheap & easy modification) and installed an extra set of headlights (wide-angle high beams, for night driving on rural country roads) behind the grille.

I installed '56 Buick tail light lenses in place of the originals and "baby moon" wheel covers.

One day, a friend of mine stopped by my house; Billy Squires worked for a wrecking yard part time. He had his tow truck outside with a '58 Olds engine hanging from the back of the truck. He said, "I brought you a present." He also brought along a set of heavy-duty front coil springs for my Chevy; I think they were from a station wagon.

I put the Olds engine and transmission (and the new coil springs) in place of the originals. Shortly after, I took this car on our honeymoon when I got married. We did "the clock" with it on a new highway that was just built up in the Poconos; it handled very well at that speed.

Interior was stock except for added gauges on either side of the radio (oil pressure, engine temperature, etc.) and a fire extinguisher mounted under the dash. Note the cheap upholstery and overspray by the door jamb. I sold the car before I even fixed the rust.

Some Local Boys' "Shoeboxes" ('49 - '51 Fords) from the 1960's

Up until now I've posted lots of photos of my own cars on this blog (and there are more to come) but very few of those belonging to friends and acquaintances back in the day. So, let's look at some '49 - '51 Fords (commonly known as "shoeboxes) that tooled around the streets of Queens back in the 1960s. These cars were plentiful and cheap so a very popular vehicle for guys with low budgets to customize and soup up.

(As usual, click on any photo to enlarge it.)

My memory is getting worse as I get older but, for some reason, I remember this guy's name was Paul. I met him at the White Castle on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn where we used to hang out.

Paul's '51 2-door hardtop (how rare is that?) was mildly customized and had the usual dechroming on the hood and deck. The center grille "peak" was removed and '50 Ford grille shell chrome surrounded what I think was an early 'Vette grille; '55 pontiac side trim was added to separate the black and mint green paint job.

In the rear, a continental kit, '59 Caddy tail light lenses, and fender skirts were added. After seeing my Mint Julep (see first post on this blog) Paul asked me to add some scalloping for him so we did mint green on the black and black on the mint green, naturally!

This '49 or '50 belonged to Billy Squire's brother, Sy, from Glendale. It featured a complete dechroming, tunneled headlights, and a DeSoto grille (a popular choice for these cars back then). I don't remember what was under the hood and I think this is the only photo I have of this car.

My friend Ken Szekretar, from Glendale, had quite a few nice cars during the '60s and this '51 was his second. Above is a scene from a typical Saturday when we would work on our cars in the front of my house in Richmond Hill.

Ken eventually dechromed the whole car, removed the outside door handles, and had louvers punched into the hood before rounding the corners over the grille opening. The grille was fabricated from '53 Chevy parts and the rear wheel openings radiused. Altering the front springs set the car on a rake. (Note my Mint Julep II parked behind Ken's Ford, down the block from the factory where we worked in Glendale.)

While most of the photos on this blog are added from scanning original negatives, I couldn't find the one for the engine in Ken's '51; the scratches on the well-worn photo are evident. A near stock '56 Olds engine was shoehorned under the hood and mated to the ford three-speed trans. Note the external oil filter mounted on the firewall (to the left in photo) due to a lack of room under the car near the steering linkage. The electrical system was converted to 12 volts.

Ed Talerine of Richmond Hill owned this '51 2-door sedan. Featuring the usual dechroming and shaved doors, and a louvered hood, Ed used two '51 Ford grille mouldings surrounding another DeSoto Grille. Wheel covers were spun aluminum, another popular choice in the '60s.

In the rear, Ed took the chrome trim off the sides by the tail lights and placed it on top of the quarter panels, frenching in a set of '55 Ford tail lights.

This '49 convertible belonged to our paperboy, Bill Baggellar (?); while he was still in high school he worked on this car (just like I did, but I didn't have a paper route) a couple of blocks from my house . Once again, the usual dechroming and tunneled headlights are seen.

Obviously, a work in progress. Note the Buick "porthole" at the bottom of the rear quarter panel.
(At the upper left, in front of his car, my '55 Chevy convert can be seen.)

Bill replaced the 239 cubic-inch Ford engine with a Merc 255 c.i. flathead for a little more power (another easy and popular swap).

More cars to follow...