Ben Cowan Ford, Indio, CA.
Brand Motors Ford City, Los Angeles, CA.
Frost Motors, Atlanta, GA.
Mc Donald Motors, Moses Lake, WA.
Smith Motors service area, Michigan City, IN.
Town and Country Ford, Reseda, CA.
Edgewood Motor Co., Michigan City, IN.
Leominster Motor Sales Ford, Leominster, MA.
Niantic Motors, East Lyme, CT.
Smail Ford, Pleasantville, NJ.
Spaniol Motors, Casper, WY.
Gilboy Ford-Mercury, Allentown, PA.
The name of the 1st dealership reminds me of the founder of the Lionel toy train company, Joshua Lionel Cowan. Cowan (or Cohen), is a surname associated with the hereditary Levitical priesthood, which in this case is ironic since American Jews have long had understandable misgivings about Henry, a notorious antisemite.
J. Lionel named himself Cowen, not Cowan. That’s not relevant, anyway. He did the change to avoid rampant anti-semitism at the time. But this doesn’t give us a clue on whether the dealer was Jewish. Henry is just one of the notorious industrialists and financists distinguished by being Jew-haters. I won’t go there here. No need to. Luckily, the US is generally tolerant.
There was a Governor-General of Australia whose name was Sir Zelman Cowan,he was the second Jewish man to hold that office,basically the Governor-General represents King Charles,the head of state of Australia.
Gilboy Ford it’s still in business in Whitehall Township which is just outside of Allentown PA
Hey, thanks for that info! That’s really interesting. This site affords new knowledge every day, not only on cars.
My dad bought our 1960 Ford Falcon four-door from Brand Motors in L.A.
I don’t see any Volvo branding at Smail Ford in NJ, so what’s that Volvo PV544 doing in the showroom? Perhaps Smail had recently acquired the franchise and no signage had been installed yet. Volvo was a relatively new and small operation in the US in the early 1960s.
Look just below the Ford sign at the left side of the photo: “Volvo Service”.
Oh thanks. I missed that.
That’s not a Volvo, that’s a New Old Stock 1946 Ford 🙂
Look underneath the large Ford sign and there is a small Volvo service sign, along with what appears to be a neon Volvo emblem in the window.
My favorite here is the Leominster Motor Sales dealership in Massachusetts – it’s hard to beat small-town New England businesses for nostalgia purposes.
Also, I happened to notice the Motor Oil sign on top of the building. Looks like it’s for Oilzum:
Bring back the red, white & blue Ford crest / emblem !
ChatGPT says the last common use was in 65-67
That 64 Custom 500 (?) out front of Spaniol Motors is interesting – the first big Ford I ever saw with wheel covers from a 64 Fairlane 500 Sprint. I wonder how that happened.
Looks like someone lost their hat underneath the car as well…?
I suspect that Leominster Motor Sales is in MA, not MS. Ben Cowan’s place looks like a converted Texaco station but maybe it’s the photo-cropping that makes it appear so small. Frost Motors in Atlanta is an attractive design, likely from the early Thirties. On the other hand, he signage and quonset hut design of McDonald Motors in Washington is pure Fifties post-war America.
Yes, it’s MA. I’ll update the text.
Wonder what color the big “Ford”, in “Casper Wy” is?
Nice pictures .
-Nate
My 1955 Thunderbird was bought new at Brand Ford in Los Angeles California.
My large scale 4 ft. x 4 ft. x 6 in. (very accurate, based on the early 1950 Crest) Ford Crest, similar to those displayed in Dealership showrooms in the 1950s.
Not many of us ’round that used to go to the dealers to watch them unveil the new cars ! Better than sex
Hi everyone, I am trying to find any info about Peterson Ford Encinitas CA in the 50/60s. Here is a pic of my car in front of the showroom as it is now. Yes, I have asked the local historical society, other locals have been researching as well. Any possible leads wood be appreciated! Thank you PS this car was sold new here April 12, 1965 to my grandparents
Looks like Peterson Ford operated between 1955 and 1967 on Hwy. 101 (now North Coast Highway 101). It was founded by brothers Keith and Don Peterson. I’m not quite sure what happened after 1967, but Keith Peterson operated a used car dealership out of the site for a while. The dealership itself may have merged with another Ford dealership and moved elsewhere.