Vintage Photos: 1950s DeSoto Cars In Their Prime

Texty by Patrick Bell.

Cars with the DeSoto nameplate were produced for over thirty years, and have been gone for over sixty.  Today we have a good selection of images from their final full decade.  Please join us as we look over a few of the cars named after the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto.

Our lead image today appears to be a roadside pull off with an overlook perhaps to the valley below.  It was either early or late on a fall day perhaps in 1955, as this ’56 Firedome 2 door Seville looked new.  DeSoto had two trim lines in ’56, with the Fireflite the upper series and the Firedome the lower. The Seville, available in two and four door hardtops, was a sub-series within the Firedome line that had different interior trim and were the least expensive models.  It was a one year wonder that was replaced by the Firesweep series in ’57.

The car in the background looks like a ’42 or ’46-’48 Oldsmobile.

(I’ve often wondered about their usage of the Seville name, as Cadillac also used it beginning the same year, on the opposite end of the spectrum.  It was the highest priced two door hardtop and was the stable mate to the Eldorado Biarritz convertible.  It continued through 1960, and then was resurrected in ’75 for their new ‘International’ size car.)

Here was a handsome couple posing in front of a ’51 or ’52 convertible that could have been either the Custom Six (’51 & ’52), or Fire Dome 8 (new for ’52) model.  I don’t recognize the license plate color, and the lady appears to have a camera in her left hand.  It looks like a park setting on a warm summer day.

Perhaps the occupants were checking out a fishing hole before they unloaded the boat.  This one was a ’51 Custom 4 door sedan with a bald front tire and possibly a British Columbia license plate.  The only engine available that year was a newly improved flathead six cylinder that had increased horsepower (up to 116 from 112!), increased displacement (up to 250 cubic inches from 236!), for “More Power than Ever” per the sales brochure.

A well behaved little girl was standing on the fender of a ’51 Custom Sportsman with a Rhode Island license plate of the same year.  One misstep and she would have taken a tumble.  The photo was dated in August of ’51, so the car was close to new.

The ‘Sportsman’ name was DeSoto speak for hardtop, which was common in the medium price lines during the fifties.  Buick used ‘Riviera’, Pontiac ‘Catalina’, Oldsmobile ‘Holiday’, Chrysler ‘Newport’, and Dodge ‘Lancer’.  Ford was the only low price line to follow that trend with the ‘Victoria’.  Four of those obviously later morphed into a series name, while Oldsmobile’s ‘Holiday’ survived through 1970.  To me, the ‘Sportsman’ name was the worst of the bunch and would have fit a station wagon better than a hardtop.  It faded away along with the DeSoto.

Atlanta, Georgia was the location of Stuart F. Lampe’s dental practice, and it was a cool, damp day in 1959 per a search.  Out front was a dirty ’56 Firedome 4 door sedan with twin rear mounted antennas and a Georgia license plate.  The first digit on the plate was a ‘3’, which indicated DeKalb County where the seat is Decatur.  The second digit was a ‘J’, that indicated the weight class; 3,501-4,000 pounds.  And the rest was the serialized number.  The black car looks like a ’47 or ’48 Chevrolet Stylemaster Coupe.

It was perhaps the first snow of the season, a light dusting out in the farm lands of Ohio.  A lady was posing with a ’58 Firedome 4 door sedan, the mid range series out of three.  The ‘T’ was missing from the ‘DESOTO’ name on the hood, and it had an interesting license number that was theoretically possible in the Ohio system at that time.

1958 was the first year of the new Chrysler Corporation’s new V8 engines that replaced the first series of Hemis.  The Fireflite and Firedome had the 361 cubic inch version, while the Firesweep came with the 350 cubic inch.

We are now at the corner of 5th Avenue and Pike Street in Seattle, Washington.  The Nordstom building is still there but has been converted to lofts. The bank building next door also still exists.  Turning the corner was a ’57 Fireflite 4 door sedan with a Washington license plate first issued in ’58.  It was the top of the line and had the last of the Hemi’s in the 341 cubic inch size.  Others on the left were a ’54 Chevrolet Two-Ten with a ’54 Mercury Monterey Special Custom Coupe at the curb.

This young lady had her own camera and was posing with a ’58 Firesweep 4 door Sportsman.  The Firesweep was the new lowest priced line that came out in ’57.  It had a four inch shorter wheelbase at 122″, which was the same as Dodge.  And the front sheetmetal was unique other than the bumper.  It looked like summertime in a modern, middle class neighborhood.

Now we have another ’58 model, this one a Fireflite 2 door Sportsman that looked close to new.  There appears to be three generations in this image, with the photographer likely husband and father to the two in the car.  They were all dressed up and on an outing of some sort.

A bright sunny day and a sharp looking ’57 Fireflite 4 door Sportsman, the top of the line 4 door.  It was well optioned at least on the outside with a dazzling two tone finish, tinted glass, dual headlamps, mirrors and antennas.  The gentleman at the driver’s door appears to have a badge on his lapel, perhaps he was a tour guide for the three ladies, who look like tourists.  One appears to have a camera, and another a pair of binoculars.  To the right was a ’57 Ford Fairlane 500.

This ’57 Fireflite 4 door sedan could have used some help in the wheel cover and tire department, but otherwise looks in good shape considering it was at least nine years old going by the New York license plate that was used from ’66-’72.  It was parked in a rural area on a nice fall day.

This image came from a gallery titled “Santa Ana Shoppers”, and was dated 1968.  A lady was posing by a ’59 Firesweep convertible.  It was the last hurrah for the convertible, but was offered in all four series.  The Firesweep was the most popular but still a rare bird with only 596 produced.  All four series amounted to less than 1200 for the final year of the convertible.  At nine years old, and rough around the edges, its value at the time was probably not much more than salvage.  Others in the background from the right include a ’63 Ford Galaxie 500 or 500/XL Sports Hardtop, ’57-’59 Ford Ranchero, ’67 Ford Mustang Hardtop, and a blue ’64 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe.

Thanks for joining us and have a great day!

 

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