Text by Patrick Bell.
In honor of all mothers on this Mother’s Day, we have a gallery mostly focused on ladies who were traveling, and their means of travel. Some may be arriving, others departing, or midway. Either way, ladies and cars feature prominently in these shots.
We will begin with a trio of ladies who were enjoying themselves while standing along side a ’64 Mercury Monterey 4 door sedan wearing a ’66 Florida license plate issued in Pasco County, which is located on the Gulf coast north of Tampa. To the right may be a ’65 Oldsmobile Jetstar 88 Holiday Coupe.
I am not sure if these ladies were the proprietors or the travelers. The one in the front was using a brush to clean off the bugs, while the one in the rear was fiddling with the gas cap. The car was a ’50 Chrysler Royal or Windsor 4 door sedan registered in King County, Washington, the home of Seattle. It was seven years old in this image, and looks in very good condition. The very effective bug shield tells us it has been on the road a while, so the actual location is difficult to determine. The Royal was the low rung on the ladder, and the next step up was the Windsor. They were both equipped with the Spitfire High Compression Six, and the Prestomatic Fluid Drive Transmission was standard on the Windsor, optional on the Royal.
A round or two of golf for three ladies on a warm summer day. The one on the right has a cart for her clubs, while the other two get a little more exercise. The main car is a ’57 Oldsmobile Golden Rocket 88 Fiesta wagon, with a ’59 Rambler Cross Country wagon on the left, and a ’52 or ’53 Nash Statesman or Ambassador to the right.
Now we are at a campground close to a small lake with a ’58 Chevrolet Bel Air Sport Sedan that had at least two women aboard. I believe this car had been repainted as the faux vent moldings on the front of the fenders have been painted over and the rocker panel looks wavy.
It looks like meal time or perhaps meal clean up time out in the woods. They had a box of food, wash basin in a bucket, Coleman camp stove, small stool with a coffee pot, and were traveling in a ’54 Chevrolet Two-Ten Handyman wagon. It looked like a cool summer day.
This lady looked quite stylish and was color coordinated to her ’58 Ford Thunderbird that looked close to new. It was equipped with manual windows, power seat, had completed at least one service per the decal on the door edge, and had a sharp color combination.
The lady in white may have been doing a little dance, perhaps to get her blood flowing after riding in the car. Meanwhile the lady on the left looks like she is capturing the event on a movie camera, and the one on the right is waiting on the attendant to finish filling up their ’60 Chevrolet Impala Sport Sedan.
When you include the photographer there were probably four women traveling in a basic ’60 Ford Falcon Tudor. It was Ford’s least expensive domestic and most popular model in that first year with a basic list price of $1912. Over 193,000 units were produced and coming in second was the Falcon Fordor.
Here were two ladies relaxing in the sun in a motel parking lot. In the near background a rusty ’61 Plymouth Belvedere 2 door hardtop, and further back a ’61-’63 Rambler American convertible.
A photobomber at work in this image, dated August of 1969 and taken in Santa Cruz, California. The three ladies were posing in front of a ’68 Plymouth Sport Satellite 2 door hardtop with a vinyl roof. It looks like it was a warm, late spring day.
Two couples traveling near a large body of water in a ’74-’76 Chrysler Newport Custom 4 door sedan. They had the seats covered for protection and a pillow for the driver.
It looks like it was a warm day when these ladies in their company outfits posed with a color coordinated ’62 Lincoln Continental possibly from Oklahoma. The Lincoln was a sharp looker in that shade of blue.
Thanks for joining us and Happy Mother’s Day!
Quite a variety of types, from Hutterites to fashionable golfers.
The blue blazers in the matching blue Continental must have been something like public relations ambassadors on a tour. I don’t recognize the logo.
Happy Mother’s Day to all!.
The Santa Cruz photo with the Plymouth Satellite is in an older neighborhood not far from me, that has a very high population of CC-worthy automotive residents, several of which I have featured in Outtakes here. I’ll try to check it out today and see what’s hanging out curbside.
Well, I couldn’t resist riding my bike past this Santa Cruz house on my way home from my Sunday group ride. No CC’s could fit into the photo, and no Plymouths anywhere nearby. But it’s still a domestic household, as it were, GM-style, with a Chevy Silverado in front and a Bolt in the driveway. The houses are painted in more contemporary colors, but other than landscaping look quite unchanged since 1969, at least from the street.
Nice then and now! The house has been beautifully maintained. The sidewalks and retaining walls were new in the 60s and old now, but still holding up. They don’t last as long in icy climates.
Great work locating these images, your choices are great!
And Patrick’s detailed captions, are an excellent compliment.
I especially like the casual, ‘slice of life’ nature of these pics. Summertime clothing fashions look comfortable, and cheerful.
My parents used to make frequent long distance family visits in the 1970’s and 1980’s.
My dad had no issues driving at night, to save time. So we’d often depart before 3:00am. My mom would equip the back seat, and cargo area of our wagons, with plenty of blankets and pillows. So the children, would still get the rest they needed.
Always a great way to meet and chat with strangers, on the road.
Lovely ladies and great images. Thank you! Happy Mother’s Day.
I just want to post a remembrance of the cars my Mom drove throughout her life. First was a 1958 Chevy Brookwood she shared with my Dad, purchased new – Tropical Turquoise and white with PG, heater, whitewalls and a radio. No power steering – she called it Betsy. Rear hatch window blew out during a quick spring temperature change. Traded it in 1969 for a used metallic light blue 1962 Buick Special 4 sedan. V6, auto and much demanded power steering. I have vivid memories of the day he and my brother picked it up. Met it’s end fall of 1972 when she was tee-boned pulling blindly into traffic. No injuries.Timing was such that Dad purchased a new GrandAm and passed his 64 Impala Sport Sedan to her. I think it was Almond Fawn. First car I worked on after it got totaled while parked in front of our house fall of 1981. Basic 283 with p/s, PG, and manual brakes.A 1972 Malibu replaced it that I learned to drive in. A 2 tone 79 Lemans coupe was next. Final car was a 2002 Elantra GT. Took 50 years for her to have a new car. My Mom had many happy miles and I think her behind the wheel every day
The shot with the golf clubs was most likely taken in California, because I see eucalyptus trees in the background. Most are difficult to grow in other parts of the country because they prefer cool damp winters and dry summers. I’m referring to the eucalyptus globulus variety.
I gotta believe those ladies servicing the ’50 Chrysler worked that station. I don’t believe self-service was very common in the ’50s.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms! I was interested in cars before I can remember, and it certainly didn’t come from my dad or other neighbor or family men. My mom was the only driver in our household, and she only owned four cars over nearly 60 years: a Hillman Minx and then three Volvo’s: a 544, 122S, and finally a 240. All stick shift, right up to the end. I’m sure her open mind about cars (this was all in the USA) planted a subconscious seed in my young mind. Thanks Mom.
Nice images, I’m -very- glad women don’t dress so frumpily these days .
-Nate
The women servicing the ’50 Chrysler are either Amish or Mennonite. Look at the headcover worn by the woman on the left.
Not to quibble, but that woman’s head covering is not of the kind that either the Amish or Mennonite wore. For that matter, the Amish didn’t drive cars. And their sandal-type open shoes were not worn by Mennonites or Amish. I spent a lot of time living with Mennonite and Amish back in the 1960s.
That cap may just be something of her choice or possibly a different sect?
Top photo:
Reminds me of my Mom: Capri pants, head scarf, sandals, Jackie-O sun glasses, & basket purses.
All available at JCPenney or DH Holmes.
There are both Amish and Mennonite communities in Washington state . Black headcover suggests an unmarried Amish woman, and the clothing certainly suggests one of the two. The photo doesn’t show the women driving the car, merely servicing it. Perhaps they work at the gas station, and the photo was taken by the car’s driver. Or , maybe they were passengers. Many possibilities.
Have not been able to delete or edit my comments for a long time. Also cannot reply to someone’s comment. A problem with my phone ? Who knows ? I noticed the woman on the right isn’t wearing a headcovering at all, and her dress (and shoes) are different too. I may have put too much stock in the pattern and color of their outfits.
This is likely a browser issue. Some browser extensions can interfere with the scripts involved in the comment editing system. I’m not sure why they sometimes also prevent replies from nesting properly, but I’ve noticed that as well.