Text by Patrick Bell.
The snow season is well underway in the Northern Hemisphere, which makes it a good time to look at some vintage snowy driveways, and the cars parked in them. We have a good selection, so grab your boots and shovel and we will head out.
Our lead driveway had a small layer of snow, so either it was early in the season or a locale where it doesn’t snow very much. Parked in the driveway facing out was a 1970 Chevrolet Monte Carlo from California. This was the first year for Chevrolet’s personal luxury car, and it did well, with more than 130,000 units produced. Behind it was a 1967-1972 Chevrolet C/K series truck with a camper shell.
This house appears like it had some interior work in progress, since there was masking paper on the windows and a stack of sawhorses outside. It might have been late in the season, since the snow on the ground was melting. Parked out front were a 1952 Packard 200 or 200 Deluxe with an unreadable license plate, and behind it a 1958 GMC Panel or Suburban with a roof rack — more than likely the worker’s truck.
This location seems to be more rural, with houses built close together close to the road. The snow had been around a while and had piled up from clearing the driveway and sidewalk. The car closest to the camera was a V8-powered 1956 Ford Custom Ranch Wagon with dual fender mounted mirrors. Behind it, 1949 or 1950 Chevrolet Styleline had the honor of covered parking.
This pair of youngsters was taking advantage of a fresh snowfall to do some sledding. Behind them, the family cat was also playing in the snow. In the driveway was a 1956 Chevrolet Two-Ten station wagon, either a Townsman (6-passenger) or Beauville (9-passenger), with a roof rack and the standard hub caps.
There’s nothing like getting stuck while backing out of your own garage, and this fellow was having one of those days. It looks like this was a shared driveway that did not get plowed very well. The gentleman with the shovel had a 1955 Mercury Montclair hardtop coupe, a brand-new series also available in 4-door sedan, convertible, and rare Sun Valley Coupe form.
These two cars were parked in a driveway that looked rather icy, like the snow had melted and then froze. The tan car was was a tan 1958 Rambler American Deluxe Club Coupe that was optioned with a radio and whitewall tires. It was a refreshed and renamed version of the compact Nash Rambler that had been produced from 1950-1955. The blue car in front of it was a 1951 or 1952 Plymouth 4-door sedan.
In this neighborhood, the wind had been blowing hard enough that snow drifts in the yard and driveway covered the cars. Someone had dug out this 1961 Dodge Lancer 4-door sedan, but still needed to clear the rest of the driveway. The 1961 Lancer was the Dodge version of the compact Valiant, borrowing a name Dodge had used in the 1950s for full-size hardtop models. When it was restyled for 1963, it became the Dodge Dart. This one had what looks like an Illinois license plate, so that was probably also the location.
This driveway had also drifted over, but not as deeply as in the previous photo. This was a Ford household, with a 1961 Falcon Tudor Sedan parked in front of a 1959 Fairlane 500 Galaxie 2-door. Both of them had what may have been 1960-issue Illinois license plates. 1959 had been the first year for the Galaxie, which sported a popular Thunderbird-style roof. 1961 was the second year for Ford’s very successful Falcon, the most popular of the domestic compacts.
A blowing snowfall had buried this battered, rusty, dirty 1961 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe, and somebody was going to have a job to do digging it out. I can’t clearly see the grille emblem, but it appears to indicate that this car was equipped with a 283 cubic inch V8, a popular choice. The New York license plate was a style issued from 1966 to 1972, so the car was at least five years old. The full-size Chevrolet was America’s favorite car throughout much of the 1960s, and the Impala was the most popular version: About 491,000 were built for 1961.
No shoveling for the people who lived here: That’s a snowblower in front of the closed garage door. The driveway still needs some work, so maybe the operator was taking a break. In the right side of the garage was a nice 1963 Chrysler 300, which had a decklid-mounted antenna, possibly for a two-way radio. Its license plate might have been 1965 Ohio issue. That structure between the garage doors was the base of a tall antenna.
In the front window of this house, two ladies were watching the photographer take a picture of the snow drifts in the yard. Judging by the snow remaining on the blue 1965 Ford Mustang convertible (which had an Illinois license plate), it was probably buried completely before the driveway was cleared. I heard a long time ago that a convertible with a tight-fitting top was warmer in the winter than a steel roofed car because the fabric warmed up so much faster than the steel. Sounds good to me.
Here are two more cars that were carrying their own snowbanks. The one nearer the camera was a 1970 Mercury Marquis or Marquis Brougham 4-door sedan with a Virginia license plate. Parked behind it was a Ford Pinto station wagon that still had snow on the roof, but not the hood — perhaps it had been out and about while the sun was melting the snow on the Mercury. In the shadows across the street were a car that might have been a Dodge Challenger and a truck that looks like a 1973-1980 Chevrolet or GMC “Squarebody.”
Our final photo shows a 1975-1977 Ford Granada Ghia 4-door sedan with a New York license plate that gives an idea what some of the other cars looked like before the snowdrifts were cleared. The Granada was a luxuriously trimmed compact car that Ford advertised as a cheaper alternative to a Mercedes-Benz. Critics complained that it had nothing in common with a Mercedes except its size and stand-up grille, but it was a big sales success for Ford. Parked in the street in the background was a 1973-1980 Chevrolet K5 Blazer.
Thanks for joining us and to all good day!
Note: If you wish to see your vintage photos featured at Curbside Classic, send them to us at [email protected].
Snow if fun till you have to shovel it!!
I was going to say how these pictures are all giving me all kinds of nostalgic feels for a typical Midwestern winter. Then I remembered having to bust out the Toro before church on Sunday mornings as one of my chores.
Was thinkin that myself, Except living in CT. I swear the winters (in the 70’s-early 80’s) were much snowier than the winters of today. (Of course, I’m a little taller now, so there’s that).
I remember [on the snowy mornings] listening to the radio to hear if my school was canceled that day.. and when they finally announced it, BOOM! Snow day! Get dressed up to go out, grab the sleds, go across the street to my friend’s house.. and hit the Hills.
Also remember shoveling my great grandfather’s driveway (with my friend) for a couple hours (seemed like it anyway) for a total of $8.00. Then WALK to the arcade, and blow my $4.00 share in about 15 minutes. Then WALK home.
Ahh, memories.
These days I don’t mind the snow, (as I drive a Jeep JK), so I can go play in it. But it just doesn’t snow like the ‘olden days’. (well, now it will). 😉
Pics 7 and 8 have a reflector post next to the driveway, attempting to tell snowplows and drivers where the driveway is. Fairly common gadget in snowy areas.
Brrrrr!
All I can think of is how hopelessly rusty these cars all were after a few seasons of this…
Jesus…the Frame Collapsed!
Hopefully a Frame from another 65/66 Mustang can be Found if the Car is going to be Restored.
That Damn Rust & Road Salt is the Cause of it & I’ve seen it Personal & I’ve seen Photos of Vehicles from the Midwest & Eastern Seaboard & Canada where the Rust has Eaten Away not only the Frame, but on the Body, even has Rusted out the Damn Floor of the Vehicles.
The Problem is Owners forget to Rust Proof the Vehicles, inspect Monthly & because of Neglect, this Happens!
I’m glad our Family left Chicago for Southern California to get away from those Brutal Chicago Winters & what the Snow & Road Salt does to Vehicles when People don’t take care of their Vehicles.
As a fan of hard cold starts and classic car starters, I can hear these pictures. Takes me back to the day when I was a little guy and our midwest winters, the car berried in snow and me watching, listening, wondering if it would start with all that snow on it. Then me growing up and realizing the fact that the car was berried in snow didn’t necessarily affect how hard it was going to be to get started.
You might like to see more pictures of cars in the snow, like the ones stucks during the March 1971 blizzard where people in Montreal used snowmobiles to move in downtown Montreal.
https://www.thesuburban.com/blogs/suburban_weather/a-look-back-over-50-years-ago-to-the-montreal-blizzard-of-1971/article_a0ebbbc2-7c40-11eb-81e9-5fd4bf682665.html
Reminds me of a situation I encountered when I started working in upstate NY in the ’00s.
During a heavy snow day, the only three to show up in the office were originally from the Deep South (me, my Boss, and another co-worker). Got a phone call after arriving from another co-worker (native New Yorker) who was inquiring as to who showed up out of 35 assigned to the office.
She seemed “relieved” to know that the boss was going to let all leave by 10 AM that day!
Hard to put into words that I can post how much I hate snow. The worst winter driving experience was 1981. My partner and self had just moved from Houston to NYC a few months previous. His family lived in Slatington PA, basically nowhere. Winter approached, we really didn’t have winter clothes, but no problem as we were indoors or in the car. On a road trip from NYC we stopped at his friends home in Allentown PA. It started to snow, it was dusk, lets get on the road to Slatington about 45 mins. away. We were driving my white 1976 Eldo conv. Quickly it turned into a white-out blizzard and we were on two lane hilly roads, between Allentown and Slatington. I couldn’t see the road, windshield wipers were freezing caked with ice. My partner Rob was hanging out the passenger window saying “steer your way”, or “steering my way”. I was driving blind. Hills & curves, in a white convertible I knew if we slide off the road our bodies wouldn’t be found for days. We were only wearing sweaters, had one old Army blanket in the trunk and a bottle of Vodka. Eventually we did go off the road, not in a ditch, but got stuck. It was almost a miracle I saw the lights of a farmhouse. We made our way to the farmhouse, frozen and those kind people saved us. After we warmed up, they got their tractor, pulled my Eldo back on the road. and we finally made it to Slatington four hours later. I don’t know the name of these people who saved our lives during that snow storm.
Back then we all learned how to drive in the snow, even in the rear wheel drive cars of the day without snow tires! Yes, we sometimes got stuck, but people would stop and help push their fellow drivers out of ditches and snowbanks. We also learned how to “rock” a car to get it unstuck. In fact, the reason that GM placed the “R” (reverse) to the far right of the shift quadrant next to the “L” (low) was to facilitate “rocking” a stuck car.
Driving a rear wheel drive car (that’s all that existed in the ’50’s and well into the ’60’s) on a 2 lane road without traffic and “goosing” the throttle as the steering wheel was turned back and forth causing the car to swing back and forth was lots of fun! Too many of today’s drivers are wimps when it comes to driving in the snow.
True dat.
Rain nor SNOW nor Sleet or Hail ever stopped me from delivering from Domino’s Pizza (circa ’86+) in my 1978 Pontiac Firebird, with Bald Azz Street tires in the back (as I was young and Broke, working at Domino’s).
I remember delivering to an Apartment and the lot was just frozen Ice in spots. I put er in drive, and with my foot OFF the gas, the tires just slowly spun on the ice. They had sand barrels everywhere in winter, so a few scoops got me some traction, and I was off, back to the shop.
Good times indeed. Best years of my life, actually.
(No issues with my Jeep and new tires these days though).
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow..
I’m from the South, where we sadly, rarely see snow unless you live in the higher elevations of the mountains. Because of this, I’ve always loved winter and would gladly swap our hot, humid summers with some place up North in exchange for this beautiful winter wonderland. In all fairness, I’m in my fifties and have never shoveled snow in my life.
Once again, I’m as struck by the houses in these photo collections as I am the cars. Every single one of these houses look like something that I either lived in or often visited as a kid. Like the cars, there was a time when this was just “normal” and what one saw day in and day out (for me, the 1960s and 1970s cars at least), and then one day you just realized that everything was different. I can’t think of the last time I saw, much less set foot in, a “normal” suburban ranch house.
I spy an RV (that looks a bit like a GMC Motorhome, but likely isn’t in a photo that old) in the far background of the picture with the Rambler and the Plymouth. Not something I’d expect to see.
And the kids on the sled in the 4th picture? I remember those sleds when they were all anyone had. Well, unless you were the kind of family who did things like alpine skiing and had a Volvo, then you might have had a toboggan. Otherwise, you were stuck with those things with the two metal runners that pretty much immediately sank into the snow and then you just sat there. Like the kids in that picture. The key was to use those things on hard-packed snow. IIRC, sometimes an adult in the neighborhood would go out to the sledding hill (or street) and do the packing with a board or a flattened cardboard box (or one of those skiing/tobogganing neighbors would do this in a toboggan), and then, maybe, you could actually have some fun. Snow saucers and plastic sleds really were a game-changer. 🙂
I was shoveling snow this morning, but not much accumulation today. We live in the lee of Lake Huron, so it is a rare winter day when it does not snow. The highway near us that runs along the lake down to Sarnia is the highway with the most closures due to snow in the province. It is not the amount of snow, it is the blowing snow that reduces visibility to almost zero. I don’t know if it is a common term, but we call them “whiteouts”.
It is fun to see a photo of Barrie. It is really in the snow belt. April is getting to the end of the snow season, but it is not unusual to get a big storm in April. The April 1975 storm made the headlines.
Picture #12 (brown Mercury Marquis from Virginia) has been bugging me all day, because I know of a few neighborhoods that look just like this. Eventually, I found the location: it appears to be in the 1000 block of N. Manchester St. in Arlington.
I found two houses that match the homes shown in the photo in terms of design and topography, and the house across the street from them has a long driveway that could potentially match the driveway in the photo (though the driveway has been reconfigured over the years, it appears that it once extended to the house in a slight curve, which would match the vintage photo).
Google StreetView link:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/r7JG7F2mvQZS5cRW8
So many memories caused by these great pictures .
I hope to never experience snow again .
-Nate
It sucks, my driveway last week in Poughkeepsie ny… Enough already, we seem to be having a classic northeast winter this year…!!!
I hate !#%@ing snow and I’m being nice. Living in the Lake Ontario snowbelt is no fun anymore. I’ve started looking at property in the deep south. With any luck, this will be my last winter in this frozen $#@!hole!
After 44 years in the hot, humid south, I’m ready to turn north again to my home state. I miss the seasons more each year.
Memories of shoveling snow this time of year when we had a house in the San Bernardino mountains. Too old for that now, I hate to be cold.
Don’t think that “50’s, Merc” was stuck. Shoveling a bit a snow away to make getting to/from the car a bit easier.
The pictures bring back memories of snow days in Nova Scotia in the 1960s. One of the most memorable was 20 February 1962 – school was closed, and it just happened to be the day with live TV coverage of John Glenn’s three-orbit flight around the Earth. A different era.
My Father had one of those used Rambler 2 doors in the early 60’s in Rochester New York for a short time till both his feet went through the driver’s side rotted floor.