The North Carolina Highway Patrol was ready to do just about anything to protect and serve… Including drive Fords… FAST.

Some fine footage from a “Safety & Economy” run held in the 1950’s. The run started in Los Angeles and ended in Barstow, CA. It might be a little off topic to the Ford Barn, but what the hell – there’s a Ford or two in the footage!

“See these completely new ‘55 Ford models at your Ford dealer tomorrow!”

Wouldn’t that be just peachy? I love ‘55 fords… So simple in design, but striking at the same time… Enjoy the commercials.

Here’s something you don’t see every day… The funeral of Henry Ford in a motion picture format. Most of you fellas know the story of Henry’s death. Put simply and frankly, he died of old age… gracefully. However, many don’t know the circumstances. The night before Henry died, there were torrential downfalls in the Michigan area. The River Rouge overflowed which, in turn, flooded the local power station. Henry’s power went out in his home and he and his wife went to sleep by candle light.

On September 24, 1960, Lee Iacocca saw his dream become a reality. That was the day that Flora, Illinois became “Ford Town USA.” It was a huge promotional stunt that Lee organized for Ford. Essentially, all 1600 citizens of Flora with a registered vehicle was given a new for 1961 Ford Falcon, Fairlane, Thunderbird, or truck to test drive for one week. All the passenger cars were painted white while the trucks were dressed in blue. For that one week, Flora was surely a sight to behold.