56 Fairlane- I need help

[IChangeBrakes]

So I found out my dad really likes a 56 Crown Vic. So I have been keeping an eye on them on eBay and realize $50K USD is not in my budget. Lo and behold a 56 Fairlane town sedan came up at a "local" auction. So I put the starting low bid on the car (<3k USD) and got a call that the guy removed the reserve and I was the proud new owner.
So now I need Help. I've never owned a Ford let alone an older Ford. I would like to have this street-able by Christmas to give to my dad. I need to get the Miata out of my garage and this car in.
I have been able to tell it has a 351W in it and no clue about what auto transmission.

Shift linkage is backwards on the column. Drive is park and park is drive. Any ideas on finding out what trans I have and how to correct this?

Front door cards and headliner need replacing. Headliner is easy to find, but is there a place to buy upholstered door panels or do I need to get these remade? A full interior reupholstery kit would be nice, but not necessary.

The brakes only work on the second pump. Master cylinder, bleed, replace ???

It has a few more issues that I think I can handle like Shocks, Hood latch, lights and signals don't work and the key situation is a mess (I wonder what's in the trunk!).

I would appreciate any help anyone can give me. Thanks