Thought I'd heard it all ...

[Bruce]

I got a car quiz by email this morning. It started out with familiar questions/answers. Good stuff, so I gladly read through it. At the bottom was this statement followed without credit by Paul Harvey's sign-off line:
Trivia...

Ford, who made the first pick-up trucks, shipped them to dealers in crates that the new owners had to assemble using the crates as the beds of the trucks. The new owners had to go to the dealers to get them, thus they had to "pick-up" the trucks.
And now you know the "rest of the story"
Obviously, this would refer to a Model T. But that this was the source of the "pick up truck" vehicle designation was news to me.

[ericr]

interesting. That story about using shipping crates for various wood parts circulates, I rather doubt it. Also the average person thinks these vehicles were slap-dashed together while we know that they were actually engineered with amazing precision.

Given the fact that there assembly plants all over the country, I also doubt the basic story. but thanks for relaying it, the story shows how Ford legends continue to circulate many years after the old man passed away.

[WTSHNN]

Sorry. Not true.

"The term pickup is of unknown origin. It was used by Studebaker in 1913 and by the 1930s pick-up (hyphenated) had become the standard term."

"In 1913 the Galion Allsteel Body Company, an early developer of the pickup and dump truck, built and installed hauling boxes on slightly modified Ford Model T chassis, and from 1917 on the Model TT. Seeking part of this market share, Dodge introduced a 3/4-ton pickup with cab and body constructed entirely of wood in 1924. In 1925 Ford followed up with a Model T-based steel-bodied, half-ton with an adjustable tailgate and heavy-duty rear springs. Billed it as the "Ford Model T Runabout with Pickup Body," it sold for US$281. 34,000 were built."

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pickup_truck

-Tim

[burner31]

Henry Ford version in a 1954 collection of inspirational tales:
Honk-honk, honk-honk, honk-honk-honk. The old-fashioned horn was bellowing as the mechanical contraption came around the bend and rushed along the dusty road. The engine was roaring and the radiator hissing as the long suffering warrior did twenty-five miles per hour. It was one of the earliest Ford cars; the Methuselah of engineering. Men said it would never die a natural death: it would either commit suicide or be smashed by modern unpredictables. Honk-honk, chug-chug-chug; and the wizened old farmer, with a thick growth of beard darkening his chin, steered his car homeward.

Suddenly, ahead of him he saw a beautiful car drawn up by the roadside. It was an immaculate product of modern engineering. Long and low, its lines were fascinating; but it was at a standstill! As the farmer drew nearer he recognized that some kind of engine trouble had interrupted the progress of the other travellers. The shining bonnet of the beautiful car had been lifted, and the chauffeur, with cap pushed well back on his head, was perplexedly staring at the unresponsive engine.

With a sound of squealing brakes the old car was brought to a halt, and as a rusty door swung open, the farmer came out to ask, "What's wrong?" The stranger responded, "I don't know. The engine has stopped." The newcomer looked inside the bonnet, and then announced his readiness to tow the car to the garage seven miles away. The stranded driver casually lifted his eyebrows and answered, "You'll tow me to the garage!" What with? That!" And his finger indicated the noisy model T. The farmer's chest expanded, and he seemed about to explode; but the eruption died, and he answered, "Yes, with that. You'll see."

He lifted a rope from the back of his car, placed it in position, and said, "Now get in, and I'll show you." Slowly the great car was taken along the roads, and finally, as the garage came into view, the farmer smiled and prepared to stop. "Well! She did it, didn't she?" The two drivers were then joined by a third man, who all the while had been sitting in the back of the broken-down limousine. Quietly he asked, "What do I owe you, sir?" The farmer's eyes narrowed as he repeated, "What do you owe? Nothing. It's a ____ of a do if we can't help each other without being paid for it. No. Nothing. Pleased to help you. Good day." He coiled his rope, climbed into the driving seat, and soon disappeared in a cloud of dust. The silent passenger calmly watched his departure, and then smiled. He nodded and quietly repeated to himself, "It's a ____ of a do if we can't help each other without being paid for it."

In due course the wheezy, asthmatical model T reached the end of its career. It has not been placed on record whether the end came suddenly, or whether the closing months were marred by internal disorders. The fact is that the old car succumbed to the ravages of time, and was given a respectable funeral in the junk yard. The day after the ceremony, the bereaved farmer was somewhat astounded to find a new Ford car standing a few yards from his door. The old man paused. Had someone called? No! He rubbed his eyes; the car was so new, so glossy, so desirable. He walked around it, and then opened the door to inspect the interior. He saw a message written on a label tied to the steering wheel. "It's a ____ of a do if we can't help each other without being paid for it." The passenger who had offered in vain to pay for the towing of his car had been the great manufacturer — Henry Ford. Probably he had been fascinated by the achievement of one of his earlier models, and when its proud owner refused remuneration, he thought of another way to pay his debt. Probably he commissioned the garage owner to keep watch, and when the old model T ceased to function, to present, with Henry Ford's compliments, a new car to the kind-hearted farmer.

Read more at http://www.snopes.com/luck/trump.asp...otzmHYE7iRR.99

[mhsprecher]

I was told by the granddaughter of the Ford dealer in my home town that the Model T's would arrive by train. The tops for the open cars were not attached and had to be attached at the dealership. The dealer would drive the cars to the dealership from the train station (only a few blocks) in a parade that also let everyone know that the new cars had arrived!

[CarlG]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

My Dad use to tell me the story that when Ford announced the end of production of the Model T in 1927, there was quite a drove of sales of knocked down vehicles that were put away in barns so that when their current Ts wore out there was a new one in the barn to replace it.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Great story, Burner, THANKS!
Bill W.

[Bruce Lancaster]

It must have been quite a feat to assemble bits of a wooden crate into a steel pickup box, too! Yes, there were wooden boards in the floor...but this story is even sillier than the crates being made into floorboards.

[ericr]

it was a common urban legend in the '20s and '30s that various friends of Henry Ford would have a knock at their door and see a chauffeur standing there, saying "Mr. Ford wants your car keys" and there would be a new car waiting there, etc.

probably apocryphal, since there would be issues of license plates, insurance, bill of sale, etc.

[Patrick L.]

I have also heard the term was first used by Studebaker. But being from a Studebaker franchise what else was one to expect.
I had always also heard the stories about the packing crates being reused in several ways. One was for charcoal and then the discovery by Ford of the briquette later sold to one of his officers named Kingsford.

[C26Pinelake]

Originally Posted by ericr

it was a common urban legend in the '20s and '30s that various friends of Henry Ford would have a knock at their door and see a chauffeur standing there, saying "Mr. Ford wants your car keys" and there would be a new car waiting there, etc.

probably apocryphal, since there would be issues of license plates, insurance, bill of sale, etc.

Apocryphal is likely an unsuitable term because of the laws that existed in the 1930 era are not even similar to our present day bureaucracy !
Unlikely possibly, apocryphal highly unlikely! Wayne

[CarlG]

...

Originally Posted by WikipediA

In the early 1920s, Ford had a large plant in Kingsford, a town named after Henry Ford's cousin. Henry Ford was always looking for new ways to combine resources. One day as the Model T cars were coming off the assembly line, Ford noticed many wood scraps being discarded. He proposed that all wood scraps were to be sent to his chemical building to be made into charcoal.

The Kingsford Company was formed by Henry Ford and E.G. Kingsford during the early 1920s. Charcoal was developed from Ford Motor Company's factory waste wood scrap. The Kingsford Company was formed when E.G. Kingsford, a relative of Ford's, brokered the site selection for Ford's new charcoal manufacturing plant. The company, originally called Ford Charcoal, was renamed in E.G.’s honor.

[40 Deluxe]

What's sad is that people actually believe these silly legends!

[burner31]

Originally Posted by ericr

it was a common urban legend in the '20s and '30s that various friends of Henry Ford would have a knock at their door and see a chauffeur standing there, saying "Mr. Ford wants your car keys" and there would be a new car waiting there, etc.

probably apocryphal, since there would be issues of license plates, insurance, bill of sale, etc.

Was insurance a requirement back in the 20's, 30's or even into the 60's?
I remember back in the 60's insurance being of a secondary thought when driving a car.
When you did have insurance "you" were covered, not so much your car, so I would insure "myself" for driving, that meant that "I" was covered for any vehicle I drove, mine, yours, a friend's...it didn't matter.
It also didn't matter if I had one car or four cars, coverage and price were the same.
Insurance companies soon wised up and figured out that they could make a whole lot more money by forcing you to insure "each" car separately, one car, one policy, one bill...two cars...two policies...well you get the picture.
Today I won't leave the driveway without insurance, I have found that 50% of drivers today have the bare minimum insurance...if any at all.
You can guess how I know this.











:

[jimvette59]

My original 27 ford Runabout registration read 1927 Ford Runabout with Box . Is that the way they were sold with a pickup box ?

[C26Pinelake]

Originally Posted by 40 Deluxe

What's sad is that people actually believe these silly legends!

What is sad about folklore ? Without it grandpas wouldn't be near as interesting and funny. I love these old stories. And guess what, there is very few people around to prove they did not happen ! Wayne

[Allanw]

It's easy enough to buy a Model A from ebay, in boxes :-)