Monday, January 12, 2026
a Ford parts salesman in 1937 stopping into a service station, that sold Ford gasoline. I didn't even know Ford was part of a gasoline business
A parts salesman for Parkinson-Neal Motor Co., a Ford dealership in Enid, Okla., makes a sales visit to a gas station and repair facility in that state. The traveling store would visit rural repair shops to restock Ford parts needed for repairs. It is unclear whether the gas station and garage were part of Ford's "Super Service Stations" that serviced vehicles and sold gasoline, parts, accessories and new Ford cars. The Parson's Super Station does appear to sell Ford's Benzol gasoline.
quite an advertising campaign, lined up on the waterfront in Melbourne, Australia. These rolled through Stockholm, Sydney, London and more, turning sidewalks into showrooms.
Axel Wenner-Gren was not an inventor, but he had an inventive mind that could see the possibilities of others’ inventions. Born in 1881 in Sweden to a family made wealthy by exporting lumber, he spent five years working for his uncle’s spice-importing company in Gothenburg. In those hours after school, he picked up English, French, and German and then moved to Germany, where he enrolled in business school, from which he graduated early.
In one version of the story, Wenner-Gren successfully convinced Lux to buy a patent for a home vacuum cleaner, agreeing that in lieu of cash, he would get stock in Lux based on how well the vacuum cleaners sold, eventually owning enough stock that he controlled the company.
in 1919 that a licensing agreement between Elektron and Lux gave Elektron the sole rights to sell Lux vacuum cleaners
by the 1930s Wenner-Gren was one of the wealthiest men in the world. While his name isn’t familiar to us today, his efforts to obtain the vacuum-cleaner contract for the Vatican may have spawned the Hollywood trope of door-to-door salesmen who demonstrated vacuum cleaners.
Supplying the Holy See with vacuums would not only be a valuable contract, it would undoubtedly be a promotional coup for any appliance maker. Five companies each made a pitch, and each were given a piece of soiled carpeting to clean using their respective machines. Wenner-Gren waited until the other four were done with their demonstrations, and then went over their pieces of carpet with an Electrolux vacuum cleaner. When he opened the dustbag, showing how his machine picked up dirt the other cleaners left behind, the contract was his.
Wenner-Gren commissioned a body shaped like an Electrolux vacuum cleaner to be mounted on an automobile chassis. The reaction was so positive that the company commissioned an entire fleet of Citroën-based Electrolux cars and BSA motorcycles with Electrolux-shaped sidecars to promote the brand in Stockholm, Berlin, and London.
Electrolux contracted with coachbuilders Karosseriwerke Drauz in Heilbronn, Germany, and another firm in Denmark to do the fabrication.
Harold Brown owned a Texaco station in New Smyrna Beach and advertised it from there to Alaska.
built the structure for the back of the truck so they would have a place to sleep on an extended trip to Alaska.
Harold Browns daughter used the structure as her playhouse after they returned from Alaska.
I bet they wish they'd installed some rail adapters instead of testing the cars suspension for miles. Notice that the left front fender is removed, that must have been done to make it easier to steer on the Florida East Coast Overseas Railroad.
Because of his failing health, the job of bringing the train to Key West was rushed. Shortcuts were taken to hasten the project and ensure that Flagler saw his dream come to fruition. The railroad engineers were successful, and when Mr. Flagler’s railcar arrived in Key West, it did mark the beginning of daily railroad service operating between railroad depots at Miami and Key West. One of the lesser-reported stories about the railroad is that it was not officially completed until 1916.
Henry Flagler died on May 20, 1912. He never rode down to Key West aboard his private railcar on the completed Over-Sea Railroad project.
It was decimated by the Great Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 and the railroad was already in a poor state financially so they were unable to rebuild it. The state of Florida bought what was left of it and turned it into the original Overseas Highway.
Here's a strange thing... a heated steering wheel, that's quite poorly designed, or failing catastrophically
A 2024 Tundra owner’s thermal imaging revealed a staggering temperature disparity, with the top of the steering wheel hitting a toasty 114°F while the inner underside sat at a bone-chilling 35°F.
The beloved Rosie’s Diner, once in Little Ferry, New Jersey, and home of the famous Bounty paper-towel commercials with Nancy “Rosie” Walker, is on the move again.
So... Monday... do not think you can mess with Monday and get away with it. In fact, I recommend staying home in bed instead of going out
I went out to get a haircut, as my new job starts tomorrow... 630 am
Seemed the sensible thing to do, but then, when I got out of my car at the barber, I smelled antifreeze. I popped the hood on the commuter, and saw some steam... and that's when I suddenly went from poor to broke.
We are all just a moment away from it, some have homes by rivers, and poof, one hurricane, one flood, and it's all gone. some have trailers, and one tornado rips through and it's gone. Or a house in California, a million dollars worth, but one wildfire. Gone.
So, I got off lightly compared to so many. All I lost is the remaining space on my credit card. One radiator is 800 bucks, that's what it cost to replace the one in my 69 Dodge, that's what Hyundai charges too... ironically, for one 1/3rd the size. 2 hoses, the upper and lower, and a new radiator, and it's more for the labor at the dealership than the parts.
It's 2 or 300 just to troubleshoot and determine exactly what is broken or leaking, and since I am guessing that the upper tank cracked from the cooling fins, but regardless I am determined to prevent a colling system problem from happening in the next 5 or 6 years for trouble free use of my commuter. So, I told my old pal, who's been my service adviser through the replacement of the Turbo, under warranty, and the engine, and the trans, all under warranty, that after the testing, and figuring out the problem, I require that the radiator and upper and lower hoses get replaced in addition to another part if that happens to be the case.
And the estimate, on the parts and labor for just the radiator, and the analysis of what IS the problem, is 2400. That's the start, then they add whatever else has broken, or is highly likely to break in the near future. I suppose I really should insist on a new water pump, as long as everything is going to be torn apart. I bet labor just to replace the water pump is a 1000. If that were to happen at a different time, that is.
So there it is, my 10 year old, 103000 mile Veloster, blew a hole in the cooling system the day before I start my new job. A month ago, I could have replaced that damn thing myself, saved all the money from labor, but now? What, after work, after the engine and coolant chills down to where it's less than scalding, and as long as nothing goes wrong, have it all back together in time to get some sleep? Not likely.
Sunday, January 11, 2026
A trio of National race cars built in Des Moines, Iowa in 1932 which used a Briggs & Stratton 1 cyl. type Y motor, used as a attraction in department stores as a give-a -way to bring customers in, and at State fairs. There were 20 built
Steel bodied with a 4 cycle gas motor that got 60 miles to the gallon, and a top speed of 8 mph. Built by National Sales & Mfg. CO, of Des Moines, Iowa
There's a bunch of spare tires under the deck. That's quite the home made truck bed
the famous aviator Roscoe Turner, with the 3 most famous trophies in aviation, that he earned and gathered together for the 1st time, the Thompson, the Harmon, and the Bendix Trophy
If why he's famous escapes you, from the rare times I've posted him (not very often he shows up in pop culture, that's for sure) it's possible you recall him always being photographed with Gilmore airplanes and his adorable pet lion cub
there once was a time 100 years ago, when billboards were built to be appealing so we'd look at the advertisement between the pillars
a Bugatti mini 2 seater with an aluminum body and 4 cylinder, in 1927/28
This is a photo by Jacques-Henri Lartigue, of a rally check point in 1927
Bugatti Type 37 Coach 2 door « La Cage à Mouche » by Million Guiet, cabriolet 1927 (cn 37125) with 1460-W1 (F), #189 Concours d’Elegance Femina au Bois de Boulogne, Paris (fr), June 1927 with Odette Renou
this car ought to get shown around in geometry class, 1914 Delauany Belleville 6 cylinder
back when it wasn't crazy to bring along 4 spare tires.
before the people realized how badly the politicians treated them, the politicians had no reason to fear meeting with people that had pitchforks in hand, and outnumbered the suits
I wonder when the greed and corruption became so well known that the tide turned from respect of politicians to despise. Probably after politicians quit wearing beards. It must have been before Nam. Obviously anyone in New York City and Chicago were familiar with it, I bet that they still teach Tammany Hall in public school.
I would guess the Illinois governor streak of prison sentences isn't over yet, nor California governors facing recall, and the District of Columbia consistently has the highest rate of federal public corruption convictions, followed by Louisiana, Montana, South Dakota, Kentucky, and West Virginia.
There once was a blanket cover up by reporters for the illegal activities of politicians, maybe they were stuck in hero worship mode due to WW1 and WW2, Sgt York, Charles Lindbergh, Chesty Puller, Chuck Yeager, and Glen Armstrong, etc. But somewhere, things turned to where reporters went out to shine a light on the crimes and shames.
I suppose it was some time after we stopped electing farmers (Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Lincoln, Carter) and it became only possible to get elected if you were a millionaire without a job.
Saturday, January 10, 2026
I wonder how the rich figured out how to get permission for specific times to use their cars on the railroads. Hmm, well, I suppose they met at parties and talked to the railroad owners, or the golf course.
Glidden made his fortune in the telephone industry before retiring in 1901. He was the millionaire sponsor of the Glidden Reliability Tours from 1905 to 1913.
His 1902 circumnavigation of the globe with his wife Lucy and a "Motor Engineer" Charles Thomas covered over 48,000 miles, showcasing the endurance of early automobiles.
His Napier was with flanged wheels to operate on railroads, as those were the only roads across most countries that carried the wealthy in comfort, from city to city, vs small country towns with no luxury hotels
Mr. and Mrs. Charles J. Glidden drove this 24hp Napier automobile during several notable journeys, in 1904 they completed the first crossing of the Canadian Rockies by automobile, arriving in Vancouver, Canada, after a 3,536-mile trip from Boston, Massachusetts.
This journey was part of the AAA Glidden Tour, a reliability run that aimed to prove the viability of automobiles for long-distance travel. The couple had previously participated in the 1904 St. Louis Tour, where they arrived in Albany, New York.
The couple’s 24hp Napier was a symbol of early automotive exploration and reliability testing, and their journeys helped establish the automobile as a practical tool for travel and commerce.
The couple’s 24hp Napier was a symbol of early automotive exploration and reliability testing, and their journeys helped establish the automobile as a practical tool for travel and commerce.
Mr and Mrs Charles J Glidden in 24hp Napier which they toured for 8 years, beginning in 1901, covering over 46000 miles, here travelling on rails with a railway official.
I'd forgotten that I'd posted these two magazine clippings in 2019, http://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2019/04/this-is-first-ive-learned-that-glidden.html
He recognized early the potential of the phone together and experimented together with Alexander Graham Bell with telephone connections over the telegraph lines.
Glidden funded the construction of telephone lines in Manchester, New Hampshire and was the first to recognize that the female voice was more suitable for the early telephones than the male. Accordingly, he hired women as telephone operators.
The telephone exchange, which he had initiated, grew to a syndicate, which, amongst others, covered the U.S. states of Ohio, Minnesota, Arkansas, and Texas. The first long-distance telephone connection (from Lowell, Massachusetts to Boston) was established on his initiative.
He and his wife Lucy, stopped into all the major cities of the world, seen here in London in 1902
In 1902, his world tour took him over 46,528 miles through 39 countries and ultimately around the world twice.
The Glidden Tour trophy originally sported a sterling silver 1901 Napier automobile perched atop the porcelain enameled globe. That priceless little objet d'art vanished long ago.
Anderson was visited by the 1909 and 1910 Good Roads Tour, (New York Herald and Atlanta Journal) the 1911 Glidden Tour, and the 1912 Army Road Test. 7 decades later, Bosch, BMW, and Michelin USA would take residence there, as well as the ICAR, Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research
For an example of what a luxury tour it was to be a part of, read https://steamboatminnehaha.org/the-glidden-tour-of-1909/ which goes into detail of how the wealthy on tour were treated to all the best each city on the tour had to offer, such as in Minneapolis.
The contestants were treated like celebrities with streetcar rides to Minnehaha Falls and spent the afternoon at Fort Snelling, where military troops met them with a full-out dress parade, including mounted cavalry and artillery men. A reception was held shortly after at the Officer’s Club before the party moved on to an afternoon horse race featuring World Champion pacer Dan Patch.
the Glidden contestants enjoyed Sunday at the Tonka Bay Hotel on Lake Minnetonka. The TCRT excursion boats Plymouth and Puritan were hired for the afternoon to give tours of the lake before the drivers retired to the Lake Minnetonka Automobile Country Club for drinks and dinner.
From 1905 to 1910, Glidden was the first president of the Aero Club of America. From 1908, he began to promote aviation. He praised the lighter than air technology (balloon flight) and was of the opinion that private planes would be similarly ubiquitous as motorcycles.
For dozens more photos of the Gliddens on their many years of explorations, see https://digitalcollections.detroitpubliclibrary.org/islandora/search?f%5B0%5D=mods_subject_topic_ms%3A%22Glidden%2C%20Charles%20J.%20%28Charles%20Jasper%29%2C%201857-1927%22
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