The original pickup truck

[MarkB_MI]

A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I visited the Edison and Ford Winter Estates in Ft. Myers, FL. They had a couple of Model T pickups (Model TT) on display. Our guide made the somewhat dubious claim that the term 'pickup truck' is derived not from the truck's intended use but rather how they were delivered: The TT was shipped partially assembled, and the buyer had to 'pick it up' at the local train station. Interestingly, the shipping crate for the vehicle parts was used to construct the truck cab, which explains why the cab on these vehicles is wood.
Ford Model TT

 

[Mark-Ia]

Martin-Parry made wood cabs and full bodies made of wood for the Model TT

 

[Bonnan]

In the 1940's shortly after WWII, my uncle who owned a Chrysler/Plymouth dealership would take my Dad and couple of other men to Detroit. They would
all pick-up new vehicles and return home. None of them were actually pickups!

 

[fastfarmall]

Ahh, i got to a guy who use to do drive out's in the early 50's he was a teamster, they drove one and pulled one or two,they quite that after about two years, the lead pickup usually gave trouble!! He was talking about Dodge only!

 

[Bonnan]

I might add that there were very few if any car carriers available back then.

 

[grayrider]

My dad used to tell me about his family made their own trucks back in the day from Model T cars, they called them cut downs. I saw this old truck the other day, pic may not be clear as its behind a chain link fence.

 

[Dean]

A close friend of mine, since deceased, made 3 or 4 depo hacks of wood starting from trees.

The last one that he built used a 27 chassis made mostly of NOS parts and included a 2-speed rear axle.

Dean

 

[dpendzic]

a story i read a few years back said Sears and Roebuck sold bed kits for pickups--Had to go to Sears and pick up the kits---Sears also sold home kits--I know of two houses locally that are Sears kits

 

[HenryO]

Growing up in the 30's we had two old T model trucks on the farm. Learned how to drive on them. used to set the spark to make it backfire. Lots of fun. They were used to haul apples from the orchard to the processing building here the apples were packed ionto cans for the bakery grandfather owned.

 

[sms]

I may be wrong but it was my understanding that the first pickups started out as cab and chassis (sometimes no cab just to the firewall) and an aftermarket company supplied the body/bed. I also have old farm papers that advertised truck beds for vehicles.

 

[DoubleO7]

It is a good story, but doubtful.
Back then vehicles were shipped by rail or driven away from the factory.
So most every vehicle was picked up at the rail depot.

Henry Ford was a bona fide skin flint and the only mention of crating was for overseas shipments.

This 1917 (first year for TT) sales brochure mentions Ford can supply a body to suit your needs.
That body might have been a knocked down kit in a crate that was also used for the body.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> I may be wrong but it was my understanding that the first pickups started out as cab and chassis (sometimes no cab just to the firewall) and an aftermarket company supplied the body/bed. I also have old farm papers that advertised truck beds for vehicles.

Right. The body ended at the firewall. The customer could build a cab from the shipping crate or have a custom body made. There was no bed; that was also up to the customer.

 

[John T]

Theres a ton of good information (like the link posted) to be found using Google or Wikipedia and I sure appreciate the kind gents who take the time and effort to use those tools to answer the many complex questions posted here THANKS TO ALL WHO DO.. Im often too busy or lazy lol to do all that but do the best I can to answer questions........

Thanks again to the Google or Wikipedia helpers on here

Best wishes to all here

John T

 

[db4600]

I have heard similar stories of the first Ford dealerships in a town having an assembly room after the chassis was unloaded from the train and before it was put on the sales floor. Im novice when it comes to the model T, but understand there were a couple different options available from Ford. I believe there was a roadster option with a box up to a TT chassis with a full 7 box. Mind you the TT was available in longer chassis for depot hacks and stake trucks or variations of custom.(fire, wrecker, specialty) There were also a variation of cabs. Some through ford, some aftermarket.

 

[SkipperII]

The gentleman I worked for at the tractor dealership, had worked for his brother at the local Ford dealership, in the 1920s -30s. He said the Ts came in a box car, standing on end, in each load was a Fordson tractor. Before they could get new load of cars, they had to sell the tractor. When the Model A came out, they wouldn't be allowed to get the new A models, until their stock of Ts was sold. Mysteriously one night, all the Ts developed fuel leaks, caught fire, and were destroyed. He said it was so hot, it cracked the heavy glass window of the parts department, making them look like crazed glass. Well, in the 60s, that building was still the Ford dealership, sure enough, the windows were still there, and were heat damaged.

 

[warbaby]

Your dealer picked up unassembled ''T''s and ''TT''s from the rail yard, then did final assembly at their garage, or in the rail yard. from 1917-23, ''TT''s were shipped as a complete, running chassis with a firewall. You supplied a straw filled burlap bag to set on top of the gas tank for a seat, or built or bought an aftermarket cab and bed to make a truck. In 1924, Ford started offering cabs on the ''TT'' chassis.

Heres a compact shipment of 4 Fords (with at least one ''TT'' chassis) arriving at a Ford dealership on a Federal truck to be assembled and sold

 

[Doug - Iowa]

This is a picture of the building I work in. It was built in 1920 and originally held a Ford Model A assembly plant and showroom. Ford left the building in 1934 and it has housed a variety of business until remodeled into office space when we moved there in 2001. Originally an elevator in the back moved cars to all 5 floors (yes the front shows 4 floors but 1st floor is actually the basement access out the back). The elevator hoist is still there but the platform is gone, the shaft now contains stairs for the rear fire escape. Along the top of 5th floor back wall there are openings in the to remove the engine exhaust from starting the cars. We have only a few pictures of the building prior to 1945. I think I have one of the showroom with cars in it, if I can find it I'll post it.

My company is committed to keeping the building as close to original appearance as possible. Helps that our CEO is a die-hard Ford guy and loves telling the story about the building to visitors. It is a well-built building, surviving a tornado and a dericho the both damaged everything around it. We only lost the 5th floor skylight and one pane in the front door.

 

[Doug - Iowa]

More pics

 

[db4600]

That story reminds me a bit of the Atwater Ford dealership. The building is a two story opposite side of Main Street from the rail line/ side track. That building had and still has a freight elevator accessible from to back alley which was used to run the chassis to second floor for final assembly and then used to run the finished car down being placed on first floor or sales floor. This being on main street a decade ago there was no outside lot. From what I understand around the 40s a new dealer ship was built opposite the back alley in the single story Quonset roof style with a formal front lot and side entry for service. Both buildings still stand today in this sleepy little Minnesota town, but have been remodeled to accommodate other purpose. Atwater Ford is still soldiering on in a newt building off the dying mainstreet with a big lot and Hwy#12 frontage.

 

[db4600]

Is that little restaurant still going over at the intersection north of Colo? When I did the Bacon Funeral Home in Nevada I would sneak out there. I would rank their onion rings near the top of my list.

 

[Doug - Iowa]

We have a old family-owned Ford dealership in nearby town. Rumor is the original contract from the 40's stated Ford has no say over the building so long as a family member runs the business, which they do. Many similar dealerships made the investment in a new building and then failed in a few years. Glad to see this one holding on.

 

[Doug - Iowa]

I don't know, it looked closed up last time I was by there. The restaurant at the campground south of town is also closed, I liked eating there.

Back to the post about assembly plants, I think we get confused comparing modern assembly plants that make every thing up from parts to these small town plants back in the 20's. Like others have said, the assembly work done here was more like putting them together from a kit. Think like the old jeep in a box deal, broken down for shipping. The car or truck chassis was complete when it arrived but it was not ready to go, dealer finished in these buildings. Today dealer prep is driving it off the transport and maybe washing it, otherwise its ready to go.

 

[CaseChev]

Doug......thanks for the great story on the Ford factory and your current building.....neat stuff. I love to see older building like that preserved. Yes....interesting about the small town Ford dealer and family ownership. Auto companies have something called a stay with you/discontinue Letter that clearly states as long a the same family is involved in the dealership ownership, their franchise will be renewed when renewal comes up. It also for better or worse, protects the dealership from undue pressure to build a big $$$$$$ new facility in order to renew their franchise

 

[redforlife]

True enough about actual auto racks. But the railroad flat car had long been invented by the year 1900. And the network of railroads use to be way more extensive until the interstate highway system came along.

 

[redforlife]

So if we have pick-up trucks, why don't we likewise have pick-up cars???
I'm not sure that I'm buying all thats being said within this thread.
For one thing, Ford invented the assembly line and put it into play in the mid teens. He may of continued sales of un-assembled vehicles, but that would of been greatly reduced and likely limited to dealerships in towns with no rail service to receive completed cars on railroad flat cars. The regular sized truck was more less the same as the car, only with a truck body on it. Likely assembled on the assembly line, right along with cars.
The larger TT trucks were introduced in 17 (as a prototype the way production numbers sound), and put into actual production in 18. These possibly had a longer chassis that wouldn't jive with ford's assembly line already in use. If that was the case, these TT trucks would of been limited to un-assembled in crate sales. But that would of equated to most crate sales consisting of only these TT sales. Right?? Atleast by the time they were being produced.
A body was offered for these trucks after a few years of production. Stand to reason they were likewise assembled on an assembly line. Atleast from the point of the introduction of the body, and onward.
As for wood. Even the T car body, had some wood in the body. Car bodies derived from horse drawn buggies and carriages that were made up of almost entirely of wood. Wood was not phased completely out of car body's, until many years into car production. Wood spoke wheels were seen on T's until late production. Not sure about the TT's.

 

[cdmn]

Hercules was a big body supplier for trucks
Hercules

 

[warbaby]

The ''TT '' chassis was 2 feet longer than the car one and always had wooden spoke wheels- the fronts were standard ''T'', the rears were heavy duty versions.. Ford DID make a pickup car- the Model T Runabout (roadster) pickups of 1925-27 were simply standard roadsters with an optional 25.oo box replacing the deck/trunk. Ford introduced their closed cab pickup (and kept building roadster pickups) as a unique, truck-only body style with the Model A in 1928.

 

[Fritz Maurer]

Looks like 28- 29 model A... or whats left of it

 

[Bill(Wis)]

My Grandfather had one that he purchased brand new. Used it for I don't know how many years and then sold it to a neighbor who used it for a few years and then just parked it in his machine shed. My dad's cousin purchased it in about 1957 and had it completely refurbished. He put it in parades and had his little polka band on the rack playing polkas all the way down Main Street. A barrel with a big pitcher of beer along for the ride. Pretty funny. Beeped the Aaoogha horn at each intersection.