Photos from the 2011 International Station Wagon Club show, Pittsburgh, June 25

I was there today. There were about 50 wagons. 200+ photos are at the link below.

https://picasaweb.google.com/gulino...authkey=Gv1sRgCMrlpvi_kMDOtgE&feat=directlink

 

WOW! Good variety; looked like a fun show.

That Lincoln Pioneer... Must have looked awesome rolling down the road, trailer in tow.

 

Hey jaunty, great pics!

I was at the show around 9:30AM until 11AM. My favorite was the '58 Pontiac , but so many of the wagons showed up after I had to leave. Wish I could have seen that '69 Town & Country with the 300 grille, just like moparjohn's. So beautiful! That would have probably been my favorite.



But then again, I didn't get to see jaunty's Custom Cruiser!



I met quite a few really nice people at this event, and I definitely plan to join the International Station Wagon Club.

I thought I had been to one of this club's meets back in '99 in Chicago, but learned that that was a different wagon club...the American Station Wagon Owners Association.

Oh well, I liked this bunch, and it sure seemed like a great event. These wagon people spent days in the Pittsburgh area having wagon fun!

Nice to chat with you on the phone, Ian, even if I couldn't stay and meet you and jaunty.

David

 

I absolutly LOVE the 69 Town & Country even with the typical weak right side hood hinge. You gotta remember to push down on the hood if you're gonna show it. Thanks for the pictures.

 

Wow, great wagons!

 

Thanks for sharing... some beautiful S/W's showed up there.. end of June early July seems to be the best period to spent holidays in the USA (Riviera meeting BCA Nats and BPG Nats... all Buick related)

Can't wait for 2012

 

Looks like a great show. I like the rarely seen 61 Polara and 62 Fury wagons, but the 65 Vista Cruiser was probably my favorite one there. The red 68 Fury belonged to a buddy of mine in Virginia, but he sold it about a year ago. Its good to see its still around. I've seen the 69 Town & Country with the 300 grille and the green 72 Town and Country at shows before.
Thanks for all the pictures.

 

Interesting story on this car. I spent some time talking to the owner.

It's totally custom. There was no such thing as a Lincoln "Pioneere," and Lincoln never made a station wagon. He actually spells it with an "e" at the end, even though the person who filled out the dashboard info card spelled it the normal way. Lincoln DID make the "Premiere," and he simply had a jeweler remake a Premier badge into one that says Pioneere with the extra "e". He said that most Lincoln owners and fans, when they see the script, read it so quickly that they never notice what it really says and assume it says Premiere.

The roof of the car was put together by combining the roofs of three Lincoln donor cars. The roof rack is actually from a clamshell-era Chevy wagon. He said it was the only rack he could find where the contours of the rack mounts matched the contours of the roof.

The seats are from different cars, also. I can't remember where the said the front seats came from, but the rears are from a '61 Buick. The rear window is from a Jaguar, and the whole rear liftgate was not taken from any car but was completely fabricated.

Again, I can't remember exactly what it is, the but the engine is modern, not from the '50s, and he did this so that he could have modern air conditioning and steering. He said he's taken the car everywhere in the country and just wanted to have modern, more reliable mechanicals.

In short, I have to believe that he has spent at least $100,000 on this car. It's absolutely immaculate, and, as I say, many people who see it don't recognize it as a custom and assume Lincoln really did make a wagon.

The trailer is meant to match, and the headliner in the car matches the fabric used on the seats in the trailer. He said it was an early '60s trailer which has been upgraded with modern appliances (refrigerator, stove), plumbing, and electric wiring.

 

You obviously missed the highlight of the show!

What I liked about it was the woodgrain. It had some kind of texture in it that I've never seen before.

I was told that that club, which was founded in 1996, folded in the early 2000s, and this club, the International Station Wagon Owner's Club, was founded in 2003.

Their meet next year is in Massachusetts, and it's always the weekend after Father's Day weekend. The show has also been in Niagara Falls, New York, Mt. Laurel, New Jersey (last year), and a few other places in the northeast. There is apparently interest in holding it further west, but it takes effort and interest.

From what I could see in looking at the license plates and talking to people, the farthest anyone traveled to get to this show was from Virginia Beach, Virginia, a distance of about 450 miles one way.



One other little tidbit was what it cost to show my car. Their form said that, if you weren't a member, you could show it if you joined the club ($25 for one year) and paid the member show rate ($35). So I was expecting to have to pay $60. But they only charged me $20 to show the car along with the $25 membership fee. Saved me $15. That was nice. It paid for lunch!

 

Free Lunch

Jaunty---and they say there's no such thing as a free lunch! Sounds and looks like a really nice show. It's amazing what people do to build thier toys. Wish I would have been born rich instead of so darned handsome!

 

Geeze, Jaunt, are these all the pix you could take?
WOW...great job! Great pix! I am SO sorry I missed this show! SOMEone was supposed to have reminded me about this show...a member here who shall remain nameless even though the thread from a year or so ago could be found. You know who you are!
Pittsburgh would have been possible and I would do it next year if I'm still on this side of the grass AND if it was in Pittsburgh again. Dammit...it's in Mass next year according to Jaunt. Just too far for me. This is a show that I would really like to see, too.
OK...there are tons of cars here, all gorgeous, and many from my era.
Quickly, some of the ones I would kill for from memory....

I love the Lincoln! VERY well done and I'll bet the price tag to do it was MORE than a hundred K!

The 62 Fury is one of my very favorite Exner designs! I love these wagons.

The 58 Star Chief is stellar! I love the 58 GM wagons and this one is gorgeous!

There was a 55 or 56 Poncho there that was gorgeous too!

Finally, another that I would kill for is the absolutely beautiful 53 Poncho!! What a car and what a great resto!

Thanks for the memories, Jaunt!

 

It was the club president, Chuck Snyder, who told me it was in Massachusetts. If he told me the city, I've forgotten. It was in Sturbridge, MA the last time they were there in 2008, and that might be where they'll be again.

They have actually held the show as far west as Sandusky, Ohio (2009) and Louisville, Kentucky (2007). A list of their recent shows is on this page:

http://www.tiptopwebsite.com/websites/index2.php?username=iswc&page=6


They are a very nice group of people. It was funny, but at one point I was talking with a few of them, including the club historian, about why station wagons died off, and I ventured that it was due to the advent of the minivan, which everyone pretty much agreed with. One of them then mentioned that 1984, the year the first Chrysler minivans appeared, should be taken as the year the beginning of the end of station wagons started. Then, without prompting, everyone stopped talking for a moment, looked down at the ground, and shook their heads, as though we were all observing a moment of silence.

These people love their station wagons!

 

Thanks for posting those pictures. I see in the background of the 66 Dart pictures, a 68 Mercury Park Lane convertible woody. The station wagon like wood grain trim was available starting in January 68, for the 68 model year only on the Park Lane convertible and 2 door hardtop (very few were sold with the woodgrain trim). Chrysler had the exact same idea at the same time and offered woodgrain paneling starting as a mid year option in 68 on the Newport convertible and 2 door hardtop. Chrysler carried the option into 69 on the convertible. These would be great companion cars to Colony Park or Town and Country wagons. I know a guy who has one of the 68 Chrysler Newports with the Town & Country like wood grain sides.

 

I have more photos of the '68 Mercury convertible. I just didn't include them with the others because it isn't a station wagon. It is a very nice car. Has something like only 36,000 miles on it.

 

WOW! I remember those cars well! That's a beauty, too!