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Did you know?

Dave Johnson

2011-11-17 11:38:54

Q: I am what you might call a bit of history buff. I am well informed of the “old Wichita” from the mid to late 1800s and turn of the century, but I have little information on early automobile history in Wichita. Can you lend any insight?

A: Last month, we discussed Wichita car history through the 1930s and now it is time to bring you up to the current time. As we end this series, you will see that the auto business in Wichita was no different than it was throughout the rest of the country. By 1940, the automobile changed the face of small town America. Everyone bought cars fashioned to match their station in life. Nearly every town had a “Main street,” which served as a gathering place for people as well as the ubiquitous automobile. Businesses catering to the car culture, such as motels and service stations, multiplied across Wichita, and the United States. Roadside diners, such as the Valentine Diners, which began their successful run in Wichita also began their start in this time. The car also obliterated the need for some existing industries, particularly fixed-rail commuter service and animal-powered transit. Trolley Cars, once a staple of transportation in our area, were displaced to make room for more cars. The brick streets were covered with asphalt to provide a smoother ride for the automobile. Auto dealers, also proliferated the area at that time with a car dealership nearly on every corner. Wichita served and continues to serve, as an incubator for car dealerships throughout the country. Car makers would typically use the area to gauge the success other dealerships throughout the country could, and should experience. Car dealerships began to be the familiar face of the city and cars a symbol of happiness for America. Dealerships also changed and grew during this time. After experiencing success in one venue, entrepreneurs would venture into owning additional dealerships, both in the city and frequently out of state. Midway through the century, cars had become a central feature of life for young people. So much so that thoughts of one would evoke thoughts of the other. Cars represented mobility, status, challenge and social freedom. However, it also changed how young people spent their free time with working to pay for the cars became a priority. Now, after a century of the automobile and a rich automotive history in our own area, we can begin to reflect on the impact of long term transport by internal combustion. Nearly every aspect of our lives has developed around this technology. There are many great memories out there connected to cars and car dealerships. Ask around about what others remember. I’m sure you will get to hear a great story.

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Did you know?

Dave Johnson

2011-10-25 10:05:10

Q: I am what you might call a bit of history buff. I am well informed of the “old Wichita” from the mid to late 1800s and turn of the century; but I have little information on early automobile history in Wichita. Can you lend any insight?

A: If you are following our historical tour of the history of Automobiles in Wichita, you will recall that last month we discussed the growth of the automobile industry in Wichita and how it really took off in the 1920s. Although Americans did not invent the car, they certainly perfected it. Much of the credit for this feat goes to Ford and his assembly-line method, which transformed the car from a luxury item into a necessity for modern living. By the mid-1920s, even working-class families could afford a brand-new Model T Ford, priced at just over $250. The city was thriving on innovation and thoroughly embracing the car culture, with all of the good and bad with which it came. While the 1920s saw many burgeoning carmakers, including the Jones Car Company, the 1930s saw many of them fade away, unable to compete with the power of Ford’s assembly line, and further troubled by the Great Depression. Additionally, other large automakers such as Chrysler and GM had local dealerships competing for the consumer’s dollar. During this era, the car changed the way people lived and did business in Wichita. The widespread availability and affordability of automobiles and trucks, led to greater ability for farmers to transport goods, brought more people to the area, and during the Dust Bowl, saw them pack their cars and leave en mass. Change came so rapidly that by 1930, almost one in three Americans owned cars. This resulted in a lot of unplanned congestion on the streets of Wichita. During this time, the city of Wichita, and the country as a whole, began to address the problems of traffic and the conditions of the roads accommodating the new culture centered on the automobile. Remnants of this time dot the landscape of the city, standing as monuments to innovation and the city’s rich automotive history, and you are likely to see them frequently. Of the many lasting imprints, the John Mack Bridge may be the most notable. Designed by James Barney Marsh, known as the “father of good Kansas roads,” it was built in 1931 to alleviate traffic. Today the 800-foot bridge is the second longest remaining of the Marsh Rainbow Bridges and remains appreciated for its beautiful architecture. While we’re talking about the “father of good Kansas roads,” we need to mention another remnant of the time…what was called Old Highway 54. It was all brick back in those days, hand laid one brick at a time by the WPA in the late 30s and early 40s, from downtown…through west Wichita…and all the way out to the 10 mile corner (Colwich Road). From there, it continued through Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas and all the way to the West Coast. The greater national picture would soon affect the local automotive culture, however. Automobile sales had already declined by a third in the nine months before the stock market crash and The Great Depression further affected the ability of many people to spend on anything outside of necessities. With the US entering WWII in 1939, the country’s resources were stretched further but the car was instrumental in keeping many families together and afloat during that difficult time in our history. While many auto owners limited their driving due to rubber and tire shortages caused by the war effort, the car also enabled those who remained at home to get to jobs further out of town as well as remain close with friend and family. While hard times and limited resources affected the auto industry, it in no way diminished Wichita’s love for the car. Next month, we will pick up Wichita’s automotive history after the war and share some names with which many of you will be familiar.

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Did you know?

Dave Johnson

2011-10-25 10:01:30

Q: I am what you might call a bit of a history buff. I am well informed of the “old Wichita” from the mid to late 1800s and turn of the century, but I have little information on early automobile history in Wichita. Can you lend any insight?

A: As you might imagine, that has to be one of my favorite subjects. I doubt there is any family that contributed more to the automobile business in Wichita than the Price family. I have asked Dick Price, Jr. for his help in providing me with the information necessary to answer your question. In doing so, I will classify things that happened in four time periods: The early years; World War II; the 60s…when things really took off; and the past 25 years. This month, I will talk about the early years. Automotive history in Wichita was, of course, greatly impacted by the people and personalities shaping the greater automotive history of the nation and abroad. We will cover some of the general history, and how it ties in to shaping the industry in Wichita specifically. Like in most cities across America, the early automotive history in Wichita is somewhat limited until the early 1900s. This is due to a number of factors. Throughout the mid 1800s and into the mid 1900s, the automotive industry exploded on the scene with a proliferation of individuals and companies developing and patenting automobile designs and engines. The time was not only filled with innovation and progress, it was also fraught with contentions, suspicions, jealousies and in some cases, even sabotage. By the mid and late 1800s, engineers all over the world were working to develop vehicles powered by internal combustion. Although many engineers were working on the same idea, Karl Benz is generally acknowledged as the inventor of the first automobile and awarded a patent in 1886. In 1898, Dr. Ferdinand Porsche in Germany built the first hybrid car. The car was using an internal combustion engine to spin a generator that generates electric power to an electric motor located in the wheel hub. In 1899, another two hybrid cars appear at the Paris Salon. Many more hybrids were built after 1899 but their development dropped off and popularity waned due in large part to an American preference for gas-powered automobiles. Meanwhile in America, the development of the electric cars was neck and neck with the development of gas-powered engines until, Thomas Edison, among others, gave their support to gas powered engines and to noted automobile entrepreneur, Henry Ford. The alleged first auto in Wichita is said to have been owned by A. S. Parks and received in 1899, according to a 1915 article in the Wichita Eagle. The name or brand of the vehicle was not mentioned, likely because by that time, independent automobile makers had exploded on the scene and the name of the maker was less important than the fact that it was an automobile. By 1915, the motor car had become a permanent part of the Wichita landscape with a “decided car culture” and spirit of innovation and adventure sweeping the Greater Kansas area. A news report of the time noted that as many as 1,500 were on the road on weekends for pleasure drives, and even caused some concern in the reduction in church attendance. Wichita citizens were very enthusiastic about the automobile and forward thinking in the way they implemented them into the culture. In a Wichita Beacon article dated Saturday, July 1, 1916, the author announced the big Independence Day I.M.C.A. automobile races at the West Side Racetrack. The race attracted the top racers of the time, such as: Eddie Hearne - veteran speed demon, driving Briscoe No. 8. George Clark - Dixie champ, driving a Mercedes. Joe Cleary - driving his big Fiat. Fred Horey - Canadian champion, driving a Maxwell. Johnny Mais - driving the “Mais Special” Mercer. Juddy Kilpatrick - driving Briscoe No. 2. Fred Woodbury - of Chicago, in the famous dirt track car, the Duesenberg. “Wild Bill” Endicott - driving a “Sweeney Special”. Louis LeCocq -French racing master, driving the Mercer with which he smashed the world’s one-hour record at Springfield on June 17, 1916. Johnny Raimey - driving the famous Simplex Zip. Interestingly, Tim Hurst, manager of the race, race organizers and car enthusiasts fought to include the only woman auto racer in the world at that time, “daredevil” Miss Elfrieda Mais, who her $10,000 “Mais Special”, an auto built just for her, in an exhibition race. The article took a subtle dig at race associations of the time saying of Miss. Mais, “She now is the licensed ‘speed queen’ of the I.M.C.A. surrounded by more than a hundred ‘kings’. In the last year, she has hung up some pretty fast records that even the best of the men drivers have failed to lower. Her races, however, are not competitive, only exhibitions were granted by the clannish auto race association managers.” Tickets sold at Dockum’s for a dollar for adults and 50 cents for children. Events such as these fed the spirit of Wichita citizens and sent car sales through the roof. Wichita Ford Dealership, Price Auto that opened in 1916 saw such robust sales that by 1918 had doubled their facility and multiplied their sales five times over. The growth in the industry was not without some strife, however. Henry Ford was known to rule with an iron fist and had contentious relationships with many of the dealerships. At the time, cars were a risky business because while popular, it was unknown whether or not they would fall out of fashion, or what technology would, after all, win out. Car dealers were innovators, speculators, entrepreneurs, and investors, risking a great deal in the venture. They were also businessmen who resented being told how to run their business when it was their money being risked. This was so true for Will Price, founder of Price Auto, that he invested in stock of Ford’s greatest competitor, GM, noting that he had enough invested in the Ford Motor Company. Even with Ford and GM dominating the automobile market, the spirit of Wichita was demonstrated in the city’s only “home grown” automobiles made by John J. Jones and the Jones Motor Car Company, which operated from 1914 to 1920. Production started in 1914 with Jones Six, a seven passenger touring car. In 1917, a four passenger Roadster and Sedan were added. Early Jones engines were a Lewis rated at 22 horsepower. A 30 horsepower Continental Red Seal engine from 1917 to 1920 powered the Jones Six. Even with the competition, the Jones cars did quite well, selling over 1,000 cars in 1918. In 1915, most Jones cars sold for $1,150. By 1917, prices were $1,475 and by 1919, prices were over $2,000 for all models. A 1919 Sports Roadster was listed at $2,300. Unfortunately, in 1920 the Jones Factory had a large fire destroying half the complex and 14 automobiles. After nearly 4,000 cars the Jones Motor Car Co., whose motto was “the home care for home people” went into receivership. Meanwhile, prohibition played a part in heating up car sales in Wichita, as bootleggers purchased cars and had the interiors removed and engines souped up to transport liquor all over the state and evade the law in the process. Soon however, the Great Depression had the nation in its grips and the Second World War was looming on the horizon. The automobile industry in Wichita continued to change. I’ll be back next month with what happened in Wichita’s automobile history in the 1930s and the onset of World War II.

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Did you know?

Dave Johnson

2011-10-25 09:58:16

Question: What are your recollections of the beginning of Pizza Hut and its founders…the Carney brothers?

Answer: Wow…that’s going back to those same college days as last issue. I thought it might be good to get us much accurate information as I could, so I went to www.wichita.edu to see what they had. Sure enough, they have more there than I could ever gather. I used their information for most of this article. I particularly like the lead in to these guys and their endeavors… A funny thing happened to Dan and Frank Carney on their way to business degrees at Wichita State University. Both were sidetracked, at least temporarily, by the chore of building an international business empire. The Carneys’ business didn’t start out big, of course, just as a tiny, 25-seat pizzeria behind their father’s grocery store at Kellogg and Bluff. As Pizza Hut celebrates its 50th anniversary, now with more than 10,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries, the brothers look back on their days as part-time students, part-time entrepreneurs with satisfaction. “I was writing a master’s thesis on collective bargaining at the time,” says Dan Carney, speaking at an office full of intriguing Pizza Hut memorabilia on North Rock Road. “They wouldn’t let me write on franchising.” Like all of Michael and Mary Frances Carney’s children, Dan’s and Frank’s business education began early in their family’s Carney’s Market, doing odd jobs and, as soon as they were old enough to get a driver’s license, making deliveries. As the oldest of the 12 children, Dan was largely responsible for the operation of the store after his father’s death, even as he earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration at the University of Wichita, as it was then called. Dan Carney continued to learn about business while serving in the Air Force in Georgia, where he read everything he could find about the burgeoning McDonald’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken chains and their new-fangled franchising plans. When he returned to WSU to pursue a master’s degree, while raising a family and working at Boeing as well as Carney’s Market, Carney found that his big idea was too new for the professors. Still, he found that his formal education came in handy. “What the degree does, what it gives you most, is it teaches you how to think,” Carney says. “At that time, there were no courses on franchising. In fact, franchising was pretty much relegated to the auto business at that time. Still, it gave me the background to form my own company, and basically our own franchise agreement, which evolved over time. Today you have entrepreneurship classes, and all kinds of different courses that would pretty much give you the basic background to go into business for yourself.” Although the Carneys were already in business for themselves with the family grocery store, Dan and brother Frank, who was seven years younger and a sophomore studying mathematics at WSU, decided to get into the restaurant business. The official story told in “The Pizza Hut Story,” a history of the chain that comes in its own pizza box, is that the suggestion to try pizza came from their market’s landlady, who had read about the emerging fad for the food in The Saturday Evening Post and was eager to find a new business to replace the slightly seedy bar and grill whose building she owned next to the store. Frank Carney recalls more prosaic reasons for trying pizza. “I think my brother really has the stripes on that one, he was the one who decided,” Frank Carney says. “He had eaten pizza, there were a couple of pizza places in Wichita, we liked the product and all the college students liked that product. It was what was new and KFC and McDonald’s had done chicken and burgers.” In any case, with $600 borrowed from their mother, and some help from a friend of their sister, the brothers moved into the hut-shaped building next to the grocery store and got to work. “We found a guy from Indiana that was an airman at McConnell who lived at the same apartment complex as our sister and brother-in-law, and we talked with him, because we didn’t know how to make pizza,” Frank Carney says. “He said he had some great pizza. His name was John Bender. We had him over, he made pizza, and we liked it. We said ‘If you bring the recipe, you can have a full-time job here with whatever time you can get out of the air base, and a third of the business.’ He did, and it went from there, and that’s where we got our pizza.” The original Pizza Hut was one of only two places that offered pizza in Wichita in 1958, the other being an Italian restaurant, and local demand for the product proved bigger than their small hut of a building. Soon the brothers were building other Pizza Huts around their hometown. “The first one cost about $600 to open — this was in 1958, and money was different — and our real plan was that as soon as we could pay off the $600 and open another we would do it,” Frank Carney recalls. “That was automatic. The franchising didn’t open until later. We had six stores in Wichita, and wondered how to develop, so my brother studied franchising a lot.” Brother Dan’s office is a veritable trip down memory lane for any Wichitan old enough to recall the days when Pizza Hut’s six stores dominated the local pizza market. On the wall are all manner of memorabilia featuring “Pizza Pete,” the apron-clad, pizza-shoveling mascot of the old-time stores, created by WSU’s Ed Pointer. There are also menus from the original location, with a large supreme selling for $2.50, proving that money really was different then, and hand-written work schedules for the first restaurant, which Dan Carney proudly notes already included plans for a second one. There’s even the original sheet music for the “Putt Putt to the Pizza Hut” jingle that rattles in the mind of many a Wichitan. Testifying to the rapid growth of the Carney’s enterprise are Barbie dolls and Matchbox cars with the Pizza Hut logo, as well as items related to the first restaurants opened in such far-flung locations as China and India. As Pizza Hut spread out, first to neighboring states, then coast-to-coast and then beyond, both of the Carney brothers soon found it necessary to suspend their studies. Frank Carney eventually kept a promise to his mother that he would graduate from college, but he laughingly admits it took longer than she might have expected. “My mom got a promise out of us. She wanted us to finish college,” he says. “I was the first in the family not to, but you can’t travel all the time and get your schooling in there. After we sold Pizza Hut to PepsiCo, I got involved in other investments, but I remembered the promise I made to Mom. I went back to school in 1996 and finished up right at 2000. I took 40 years to finish. I think it was a give and take deal. I learned from them, things I wasn’t learning in the school of hard knocks, and they got a picture of how to build a franchise from my brother and I.” Dan Carney never did finish his master’s thesis on collective bargaining, but WSU awarded him a master’s degree in business administration in 2003 and presented its President’s Medal to him in 1997. Since the brothers sold their company to PepsiCo in 1977, Dan has been active in various charities, including the Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation of Kansas, and has kept busy investing in a wide range of start-up business. He’s also remained active with Pizza Hut, and notes that the business now has many more competitors than when it first started, “including my brother,” Frank, who is one of the founders of the Papa John’s pizza chain. The original Pizza Hut is still around, too. Expansion of Kellogg threatened the historic building, so it was moved brick by brick to Wichita State. Dan Carney says he is pleased to have the building on the campus, noting that many of the people involved in building the business were also alumni of the school. He doesn’t even hold any grudges against the professors who advised against a master’s thesis on franchising. It is indeed a pleasure to use this column to offer so many neat things about our wonderful city and its citizens. I look forward to providing more in the future.

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Dave Johnson

2011-07-01 13:56:00

Question: Someone told me the other day that you were the original WuShock at Wichita State University. How did this ever come about?

Answer: Yes, I was…and I am always proud to tell folks how it all came about and where they can read about it. Like The Naked City, the old TV Show in the late 50s used to say, “There are 8 million stories in the Naked City…this is just one of them.” There may not be 8 million stories about Wichita State University at www.goshockers.com, but there are a lot of them. Here’s just one that was written about WuShock. It was in 1904 when Wichita State University was known as Fairmount College that R.J. Kirk (Class of 1907), a football manager, invented the name “Wheat Shockers” for posters to advertise a game against the Chilocco Indians. Kirk had put the word “Indians” under the name Chilocco and a press agent for the Wichita Fall Festival, helping to publicize the contest, demanded that Kirk should produce a nickname for Fairmount to balance the poster. In those days, when wheat was shocked or headed, the majority of the players earned a stake for college expenses by working all summer in the harvest and threshing and came back tough enough to play 60-minute games. Although the name was never officially adopted, it caught on, was combined into one word, and survived until it was shortened to “Shockers” as Wichita State teams are known today. The story of WuShock began in 1948. Wichita University students of the art department were invited by Kappa Pi art fraternity to compete in the creation of a design to typify the spirit of the school. Walter Lengel’s design students were given the assignment as a requirement of his class. The entries were to be judged by members of the student publications board. The contest was wide open...no theme was established. Wilbur Elsea, a junior who had been a Marine during World War II, decided that, “the school needed a mascot who gave a tough impression...with a serious, no-nonsense scowl.” And his design for the WuShock character was adopted. WuShock got its name in another contest, which was won by freshman Jack Kersting. But the story does not end there. Dave Johnson, a WU cheerleader, changed the mascot from ink into flesh and blood in 1954. He and members of the art department brought WuShock to life as a costume. He has been the WSU mascot since 1948, and has been in the movies, thrown out of a basketball game, been kidnapped and has entertained thousands of Shocker fans. Here are a couple more memories to add…I remember the basketball team of 1953-54, made up of Cleo Littleton, Jim McNerney, Gary Thompson & many more greats, coached by Ralph Miller...we went to the NIT in March 1954 (3rd seeded). Back in those days, if we (WU cheerleaders, 4 guys and 4 girls) wanted to go, we had to raise our own money to go to New York by train. We did. I remember cheering in Madison Square Garden. WOW…what an experience! Here we were, at the 1954 NIT, at Madison Square Garden, in New York City for 5 days...round trip by train. There was no hurry to come home. Just take it all in and mix with fellow classmates. That was special. That’s when I saw other schools with mascots. I thought it was time Wichita University got one, so I, with my mother’s help, made the first two costumes. There was WuShock (me) and Shadow (my partner). The debut was in the fall of ’54 with WU Football. Isn’t that a great phrase…WU Football? Jack Mitchell was our coach. We had a lot of school rallies, with students and pep teams. Of course there wasn’t any email, texting or cell phones. It was just a lot of mixing with each other and talking. There are “good ol’ days” from lots of eras. Those were the good ol’ days for me…talking to each other eye to eye. I loved WU and some of my best friends today are from that period…Jim McNerney, Cleo Littleton, Don Harries, Armida Romero Hight, Marilyn Preboth Wells, Nancy Baldwin Farrow and many more old classmates.

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Nancy Hubble

2003-10-01 11:35:00

:  Why was Route 66 so important to America?

ANSWER:  Route 66 was particularly important to America during the Depression and World War II. Crossing 8 states and 3 time zones, in Kansas, the road was only 13 miles long and cut across the southeast corner. Route 66 is no longer included on current maps. Last month, I reviewed roadside architecture and tourist-targeted facilities. This month, we’ll talk about the end of the road for Route 66.The Beginning of the End:   Ironically, the public lobby for rapid mobility and improved highways that gained Route 66 its popularity in earlier decades also signaled its demise beginning in the mid-50's. Mass federal sponsorship for an interstate system of divided highways increased with Eisenhower's second term in the White House. Eisenhower had returned from Germany very impressed by the strategic value of Hitler's Autobahn. "During World War II," he recalled, "I saw the superlative system of German national highways crossing that country and offering the possibility, often lacking in the United States, to drive with speed and safety at the same time."   The congressional response to the president's commitment was the passage of the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, which provided a comprehensive financial umbrella to underwrite the cost of the national interstate and defense highway system. By 1970, nearly all segments of original Route 66 were replaced by a modern four-lane highway. It was replaced by Interstate Highways I-55, I-44, I-40, I-15 and I-10.  Route 66 was officially decommissioned in 1985.Route 66 today:   In many respects, the physical remains of Route 66 mirror the evolution of highway development in the U.S. from a rudimentary hodge-podge of state and country roads to a federally subsidized complex of well-designed interstate expressways. Various alignments of the legendary road, many of which are still detectable, illustrate the evolution of road engineering from coexistence with the surrounding landscape to domination of it.   Route 66 symbolized the renewed spirit of optimism that pervaded the country after economic catastrophe and global war. Often called, "The Main Street of America", it linked a remote region with two vital 20th century cities - Chicago and Los Angeles. The outdated, poorly maintained vestiges of Route 66 completely succumbed to the interstate system in October 1984 when the final section of the original road was replaced by Interstate 40 at Williams, Arizona.    Now that the highway celebrated its 75th birthday in 2001, its contribution to the nation must be evaluated in the broader context of American social and cultural history. The appearance of Route 66 on the American scene coincided with unparalleled economic strife and global instability, yet it hastened the most comprehensive westward movement and economic growth in U.S. history. Like the early, long-gone trails of the nineteenth century, Route 66 helped to spirit a second and perhaps more permanent mass relocation of Americans.

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Nancy Hubble

2003-09-01 15:42:00

:  Why was Route 66 so important to America?   

ANSWER:  Route 66 was particularly important to America during the Depression and World War II. It crosses 8 states and 3 time zones. In Kansas, the road was only 13 miles long and cut across the southeast corner of Kansas. Route 66 is no longer included on current maps. In last month’s issue, I reviewed the beginning and formative years of Route 66 starting in the 1920's. This month, we’ll talk about the growth of tourist-targeted facilites.Roadside Architecture:   The evolution of tourist-targeted facilities is well represented in the roadside architecture along U. S. Highway 66. For example, most Americans who drove the route did not stay in hotels. They preferred the accommodations that emerged from automobile travel - motels. Motels evolved from earlier features of the American roadside such as the auto camp and the tourist home.    The auto camp developed as townspeople along Route 66 roped off spaces in which travelers could camp for the night. Camp supervisors - some of whom were employed by the various states - provided water, fuel wood, privies or flush toilets, showers, and laundry facilities free of charge.   The national outgrowth of the auto camp and tourist home was the cabin camp (sometimes called cottages) that offered minimal comfort at affordable prices. Many of these cottages are still in operation.    Eventually, auto camps and cabin camps gave way to motor courts in which all of the rooms were under a single roof. Motor courts offered additional amenities, such as adjoining restaurants, souvenir shops, and swimming pools. Among the more famous still associated with Route 66 are the El Vado and Zia Motor Lodge in Albuquerque, New Mexico.   In the early years of Route 66, service station prototypes were developed regionally through experimentation, and then were adopted universally across the country. Buildings were distinctive as gas stations, yet clearly associated with a particular petroleum company. Most evolved from the simplest "filling station" concept - a house with one or two service pumps in front - and then became more elaborate, with service bays and tire outlets. Among the most outstanding examples of the evolution of gas stations along Route 66 are Soulsby's Shell station in Mount Olive, Illinois; Bob Audettes' gas station complex in Barton, New Mexico,and the Tower Fina Station in Shamrock, Texas.   Route 66 and many points of interest along the way were familiar landmarks by the time a new generation of postwar motorists hit the road in the 1960's. It was during this period that the television series, "Route 66", starring Martin Milner and George Maharis drove into the living rooms of America every Thursday.    By today's standards, the show is rather unbelievable but in the 1960's, it brought Americans back to the route looking for new adventure.Excessive truck use during World War II and the comeback of the automobile industry immediately following the war brought great pressure to bear on America's highways. The national highway system had deteriorated to an appalling condition. Virtually all roads were functionally obsolete and dangerous because of narrow pavements and antiquated structural features that reduced carrying capacity.

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Charlie Traffas

2001-07-01 09:02:00

:  Why are barns usually painted red?

Question:  Why are barns usually painted red? Answer:  If you've ever driven through a rural area, it's likely that you've seen the red barns that speckle the farming landscape. There are several theories as to why barns are painted red. Centuries ago, European farmers would seal the wood on their barns with an oil, often linseed oil -- a tawny-colored oil derived from the seed of the flax plant. They would paint their barns with a linseed-oil mixture, often consisting of additions such as milk and lime. The combination produced a long-lasting paint that dried and hardened quickly. (Today, linseed oil is sold in most home-improvement stores as a wood sealant.) Now, where does the red come from? In historically accurate terms, "barn red" is not the bright, fire-engine red that we often see today, but more of a burnt-orange red. As to how the oil mixture became traditionally red, there are two predominant theories: Wealthy farmers added blood from a recent slaughter to the oil mixture. As the paint dried, it turned from a bright red to a darker, burnt red. Farmers added ferrous oxide, otherwise known as rust, to the oil mixture. Rust was plentiful on farms and is a poison to many fungi, including mold and moss, which were known to grown on barns. These fungi would trap moisture in the wood, increasing decay. Regardless of how the farmer tinted his paint, having a red barn became a fashionable thing. They were a sharp contrast to the traditional white farmhouse. As European settlers crossed over to America, they brought with them the tradition of red barns. In the mid to late 1800s, as paints began to be produced with chemical pigments, red paint was the most inexpensive to buy. Red was the color of favor until whitewash became cheaper, at which point white barns began to spring up. Today, the color of barns can vary, often depending on what they are used for.

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Dave Johnson

0000-00-00 00:00:00

Q: I am what you might call a bit of history buff. I am well informed of the “old Wichita” from the mid to late 1800s and turn of the century; but I have little information on early automobile history in Wichita. Can you lend any insight?

A: In continuing our drive through Wichita automotive history, we pick up where we left off last month. The Early Years 1916-1930 Wichita citizens were very enthusiastic about the automobile and forward thinking in the way they implemented them into the culture. In a Wichita Beacon article dated Saturday, July 1, 1916, the author announced the big Independence Day automobile (I.M.C.A.) races at the West Side Racetrack. The race attracted the top racers of the time, such as: Eddie Hearne - veteran speed demon, driving Briscoe No. 8. George Clark - Dixie champ, driving a Mercedes. Joe Cleary - driving his big Fiat. Fred Horey - Canadian champion, driving a Maxwell. Johnny Mais - driving the “Mais Special” Mercer. Juddy Kilpatrick - driving Briscoe No.2. Fred Woodbury - of Chicago, in the famous dirt track car, the Duesenberg. “Wild Bill” Endicott - driving a “Sweeney Special”. Louis LeCocq -French racing master, driving the Mercer with which he smashed the world’s one-hour record at Springfield on June 17, 1916. Johnny Raimey - driving the famous Simplex Zip. Interestingly, Tim Hurst, manager of the race, race organizers and car enthusiasts fought to include the only woman auto racer in the world at that time, “daredevil” Miss Elfrieda Mais, who her $10,000 “Mais Special”, an auto built just for her, in an exhibition race. The article took a subtle dig at race associations of the time saying of Miss. Mais, “She now is the licensed “speed queen” of the I.M.C.A. surrounded by more than a hundred “kings”. In the last year, she has hung up some pretty fast records that even the best of the men drivers have failed to lower. Her races, however, are not competitive, only exhibitions being granted her by the clannish auto race association managers.” Tickets sold at Dockum’s for a dollar for adults and 50 cents for children. Events such as these fed the spirit of Wichita citizens and sent car sales through the roof. Wichita Ford Dealership, Price Auto that opened in 1916 saw such robust sales that by 1918 had doubled their facility and multiplied their sales five times over. The growth in the industry was not without some strife, however. Henry Ford was known to rule with an iron fist and had contentious relationships with many of the dealerships. At the time, cars were a risky business because while popular, it was unknown whether or not they would fall out of fashion, or what technology would, after all, win out. Car dealers were innovators, speculators, entrepreneurs and investors risking a great deal in the venture. They were also businessmen who resented being told how to run their business when it was their money being risked. This was so true for Will Price, founder of Price Auto, that he invested in stock of Ford’s greatest competitor, GM, noting that he had enough invested in the Ford Motor Company. Even with Ford and GM dominating the automobile market, the spirit of Wichita was demonstrated in the city’s only “home grown” automobiles made by John J. Jones and the Jones Motor Car Company, which operated from 1914 to 1920. Production started in 1914 with Jones Six, a seven passenger Touring Car. In 1917 a four passenger Roadster and Sedan was added. Early Jones engines were a Lewis rated at 22 horsepower. A 30 horsepower Continental Red Seal engine from 1917 to 1920 powered the Jones Six. Even with the competition, the Jones cars did quite well, selling over 1,000 cars in 1918. In 1915, most Jones car sold for $1,150.00. By 1917, prices were $1,475.00 and by 1919, prices were over $2,000.00 for all models. A 1919 Sports Roadster was listed at $2,300.00. Unfortunately, in 1920 the Jones Factory had a large fire destroying half the complex and 14 automobiles. After nearly 4,000 cars the Jones Motor Car Co., whose motto was “the home care for home people” went into receivership. Meanwhile, prohibition played a part in heating up car sales in Wichita, as bootleggers purchased the cars and had the interiors removed and engines souped up to transport liquor all over the state and evade the law in the process. Soon however, the Great Depression had the nation in its grips and the Second World War was looming on the horizon. The automobile industry in Wichita continued to change. I’ll be back next month with what happened in Wichita’s automobile history in the 1930s and the onset of World War II.