Looking At Packards As A Kid

[423REED]

When I was about 7 or 8 years old, in 1955 or 1956, my family lived about 2 blocks from the Chicago Packard factory dealership. It was on the southwest corner of Eugenie and LaSalle streets (there's a big high rise there today) right next to Lincoln Park. It was a very small dealership by today's standards, but it probably was typical for its day. It had a corner showroom that looked very modern and streamlined, with huge glass windows, and which could hold maybe 4 Packards at a time. Me and my best friend Louie would stand by the window with our little wagons, our faces stuck against the glass, and look into the showroom at the Patricians and Caribbeans on the showroom floor. The Caribbean convertible was the most beautiful car I had ever seen, up to then. To this day I still love Caribbeans, especially the convertibles, but they're a little too rich for my blood, even after 48 years! I need to drive the cars I buy. I can't afford a very expensive garage kept toy.

This story also reminds me of a classic Packard Motor Car Company advertisement from the late 1930's, in which a little boy stood with his wagon looking into a Packard dealership window. Its funny how art mirrors life, as the old saying goes.
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2004 MARAUDER - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN

[Slowpoke]

As you know, thats now Eugenie Terrace. A very nice highrise building filled with young urbanites. It's a bustling area that many young people love to hang around. Incidently, the highest priced gas in the city is right across the street. I think I've filled up maybe one time in 20 years there and was not very happy at spending an extra 15 cents per gallon for the convenience.

And some of the best pancakes in the downtown area is right there at North and LaSalle at Mitchells!

[GreekGod]

Mr. Reed: Have you been to the Gilmore car museum at Hickory Corners, MI? If you haven't, it should be on your must do list. I resently went and was very impressed. I was told it is one of the 10 best car museums in the world!

[423REED]

Mr. Reed: Have you been to the Gilmore car museum at Hickory Corners, MI? If you haven't, it should be on your must do list. I resently went and was very impressed. I was told it is one of the 10 best car museums in the world!
No I haven't been to any car museums other than the Volo Auto Museum in Volo, Illinois. Its really just a glorified collectible car dealer. But they usually have 300 car on display at any given time.
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2004 MARAUDER - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN

[423REED]

As you know, thats now Eugenie Terrace. A very nice highrise building filled with young urbanites. It's a bustling area that many young people love to hang around. Incidently, the highest priced gas in the city is right across the street. I think I've filled up maybe one time in 20 years there and was not very happy at spending an extra 15 cents per gallon for the convenience.

And some of the best pancakes in the downtown area is right there at North and LaSalle at Mitchells!
I was born and raised at 1634 Meyer Court in the Old Town Area. My family, on my mother's side lived in that same location since the Civil War. The house was finally demolished in the late sixties.early seventies, to make way for single family public housing on that entire side of the street. The gas station you mentioned is really an old one that was there when I was a little kid. Of course its been totally modernized.

[Glenn]

Packards were a great line of cars and very beautiful.

Glenn Packard

[Merc-O-matic]

Packards were the best!
I owned a 1948 Packard Tudor Sedan (straight eight)
and a 1955 Packard Caribbean Convertible....
(V-8 352CID 2X4Bbl 275HP) the most
HP of any car built in 1955.
In today's market that Caribbean would sell for
$60-80K. Sold new for $5,999.00

Gotta Love It! :whistle:

[wsmylie]

Didin't one of Packard's classic ad lines go something like "Ask the man who owns one".? Always liked those Packards. It seems to me that they came out with a lower cost ("decontented"?) model called the Clipper in the mid-fifties and it wasn't too much later that the Packard marque was relegated to just being represented by re-badged Studebakers prior to final extinction about 1959. Does that sound correct??

[Merc-O-matic]

The last real Packard was built in 1956,
in '57 and '58 they were Studebakers (Hawks)
wearing a Packard name plate.
The merger with Studebaker did Packard in....
It was too late before they realized that
Studebaker was in worse shape $$ then Packard.

Gotta Love It! :soap

[Bluerauder]

Packards were a great line of cars and very beautiful.

Glenn Packard
Here's a pic of a '55 Packard Caribbean convertible. Why do I seem to recall this car in 3-tone with pink, black and seafoam green??? :dunno:

[Merc-O-matic]

My Packard Caribbean was white/light green/dark green....
another 3 tone was white/pink/black

Gotta Love It! :party: