Backyard finds today

[55chevy]

[ QUOTE ]
Ed

Mr. Fair gave me this one too, looks like mother nature has the upper hand on the Chevelle.



[/ QUOTE ]

Figured as much.. Oh well...

[Racefan]

My father-in-law has a 55 Chevy 'vert in a farm ditch here in Iowa......it has been there since the md-60's. It has a 4 inch tree growing through the midle of the floor. Kind of sad, but really cool too! The car and the tree are, one. Sort of a Zen thing? Bows on the top are still good though! Really should go through that ditch and pull some stainless and usable parts out of there. Literally, there are hundreds of cars in there. A 67 Chevelle body, a Studebaker pickup, 59 Impala, pretty neat stuff!

[Steve_Hoog]

Get us some pics of that please, sounds cool. Well, cool in a sad way.

[Racefan]

Sure, I will do that. The cars in places are literally three and four deep in a creek bed. Not to sound too corny, but it really is like a burial ground out there. Every car came from the family and has a story behind it. The 55 vert got put in there after an engine fire that burned all the wiring. Instead of fixing it......it went "out back". Literally! It was a black car with red interior, very nice car once. I'll get some pics over the next couple days and post. BTW, if anyone is over this way and wants to wander through it.....let me know. I'll take you. There is a decent 55 Ford that could be pulled out and saved, so could the 59 Impala as a matter of fact. Come on by guys, it really is a good time in a morbid sort of way.

[Racefan]

I was able to get into the ditch last week and take some pics. I have higher res pics of all posted, so if anyone wants better pics specifically let me know. Unfortunately someone has been in there sometime this past Fall and raped a couple of the cars to include the 55 'vert. They took the tags and cut the top of the windshield frame off and took all the top bows. Brave souls.....my father-in law WILL shoot you! Anyhow, check out the link if you want to see pics of what the ditch looks like. EPA officials need not apply! Final resting place?

[55chevy]

[ QUOTE ]
I was able to get into the ditch last week and take some pics. I have higher res pics of all posted, so if anyone wants better pics specifically let me know. Unfortunately someone has been in there sometime this past Fall and raped a couple of the cars to include the 55 'vert. They took the tags and cut the top of the windshield frame off and took all the top bows. Brave souls.....my father-in law WILL shoot you! Anyhow, check out the link if you want to see pics of what the ditch looks like. EPA officials need not apply! Final resting place?

[/ QUOTE ]


My god.. I've never seen anything like that or such neglect.. How did all those cars get in that "ditch"? Who owned them prior to their demise? It's incredible that classic cars end up this way.. I mean what put them there to begin with? Slipped time chain? Bad coil? Fuel pump quit? Lack of interest? It's just a damn shame.

[Racefan]

The oldest plate I could find on any of them was 1963. Although I do know that the "T" that is buried was already buried there before my wife's family purchased the place in the 40s. The cars were put in there mostly by friends/relatives of my father-in-law. Most of which were friends who lived in town and had nowhere else to dispose of them. I agree with your horror/disgust, but realize that these cars went in before the collector car idea was probably hatched. Most of the cars did get put in there because of jumped timing chains, wrecks, blown motors, etc. They were by no means irrepairable when they went in. The itch is in places 8-12 feet deep, I suppose. It runs approximately 1/4 mile or so. Also, you need to keep in mind that this ditch is NOT the exception around here....it is more the rule. There are somewhere around 5-10 such ditches within a 3 mile radius. Here is something for everyone to think about. With many supercars being sold/used in the mid-West (IL,MN,WS,IA,MO,IN) and so many of these ditches around.....is it any wonder there are so many cars "missing"? There are still some of these cars that could be pulled out and something done with them. If there is anything you see that you want more info or have info on the year, etc please let me know. Thanks.

[camarojoe]

Not that it really makes much difference, but that first car you have listed as a '59 is actually a '60... either way, it's soon to be one with the earth.

[Racefan]

Not sure about the "soon to be one with the earth" statement. That car has been in there for the better part of 35 years, and is mostly still there. There isn't much of it touching the ground!

[Belair62]

Holy crap !!! How deep is that ditch ? How in hell did they all get there I wonder...