Old car hunting may seem like the trendy thing to do these days, but the activity has actually been around for quite some time. Back in 1950 Mechanix Illustrated ran an article about a man named Barney Pollard, who they claimed was the “World’s Champion Old-Car Collector”. It all began when he took an old Cadillac as payment and it turned into a lifelong obsession. He would go on day long journeys peeking into barns and scouring fields for old cars. He acquired so many of them that, after greasing them up, he would stake them vertically to save space! I’m not sure if this 1924 Cadillac was ever stored in that manner, but it supposedly belonged to him. It looks pretty rough, but its past does make it interesting. Find it here on eBay where bidding starts at $2,000. Thanks goes to Tim S. for the tip! Could this be the very car that started it all?
Source: Modern Mechanix
Collecting a 1920s car in 1950 would be like collecting a late 80s early 90s car today. Weird.
What ever happened to the collection that he hoped would be in an auto museum someday?
Good question Tony. I haven’t found any information about what happened to the collection, but I bet there are a few people here who know something about it.
I dunno, Jesse….maybe I don’t want to know… Back in the 60’s and 70’s, not a whole-lot of love for those old “beaters”….
Here’s a cool blog I found that was written by his Grandson. http://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2011/06/barney-pollard-car-collection-over-half.html
(Guess that blog contains info that was pulled from an AACA thread….)
http://forums.aaca.org/f169/barney-pollards-collection-271191-2.html
The story isn’t as happy as I’d hoped. Some cars were auctioned off in the mid 70’s, but most of them were consumed by fire :(
There’s some info here:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/need-to-learn-about-barney-pollards-collection.213230/
14300 Prairie St, Detroit, MI 48238 was the location of his collection. Mr.PushButton on the Packard Board is a wealth of info on him
Restomod this thing with a supercharged Northstar!
Restomod with a northstar?!? That original v8 is 90% if the value of the car. It would be a horrendous mistake to replace the engine and would secure the owners reputation as a moron. Its a hugely important piece of engineering. That being said, if the engine is removed, I’d gladly restore it and keep it in my living room.
Hello This is my 24 Cadillac and yes it came from Mr Pollards collection, The car has huge from its front bumper for 1/2 of its life. You can tell by the rear fenders bent up at the same place when it was lifted.The car is like a time capsule, very complete. I will post some more pics to anyone interested.