New York Nostalgia: 1958 Chevrolet “Bungalow Bar” Truck

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It’s April right now, but as we look forward to warm summer days fast-approaching, it’s nice to think back to simpler days of our childhoods.  This ’58 Chevy ice cream truck has seen better days, but for anyone who grew up in the area of New York City from the ’40s through the ’70, this should take them right back. It’s for sale here on eBay out of Oregon, so let’s look closer!

I wrote about one of these trucks a little over a year ago, but that one made its way to West Virginia from Oklahoma somehow. There’s a good chance that this truck was originally a Good Humor truck, so let me quickly refresh your memory on the back story. From my piece in 2019: “A little research of Good Humor uncovered that they first started in 1920 and had retired their entire vending fleet by 1976.  According to an article on The Truth About Cars from 2014, Good Humor favored Fords, but there were many Chevrolets as well. The freezer bodies were originally made and installed by Hackney Brothers, but other smaller firms would later assist the franchisees with that. At their peak, Good Humor had around 2000 trucks like this, and as they offloaded older units, smaller outlets snapped them up and kept them going for several years more. According to the Smithsonian Institute, these trucks are the best-known symbols of mobile food vending – so much so that they have one in their collection!”

This particular one likely put many thousands of smiles on many thousands of childrens’ faces in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, Staten Island and the Bronx, as well as Washington Heights in Manhattan, in Yonkers and Nassau County, and in Deer Park (Suffolk County) during the 1950s and 1960s and early 1970’s. Bungalow Bar trucks serviced the Bushwick section of Brooklyn during the 1940s. Bungalow Bar was one of those “smaller” outlets mentioned above. This truck would have had a brown shingled bungalow-style roof on top, apparently.

The seller tells us that there is no engine nor transmission, and that the floors are rusty, but it does have the chiller doors and opines that it is indeed worth restoring. The listing is rather light on details, however we see a truck that hasn’t seen smiles in a long time, and would need extensive work. Literally everything would need SOMEthing done to it. Done properly, though, this once-proud machine could once again bring happiness to young and old alike.

I couldn’t find very much about Bungalow Bar, but I did find a reference to them in The Sopranos, a Wikipedia article here, and someone who still has and runs a small franchise of them here on Facebook, but no working website.  The question of how this particular old Chevrolet got all the way across the U.S.A. is one that only the seller could answer. So, what do YOU think? Any fond memories that you’d like to share? Let us know!

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Comments

  1. DayDreamBeliever DayDreamBeliever

    Hey, Bungalow Bar
    What’s in the car
    Bungalow Bar?

    He went out children hunting with his ice cream truck
    In case of accidents he took his rabbit’s foot for luck
    He’s the all American frozen dairy treats good monk.

    All the children sing
    Hey, Bungalow Bar
    What’s in the car
    Bungalow Bar?

    Deep in the neighborhood where the mighty dollar lies
    Bar and his frozen treats were taken by surprise
    So Captain Marvel zapped in right between the ice

    All the children sing
    Hey, Bungalow Bar
    What’s in the car
    Bungalow Bar?

    The children asked him would five bucks let us all eat
    And when he looked so sly, Skinny Cow did jump right in
    If looks could chill we would be fat instead of him

    All the children sing
    Hey, Bungalow Bar
    What’s in the car
    Bungalow Bar?

    (Apologies to The Beatles, esp. writers John Lennon / Paul Mccartney circa 1968)

    Like 6
    • OIL SLICK

      Oddly enough I just listened to “Buffalo Bill” just before I saw this. Spotify is awesome.

      Like 4
      • DayDreamBeliever DayDreamBeliever

        Actually, the song title is: “The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill”

        Which is why I was moved to do that silly parody…..

        As with all things Beatles, there is extensive information online.

        Like 2
    • i8afish

      Juicy lemon pi-ie,
      With ice cream

      Like 2
  2. Paolo

    I think it was all about turf and controlling territory. My neighborhood was strictly Good-Humor. We only heard about Bungalow Bar in distant ‘hoods. Occasionally we got a visit from the “Tip-Top” man but they didn’t make their own ice cream like Good-Humor. They just sold readily available commercial stuff of various brands.
    I’ve heard that there were some real fights back in the early days.

    Like 3
  3. JTHapp JTHapp

    The fights between Bungalow Bar & Good Humor back in the day would make for a great story/film… Just imagine the period rolling stock to be used in making a film like that…?

    Like 2
  4. Paolo

    I can see white uniformed ice cream men shooting it out with automatic change dispensers:

    ‘Bradadadap!’ goes a blast of nickels…

    ‘Pdinglinkaliginkinking comes the answer in dimes

    The kids in the neighborhood run for cover licking their cones before they melt.

    Like 4
    • Frank

      Hey
      I grew up in the Bronx and the main guy was Mister Softee, and Good Humor. Bungalow Bar very rarely came by especially if they were out of Brooklyn, the was a really hike . Thanks
      Good Olde Days. Got to love it.

      Like 2
      • John Oliveri

        Another Bronx guy, used to love chocolate Coke floats Mr Softee

        Like 1
  5. Paolo

    But yeah, I think those real fights had real violence with beatings and some burned up trucks. You know, the good old fashioned American way of doing business.

    Like 3
  6. Steve

    You knew dinner was finished on my block in Brooklyn when the good humor truck came rolling down the street ringing his sleigh bell so we would all come running out of our houses. On a side note my friend was climbing on the side of one and fell and was run over. Didn’t see them on the block after that.

    Like 1
  7. PaulG

    Looks like the fender spears are from a 59.
    Would be a great movie prop once finished…

    Like 3
  8. Gaspumpchas

    Looks doable. there’s another Apache next to the ice cream truck, having a parts truck would make the job of restoring the front part of the truck easier. Looks like the last mill had an automatic, small block auto would do the job nicely and dress it up some. Good luck if you want to take it on. Gotta be rare.
    Good luck and stay safe
    Cheers
    GPC

    Like 1
  9. John Oliveri

    MR Softee ruled I’m my Bronx neighborhood 60s and 70s, but I do recall Bungalow bar, probably from the beach areas of Long Island

    Like 0
  10. fordfan

    I grew up in boro park Brooklyn in the 60S
    we all loved the good humor man ” jack ”
    When the bungalow bar truck came around we would sing ,
    bungalow bar
    tastes like tar
    the more you eat
    the sicker you are

    ps jack didn’t have a truck he has a 3 wheeled bike with a box over the 2 front wheels

    Like 4
  11. Frank M Gallo

    The double cone vanilla and chocolate with rainbow sprinkles. It was the best. So many great memories even when most of the older guys were sent off to Nam. Many never came home. I remember that just as well

    Like 0
  12. NextRow Johnny

    I grew up in Bay Ridge Brooklyn in the 60s. We had 4 different ice cream trucks come through our neighborhood. We Good Humor, Mister Softee, Freezer Fresh and Bungalow Bar and we also would shout out the Bungalow Bar song when the truck came by.

    Like 0
  13. Mike

    Those were the days. When I was a kid in the 70’s, we had the 3 wheel scooters playing “The Entertainer”. The passive-aggressive driver would be speeding through the neighborhood faster than the kids could run. Now it’s a beat to s**t minivan with sun faded and peeling stickers all over it and the driver pulling out off-brand popsicles from a dented cooler.

    Like 2
  14. John Oliveri

    Mr Softee Chocolate Parfait w chocolate syrup, and chocolate sprinkles

    Like 0
  15. TimM

    Me personally wouldn’t buy a truck to use in parades or for that fact sell ice cream!! Great walk from all the commenters down memory lane though!! Good luck to the buyer!!!

    Like 0
  16. Mike Brown

    Unfortunately, the last ice cream truck around my area, just last summer, was found out to be selling more “controlled substances” than ice cream…and I’m from a very small town! So much for childhood memories for the local kids! Shamefull!

    Like 1

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