During WWII, daddy (J. Bennett Bass) sold chickens, eggs, and some produce to the military down at Eglin Field. He had an old truck that he had been patching up for years, and that’s what he used to make his trips to Eglin. On one of his trips he was talking to Gen. Doolittle, who was just a Colonel at the time, and Doolittle took notice of the old truck, and commented on its state. Daddy said he had just done the best he could with what he was allowed to buy, limited by rationing more than funds. Doolittle told him to wait a week and go to the Chevrolet place in Andalusia to see what he was able to do from there.
Well, a week later daddy went to the Chevrolet place and they had a new truck waiting for him to buy. They gave him the discounted military price, a whopping five hundred dollars. He had him a brand new truck, red body and black fenders, and we were riding in style then.
– Herman Bass (as close as I can recall his telling of it anyway)
When they got there with the truck all the young’uns jumped in the truck I started pulling knobs and pushing buttons. So when we went to drive it for the first time the wheel started smoking and granddaddy (J. Bennett Bass) made daddy (Ralph Bass) get water and pour on the wheels, someone had pulled the emergency brake!
– Ralph Bass (via Donna Russell [Bass])
This is not that truck, but it is a restored 1942 Chevy, very similar to any made during WWII.
