The Maine Willys Sales Co, appears to have launched in 1946 in Bangor, Maine. By 1949, the company was located in multiple Maine cities, including Bangor, Rockland, Lewiston, Portland, and Augusta. At some point, circa 1949, the Augusta branch sold six jeeps to the Forestry Department. The below image posted to the Forest Fire Lookout Association’s FB page documents this purchase:
Here’s an ad from the March 30, 1949, issue of the Bangor News. Note that multiple cities are listed under Maine Willys Sales:
It’s likely that 1949 wasn’t kind to the Maine Willys Sales Company, because the February 09, 1950, issue of the Bangor Daily News reported that Chrysler had taken over the Maine Willys Sales Company property, though nothing was mentioned about what happened to the company.
Later that year, on June 15, 1950, a large ad appeared in the Bangor Daily News, but only the Maine Willys Sales Company of Rockland appeared on this list of dealers.
The above ad strongly suggests that Maine Willys had dwindled to just one city in Maine by the summer of 1950. The company’s name was rarely seen in the newspapers after this ad.
The last reference I found for the company was for a July 11, 1953, article in the Bangor Daily News that mentioned an accident where a driver backed into the Rockland Maine Willys Sales showroom, shattering two large windows.
ALL THOSE FLATFRONT TRUCKS LOOKS LIKE MY YARD HERE — TONS OF FLATFRONTS — I HATE THE POINTED GRILL — IT LOOKS DOPEY COMPARED TO THE 46 TO 50 FLATFRONTS — FLATFRONTS HAVE A STYLE THAT IS TIMELESS — THE 50 ON V-GRILL IS NOT THAT WAY — IT LOOKS DATED — FLATFRONTS WILL ALWAYS BE IN STYLE — V-GRILLS , BLAAAAH !!!
Dave,
Are you aware of any writings on the W-O distributorship/dealership agreement and how it worked? My information comes from the “Revolution in Pleasantville” movie. Our hero, Don Miller, goes to a Willys distributor to learn about the Jeep with the new Monroe Hydraulic Lift. The distributor shows Don the lift and takes him to a demonstration farm where dealers are being trained. Don returns home and after long-distance phone calls and bank meetings ends up with a dealership. Don sets up his own demonstration to show the town the virtues of the Jeep with the Monroe lift and Newgren implements.
The movie was made by Monroe and not Willys. Monroe wanted Jeep dealers to setup demonstration farms because they believed that was the only way to sell this new kind of tractor. I don’t know that Willys ever pushed the idea.
Barry,
All my documents remain packed (probably won’t get them out until next winter after redo the shop “office”), so I might have something? But, I don’t know what was outlined in terms of the dealership/distributor agreement (though maybe someone has a copy of one of these somewhere)?
I do have a 1951 brochure aimed at potential dealers titled, “Your opportunity to profit with Willys”. I’ll email you separately.
– Dave
Vernon, yes, it is true you have submitted comments for me to post, but some have nothing to do with the topic at hand. For example, here are two examples you submitted for the above post: http://www.ewillys.com/wp-content/uploads2/2022/05/vernon-comments.jpg How do those comments reflect the above topic?
To have your comment posted there are three basic rules:
1) comment about the topic or ad value/insights to the topic
2) don’t attack other commenters
3) no politics (there are literally thousands of other sites for that)
Thanks!
SIR ?? — EXCUSE ME ?? — BUT YOU WERE THE ONE POSTING BIRDNEST PICTURES !! — YOU STARTED THE BIRD TOPIC !!! — YOU SHOULD RE-NAME THIS SITE ” DAVES BIRDY WATCHING AND WILLYS JEEP EMPORIUM ” !! — CAW CAW CAW !! SAYS THE MEAN OLD ROBIN !!!
Vernon, yes I did, but that was on a different post you mean ol robin!