Though these aren’t all that vintage (from the Daimler Chrysler era), they are kind of neat. Starting bid is $39.

View all the information on eBay

“Set of 4 Jeep, “Approved Willys Parts and Accesories” Collectible Shot Glasses.
These items come with the original box and there are no chips. There are a couple small scratches that I will note in the pictures.. please view the pictures as they are part of the description.”

UPDATE IV: Nate was able to get this running. Check it out.

UPDATE III: See the internals of a Willys Light Plant here

UPDATE II: More pics of Nate’s Willys Light Plant here

UPDATE: There is more history about Miniger and his purchase of John North Willys Stock in 1929 in a 1946 Fortune article.

This postcard is currently listed on eBay.

The other day Nate forwarded me the following images of a Willys home power plant, built by both “Willys Light” and the “Electric Auto-Lite Corporation”. Not knowing much about any of this (and not having the time to source original info from newspapers of the time), I took a break from house painting to venture down internet rabbit holes. What follows is more of a work-in-progress than a finished piece. Hopefully, folks can add or correct the following.

Let’s start with the pics that Nate sent:

Now, stepping back a little in time … These days we in the US are generally pretty spoiled in terms of our access to 24/7 electricity. Of course, this wasn’t always the case. Because of my work on SLAG, I am aware that there was a revolution in mines and smelting with the introduction of power plants. My great great grandfather first introduced an electric plant into his smelter in Leadville in 1881 (followed shortly by electricity in the Salt Lake City’s Germania plant). By then, Broadway in NY was lit with a power plant, as were parts of major cities.

January 04, 1818, from the Leadville Daily Herald.

Such power plants would have been expensive, which is why large municipalities or successful businesses were utilizing them. But, such plants would have been outside the financial reach of the average folks. Still, there was an interest among home and farm owners to replace the gas and oil lamps used in homes.

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Tom shared pics of a “Planter” in Oracle Arizona back in 2005. The front crossmember looks like a GPW to me.

Tom grew up just north of me in the Yakima area. As a kid he used to watch the Yakima Ridge Runners cruise through the Ahtanum area, which ignited his interest in them. Over the years he owned a variety of jeeps.

Is it still in Oracle? I have no idea.