Model A Fords to be in city Tuesday

By Emilee Shake, Staff Writer

September 11, 2009 10:13 pm

— By Emilee Shake
Staff Writer
Flash back to the 1920s and 1930s Tuesday when five Model A Fords drive through Daviess County stopping at various Amish businesses and Mason’s Root Beer Drive-in. The eight-day journey will depart from Milwaukee and make several stops throughout Indiana.
The Model A caravan will be composed of a 2-door convertible, 2-door coupe, 4-door Sudan and two pickup trucks from the years 1928, 1929, 1930 and 1931.
“The Model A was the big new change in Fords after the Model 3s,” Stan Larson, trip coordinator and Model A enthusiast, said.
Larson and his wife have traveled extensively through the Midwest and other parts of the U.S. and Canada putting more than 60,000 miles on their Model A.
“They’re reliable cars,” Larson said. “It’s still going strong.”
Those traveling in the group are part of a Model A Ford club in the Milwaukee area. The club, established in 1956, has more than 285 family memberships with more than 300 Model A vehicles and is one of the largest clubs in the nation.
Larson traveled to Nashville, Tenn., last March making several stops along the way. It was then that he picked up a Daviess County tourism brochure.
“I was intrigued by the flyer, so I called the Chamber,” Larson said.
After talking with the Daviess County Chamber of Commerce, Larson decided to plan a trip through Indiana. Six others from the Model A club signed up to join him.
In addition to Daviess County, the group will also be stopping in Dana, Ind., to visit the Ernie Pyle Museum and in Nashville, Ind., to see Mel Tillis perform.
“We’re trying to hit a lot of places that are off the beaten path,” Larson said. “That’s why we’re coming to Mason’s Root Beer stand. If the Chamber is telling the truth that Mason’s has the best coneys, we’ve got to be there.”
Traveling throughout the U.S. has given Larson the opportunity to meet people from all walks of life. He attributes much of this to his car.
“If I was driving a new car down the road and it broke down, people would drive by and wonder what my problem was,” Larson said. “If I’m driving my Model A, people will stop to help.”
He shared a story of a friend whose Model A broke down in a rural area. A man stopped to help, took him to the mechanics shop and offered him a place to stay for the night.
“Only in small-town America would you get that kind of offer.”
The Model A crew will be having lunch at Mason’s Root Beer Drive-in at noon and invite people to stop, see the cars and meet the drivers.
“We’re just out and about to have a good time and meet the real people of the world.”