Motoring Monday : 1926 Overland Coach

This might be that car! From illustrations I've found on line, it's pretty darn
close to what the 1926 Overland looked like. This is cropped from a photo
that may be of the Payne family country cottage. Wallace B. Dixon Collection
privately held by his granddaughter, E. Ackermann, 2016.

From 1929 to 1934 Wallace B. Dixon owned a 1926 Overland Coach, Model 93.(1)  I wasn't able to find any illustrations of that specific model that were free from copyright restrictions. If you follow this link you will see a 1926 Overland Model 93 Coach from the Willys-Overland-Knight Registry website.(2) It's a pretty spiffy looking car. The photo here may be of that car.

If you happen to be a vintage car buff and can help me out with an illustration for this post, I'd be grateful!

Here's a list of the Overland's fine features according to a 1926 advertisement:

“With bigger, wider doors, more inside room, longer, higher windows, rich Baker Velour upholstery, a longer wheelbase,…one-piece windshield, Sun-visor, windshield wiper, Fisk full-size balloon tires, …this car is a phenomenal buy.”(3)

The Willys-Overland Motor Company

From 1912 to 1918 the Willys-Overland Motor Company was kind of a big deal. Only Ford produced more automobiles in the United States. In 1919, John Willys expanded the company with the purchase of the former Duesenberg Motors Plant in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The effects of the Great Depression forced Willys to sell that plant to William Durant.(4) We've covered that in a previous post.

It was during World War II that the Willys-Overland Company achieved lasting fame. Under U.S. Government contract, the company began manufacturing the Willys MB, better know as the Jeep. (4)

You can read more about the history of the company in this Wikipedia article.

License and Registration, Please

1930 New Jersey Passenger Vehicle Registration issued to
Wallace B. Dixon for a 1929 Overland Coach
Privately held by E. Ackermann, his granddaughter.

As you can see from the 1930 Passenger Vehicle Registration, this 1926 Willys-Overland Coach was a six-cylinder vehicle that had a 22 horsepower engine.(5) It appears to be another roomy vehicle suitable for a young family. During the time when my grandfather owned this car, his family lived at 239 Marshall Street. This is also the location of Wally's Confectionery, the candy store he owned, and according to the 1930 U.S. Federal Census, the place where my grandmother, Sophie (Karvoius) Dixon, worked as a "saleslady."(6)

1930 New Jersey Passenger Auto Driver's License
issued to Wallace B. Dixon.
Privately held by E. Ackermann, his granddaughter.

Wally Dixon's Auto Driver's License confirms the address. The personal details on this license are interesting, to me anyway. The 1930 license shows that Gramps gained five pounds since 1929, and he grew three inches! It seems incredible to me that he was ever 5'7" tall.(7) In examining the full collection of driver's licenses, I see that he remained at this towering height until 1938, when he dropped back to 5'5" tall. Did a change in fashion in men's shoes cause the ups and downs? Another thing we may never know.

 Extras

Here are a few links if you'd like to learn a little more about the Overland. I'm also including images of the other registrations just for the record. If you click on the images you can view them at a larger size.

• 1926 Overland Model 93 Coach from the Willys-Overland-Knight Registry
• Advertisement for the Willys-Overland Six
• The Willys-Overland-Knight Registry 

1931 Passenger Vehicle Registration issued to
Wallace B. Dixon for a 1929 Overland Coach
Privately held by E. Ackermann, his granddaughter.

1932 Passenger Vehicle Registration issued to
Wallace B. Dixon for a 1929 Overland Coach
Privately held by E. Ackermann, his granddaughter.

1933 Passenger Vehicle Registration issued to
Wallace B. Dixon for a 1929 Overland Coach
Privately held by E. Ackermann, his granddaughter.

Post updated on 23 August 2016 to include photograph of car.

Citations
(1) Wallace B. Dixon, handwritten note listing all the cars he owned and addresses he lived at. Wallace B. Dixon Collection, privately held by his grandaughter, E. Ackermann, 2016.

(2) The Willys-Overland-Knight Registry, Willys-Overland-Knight Registry (http://www.wokr.org/ : accessed 20 August 2016), photo gallery.

(3) "No car in it's class has such power," advertisement, Wallace's Farmer, DesMoines, Illinois, 16 April 1926, page 9, Advertisement describing the Willys-Overland Six automobile; online images, Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections (http://idnc.library.illinois.edu/ : viewed 20 August 2016); Willys-Overland, Inc.

(4) "Willys." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 27 Jul. 2016. Web. 20 Aug. 2016. 

(5)(7) New Jersey driver's licenses from 1926, 1928, 1929, Wallace B. Dixon Collection; privately held by Elizabeth Ackermann, [address for private use], 2016. Inherited by his daughter, Mary E. Dixon Traina, and then by her daughter, E. Ackermann.

(6) 1930 U.S. Census, Union County, New Jersey, population schedule, Elizabeth, enumeration district (ED) 20-29, sheet 72A, dwelling 152, family 248, Wallis Dixon; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : downloaded 27 March 2016); National Archives and Records Administration, Washington D.C. T626.