(first posted 8/28/2015) Even though Jefferson City is one of only a handful of state capitals in the United States not serviced by an interstate, there are still a whole passel of roads leading to (or out of?) here. If one is looking for a good route to find interesting cars, the one where I found this Chevrolet is generally one of them. That certainly helps offset some areas of natural scenery; let’s just say parts of US 54 through northern Audrain County are somewhat like driving on a treadmill – flat, straight, and little else but tilled fields as far as the eye can see.
This Nomad certainly helped break up the monotony early in my trip. As I’m tootling along at hyper-legal speeds, she suddenly appeared as I passed a row of trees, sitting there twinkling seductively in the late July sunlight, facing east and looking ready to provide the journey of a lifetime. While this was a pretty good find, there was something about this Nomad that seemed awfully familiar. After talking with the driver of the pickup that had pulled into the driveway while I was snapping these pictures, all the pieces fell into place.
The driver was the owner of the Nomad and was in a hurry. After quickly loading a stack of tires into the bed, he came over. I couldn’t quite read his demeanor, but the car was for sale and it rather begged curious people to stop and look.
“You know, in some parts of the state, you could catch a lot of flak doing what you’re doing.”
Such mixed messages – my car is for sale but I don’t want you to look. Without really thinking, I responded with “This never struck me as being one of those places.”
“It’s not, but down around (a town well south of there) I’ve gone looking for cars and could almost feel the stares and who knows what else pointed at my head. There will be three Chevrolet Monza’s and a sedan delivery parked in the driveway and nobody will even talk to you. It’s not fun.”
The gentleman was a dealer and said he had acquired the car a while back in a tiny, nearby town. That’s when the light went off and my inquisitiveness kicked in.
“Is this the same wagon that was stored in that barn in Farber? The barn that was falling down around it?”
He confirmed it was indeed the same wagon. What a small world; I had seen this car numerous times around four years ago and was highly curious. Now here it was, basking in all its crimson splendor.
According to the owner, about thirty-five years ago the now former owner of this Nomad committed a large enough faux pas to get himself thrown in prison for a very long time. His loyal wife stayed behind and put his cars into storage near where they lived. This Chevrolet kept good company, as I distinctly remember what this man confirmed as being a 1960 Cadillac also hibernating in the decrepit barn. It seems there were a few others, also.
As the years went by, the wife was repeatedly approached about selling the cars. Each time, her response was a variation of the same “go away, leave me alone” theme. Apparently she softened sometime since September 2011 – when I ceased visiting Farber for work purposes – and now. The cars have all been removed and sold.
The years of storage in a decaying barn are evident on the exterior, but it hasn’t heavily translated itself to the interior. The license plate on the floor alludes to this Nomad having been off the road since at least October 1977, but she still saw seventeen years of service prior to that. In an area that gets a respectable amount of snow, during a time when calcium chloride was the snow removal agent of choice, this car is truly a survivor.
Well, most of the car is a survivor. While Chevrolet endowed this Nomad with some version of the top dog 348 cubic inch V8, it is awaiting some serious attention due to storage induced atrophy. In its place, the owner nestled a 348 sourced from a truck, which should provide a nice amount of grunt. This heart transplant has her running and driving great.
Chevrolet advertised these Nomad wagons as being the automotive version of a canine. Based upon the Impala, the Nomad was the top trim level of Chevrolet wagon. Engine choices were identical to those of passenger cars, ranging from the veteran Stovebolt six-cylinder to the various iterations of the 348 cubic inch (5.7 liter) V8.
For those more concerned about economics than style, Chevrolet offered a variety of lower trim wagons. Never standardizing their names quite as well as Ford, for 1960 the wagons from Chevrolet got a bit confusing.
The Brookwood was based upon the low-trim Biscayne and it was even available as a two-door as seen in the lower left of this advertisement. The nine-passenger Kingswood and six-passenger Parkwood were based upon the Bel-Air, while the Nomad was Impala based. Only Chevrolet could offer four distinctly named wagons based on three series of cars.
Production was healthy with 198,000 four-door wagons being produced with another 14,660 two-door wagons finding a home. Sadly, Chevrolet did not break down production volumes to show how many were produced in each series.
The Nomad was the heaviest and most expensive Chevrolet one could purchase in 1960; with a base price of $2,996 it was $42 more than a convertible. The price of this car quickly surpassed that as the cost of the 348 cubic inch engine was in the $300 range with the automatic transmission being around another $200. This was starting to get pricey for a 1960 Chevrolet.
One of the beautiful things about writing for CC is you never know what will cross your path or when. After my recent piece on a 1960 Oldsmobile (here), where I extolled the virtues of its preoccupation with rockets, this Nomad shows that Olds wasn’t the only GM division enamored with flight. A Nomad with a jet leaving chrome contrails certainly shows a general mood at GM, a mood that reflects a distinct time in history, a time that is rich with automotive offerings.
I took these pictures on a Friday and it was gone when I passed through on my return trip the next day. Let’s hope this Nomad has found a happy new home and an owner that won’t squirrel away this terrific wagon in a rickety barn for nearly four decades. It appears this wagon is really enjoying its newfound taste of freedom.
Related reading:
At primary school one of my friends parents had one of these in a turquoise and white colour scheme it would have been four or five years old then and had rust holes all over the place, I distinctly remember it had no trim between the tail lights but a series of holes rusted through across the gate instead, another friends parents had a 58 also quite rusty life on dairy farms didnt agree with these cars very much. Pretty sure the wagon was a Brookwood, RHD possibly local assembly maybe imported built up. Nice find.
The ‘ Nomad’ badging script and emblems are a work of art in themselves. The quality of US badging design from the classic era is outstanding (worth a feature by itself?).
There always has to be an interesting story about why an everyday car survives 3-4 times a normal cars life span. This time we have to thank long prison sentences.
Compared to today, styles changed so fast then. On the commentary of the second season of Mad Men, show creator Matt Wiener described updating show character Betty Draper’s wagon that year as wagons style changed completely between season one in 1960 and season two in 1962. He then said that wagons would look the same as her new one until they went away in the eighties. Obviously not a car guy, her first wagon was a 58, but with an eye for style changes that his show captured so well. Look how different this Nomad looks from the one from 3 years before that everyone knows.
Thanks Jason for this writeup.
Very Nice! My first car 25 years ago was a 1960 Bel-Air sedan in Turquoise and White with the 235 and three in the tree. I did some basic fixing up on it before I got my license and an engine rebuild not long after, it was the car that shaped my love of cars.
I didn’t know they still made the Nomad in 1960. My favorite feature of these cars was the dashboard, the only one I ever waxed. Although even at the invincible age of 16 that metal gauge cluster combined with the lack of shoulder belts made me a bit uneasy. I didn’t even know about the downfalls of the x-frame at the time. Looking back I’m still a bit surprised my parents let me buy it.
From 1955-57, the Nomad name was used on a 2-door wagon with distinctive “semi-hardtop” styling, part of the then top-of-the-line Bel Air series. This is what most people think of when they hear the name “Nomad”.
From 1958-61, Chevrolet marketed its full-size wagons as distinct models (similar to what Ford did from 1955-68). Throughout this period, the Nomad name was used on the top-trimmed version, which by 1960 corresponded to the Impala. It was offered only as a conventional 4-door wagon. The “semi-hardtop” 2-door body represented by the 1955-57 Nomad was no longer being made. A conventional 2-door wagon continued to be offered through 1960, but not as a Nomad, only in the lower (just the lowest?) trim levels. For 1962, Chevrolet dropped all of the special wagon names, and what had been the 1958-61 Nomad became just the Impala wagon.
Oddly, Chevrolet revived the Nomad name from 1968-72 on a Chevelle wagon that was an absolute bottom-level stripper, primarily intended to compensate for the discontinuation of the Chevy II/Nova wagon after 1967. You could not get further away from the original meaning of the Nomad name.
The full-size Chevrolet wagons went back to using distinct model names again from 1969-72, but the Nomad name wasn’t used on a fullsize wagon during that period, since it was already in use on the Chevelle model noted above.
And let’s not forget the Vega-based Nomad from 1976! Then again, maybe we should forget it….
Also the Nomad full-sized vans which had 2nd-row seating and windows, but was a standard windowless cargo van behind the 2nd row.
Odd how wagons with 3 rows of seating were once treated as a separate body style from 2-row wagons, even giving them a different name sometimes. Now the third-row seat is just another option for your wagon, crossover, or SUV.
yes I never relised the nomad badge had moved to the 4 door wagons my uncle had a 2 door nomad 57 red and white we had a 4 dr. version the only badging I remember was a 210 not sure if that was the motor size of not. yes they were both classics
These always appeared to be built like a tank to me, it was only after a relatively low speed sideways into a powerpole that I found how weak they are Iwasnt driving but was one of the passengers in a friends 60 Cheviac that night the car bent in the middle it hit just behind the B post, the wrecking yard guy who bought it told us all about why they were so weak, body rust didnt help.
Although I am not much of a Chevy guy, I have always kind of liked the 1960 model. I rode in a copper 1960 Chevy wagon in my kindergarten carpool. Mrs. Mejer was one of 4 moms who shared driver duty. That one may have been one trim level down.
There was also the 60 Bel Air that my grandma’s elderly neighbor Annie owned. Hers was a green six cylinder/PG sedan that was in gorgeous condition for a northern Ohio car in the mid 70s. I spent a little time sitting in that one, and developed an appreciation for the dash, steering wheel and interior trim in that car – very sporty for a mid-level Chevy sedan.
That place you are describing could almost be called Nomad’s Land. 🙂
Eh-oh!!!!!! JP will be here all week! Remember to tip your servers! 🙂 🙂 🙂
That wagon is twice as cool with a 348 than it would be with a 283 (or some other small block). What a neat looking engine.
My mother had one, can’t remember the color (my memories of 1960 was dad’s Impala convertible that mom would bitch every time he put the top down – black with white top and red cloth interior), and of course hers would have been a small block (most likely 283) with Powerglide. No doubt, otherwise identical to this.
It was her second station wagon and first time she got a top of the line model (the 1959 was a Brookwood six passenger), first time dad ordered the power rear window (she hated the crank down version on the ’59), and set the standard for every Chevrolet station wagon that followed (’61, ’62, ’63, ’64, ’65, ’66, ’70).
Nice car, Interesting that although the Impala model name had only be in use for about two years (in 1960) Chevy felt obligated to include the leaping Impala among the trimmings for the Nomad.
Nice to see it survived , the rust looks like it needs attention straightaway before it’s too late .
Too bad they took off the rear window dust deflectors .
-Nate
“parts of US 54 through northern Audrain County are somewhat like driving on a treadmill”
West Texas is like that, except without the tilled fields.
It’s weird.
I’m not a fan of the 57 Bel Air because of all the Good Gaws but this I find very attractive.
I love that it still has a 348 too, it would have been easy to just slap a junkyard small block in there.
I didn’t really care for the ’59 and ’60 Chevies as a kid and haven’t thought about them much for the last 40 or 50 years (I remember riding in one, a 2 door sedan I think, in LA in 1964), but the styling has aged well. Or perhaps revived well. As always, I learn something from CC as I always thought Nomads were only two doors. Finally, as a follow-up to the discussion about tires and wheels on that ’70’s Chevelle recently, I think the tires and chrome wheels on this wagon are a very suitable fit here.
Interesting that Chevy never offered a Di-Noc “wood” trim package for the exterior. It would probably not look too good on these wagons. One of the better styled wagons from the early 60s,and good to see that its still in use today.
Great piece, Shafer! I like the noirish backstory behind this particular car. I’d be curious to see the depreciation curve of one of these againt a similarly-priced convertible over the years – especially the point at which the value of the ‘vert galloped away. Thanks for not being deterred from getting your shots for this great write-up.
Great find and story. And I like your anecdote about your talk with the owner and his comment that “in some parts of the state, you could catch a lot of flak.” I have family that lives close by to where you took these pictures, and can definitely see that conversation taking place!
Let’s just say I toned down his statement. 😉
Cool find!
Did you notice the transmission? Woulda been extra cool if it was a Turboglide.
I have a hard time calling this a Nomad even though Chevy certainly did not share that reluctance. Nomads are supposed to have 2 doors and a different pillar.
Couple years ago I ran across a 59 4 door station wagon that still served as someones work car/truck. I was in my 77 Impala 4 door wagon so we had a good conversation. Owner was a young guy who said he would drive old cars (25 yo cars have a Texas smog exemption) as long as they were available.
Your conversation sort of reminds me of the guy I ran across when I wrote the “junk yard cruising” article. Not that your guy belongs in a spooky movie but you sure didn’t expect that response.
Good informative article.
From the photos I assume that all ’60 wagons, including the Impala-level models, had only two taillights. I never noticed that before; I guess I don’t see station wagons regularly enough that I would have picked up on that.
When I was 8 years old my father purchased his only new car he ever bought, a 1959 4dr Brookwood SW. It was the biggest POS he ever bought and would never buy a new or GM car again, passing away 20 years later. It was in for a lot of warranty work and never was completely resolved to his satisfaction. By 1963 it was gone although the 1959 Rambler SW he bought used 1960 for my mother to drive lasted until 1968.
One of my best friends had a ’50 Chevrolet Deluxe in high school which carried four of us to our high school graduation in 1969. After HS he bought a ’60 4 dr Chevrolet Biscayne that was basically the same car as my father’s ’59 Brookwood, 235 six and 3 spd manual minus my father’s overdrive. It turned out to be less dependable than the ’50 he owned before and never owned another GM car for the next 20 years I kept in contact with him. His older sister had a 1958 Chevrolet with a 348 with PG and it was the most gutless V8 in a car that have ever ridden in.
These are my experiences in these cars back in the day when there were many hundreds of thousands on the road.
I started high school in 1969, and our wood shop teacher who was himself a fairly recent graduate of the same school (under 30, at least) drove a ’65 Bel Air wagon. A little newer than the one pictured and what others have mentioned, but although these wagons were indeed very common at the time, our teacher’s was set apart by its 327 and 4 speed combination. I don’t think those were very common.
had no idea that the 4 door impala wagon was actually a nomad. very cool find. here’s a picture of me with one of my older brothers and parents in front of my mom’s 1960 impala convertible. it was baby blue with white accents. pretty sure it was a 6 cylinder with powerglide. we were constantly replacing the fire cone taillights as they easily broke from basketballs, etc. my mom always said that it was her favorite car.
Chevy did not offer wood trim until 1966 on the Caprice wagon, later the Kingswood Estate, then the Caprice Estate starting in ’73.
Looking back, I think the wagons looked better without the fake wood, but the woodies had the best appointments, at least in the Chevy and Ford lines. No wood meant a step down to an Impala (Kingswood) or Galaxie (Country Sedan) level. Buicks could be had with or without independent of other options.
For many years the Kingswood/Caprice Estate wagons, despite being top of the line and having Caprice grilles and exterior trim (and eventually the Caprice name) had Impala-level interiors. Country Squires some years split the difference, sharing the Country Sedan’s Galaxie 500-level appointments as standard and offering LTD-level interiors, usually still in all-vinyl only, as an “option group”.
This glossy GM film, beginning at 16:00, has lots of ’60 Chevy production shots–subassemblies (transmission, carb), inspection, etc. as well as assembly-line (Sorry, no Nomad): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2l59RP-mUI
Sweet looking car. I’ve always liked the 1959 and 1960 Chevy full-size cars. I’ve never seen a station wagon version.
Very nice Nomad, and I also love the backstory. Heartening to hear that sometimes, “barn cars” do actually get a new lease on life. Wonder if you’ll see its ’60 Caddy compatriot somewhere?
Not only does the logo incorporate an impala logo, there is IMPALA lettering on the dash. Were these cars properly the “Impala Nomad” or was that lettering added later?
Speaking of barn finds to – morrow (9/1/2015 will be your chance to buy several at scrap value : https://www.kenporterauctions.com/vehicle_listing_temp.asp?auctionid=367&searchval=Automobiles
Some neat stuff there , there’s actually about TWICE as many old vehicles being sold , a whole bunch of GM AD trucks and Fords too .
All are chock full of mouse poop of course .
-Nate
We actually got this car that is featured in this article yesterday!! It needs a good tune up but will still crank and drive! !! Awesome back story on the car!!!
It’s interesting how some sellers on CraigsList can come across as so belligerent in their listings. I know that they might be tired of dealing with flakes, I’ve sold cars and parts on CL so I’m somewhat understanding. But the idea is to attract potential buyers, not repel them. A car parked at the curb or in a parking lot is an invitation to lookie loos. Out in the country I would be careful going onto someone’s property, though many cars are parked just off the highway.
Relative????