So far, we have featured at CC a few galleries of cars hauling trailers, often on the move. This time, I figured it would be nice to offer a variation of the theme, with cars around trailers, trailer parks, and trailer homes.
Admittedly, I’m far from an expert on trailers and I’ve probably taken some liberties with some of the chosen photos. But all in order to showcase some images of interesting cars. In either case, the gallery should please those who enjoy vintage images and the world of trailers and mobile homes.
The white 58 Chevy in the 2nd pic: looks like a Biscayne, but is that a hardtop or a sedan? Can’t tell. Always thought Biscaynes didn’t come in HTs.
Love the pics!
It’s a sedan. In ’58, the Biscayne was still the mid-range trim level, so it had chrome window surrounds. The Delray was below the Biscayne yet.
Can’t make the pic “bigger”, enough. Looks like a “HT” to me.
There was no Biscayne hardtop. Only Bel Air and Impala. The chrome window frames are fairly slim.
This will have to be my favorite photo of a classic car and trailer. My parents car and the trailer we lived in in 1960 while awaiting the completion of a new house being built. Even better. There were 7 of us in that trailer including a newborn.
So did they use the Buick to pull that big trailer? I see a hitch on it.
This Buick Special once again points out how affordable they were.
No, actually the hitch was to tow this Arkansas Traveler.
I was kidding, but thanks for the confirmation. I have seen cars hitched up to trailer almost that big back then, but they had special weight-equalizing hitches.
That Special looks odd in that it has the cheap painted side window posts, yet acres of chrome and polished stainless on the sides and rear.
It’s a special Special. Looks like the owner spent some time in junkyards, or at the Buick parts counter. My guess is the former, since this was in 1960.
Same sort of deal for my wife’s family. They were in a two bedroom one bath house with seven daughters! including twin infants for a few months waiting on the new house to be completed. I’m sure your situation was quite cozy, theirs sure was.
Others will surely note the
Microbus, Studebakers, partial-Packard, and ventiports …..
But, my eye is drawn to the ’61 Olds 88 wagon …. whose rear is significantly different from the rear of the 2- and 4-doors.
Unique then, uncommon now.
Right there with you, Dan.
My eye, too! My folks had a ’62 Olds wagon which, except for trim is the same from the firewall back. Ours was even white. Lots of fun memories with that one. I got my drivers license in that car. Dad even owned it twice. My parents’ all time favorite car. I will have to write a COAL on it sometime.
I did see trailer hitches on half the car int the photos, especially the studebaker
And the VW bus was used to pull that trailer behind it. 🙂
Or maybe the other way around!
This is an interesting mix of what I believe used to be called “travel trailers” and “mobile homes”. While I’m not entirely sure what pulled some of the larger travel trailers here (e.g., probably the one with the Studebaker and the one in the picture before that), many of the “mobile homes” likely were delivered to their sites towed by truck tractors. That brings to mind how when I was a kid it used to be common to see mobile homes that still had the wheels attached that had allowed them to be towed to the mobile home park/community. You can see that in some of these photos.
I also recall a point in the 1970s where “double wide” mobile homes came into fashion and these were no longer for the most part things that were ever towed anywhere, instead being delivered on flatbeds and then assembled on site.
It looks like this set of photos mostly captures a previous generation where mobile homes were still a bit mobile.
The two “70’s Fords” are looking good. “MH’s” look a bit close together there.
I’ll take the 1955 Buick Roadmaster Riviera 2 door hardtop. What a car!
My grandparents wintered in Arizona in an ugly pink trailer near Roosevelt. One Christmas my family rode the train from Milwaukee and all 7 of us crammed into it. To an 11 year old it was quite an adventure!
I see it would of been. Riding the “Greyhound” or “Trailways” bus from “Pgh” to “DC” was even exciting for me at that age..
Back then, people would have a trailer (or a “mobile” manufactured home) in a park in the south or southwest, and winter there. Some would sublease the place when they weren’t there.
When Double Wides became more popular, it wasn’t uncommon to see the halves being moved, by two mobile home toter trucks. I remember seeing several of these trucks; very short wheelbase for manueverability, with a big rack for spare wheels and tires. Was behind one a couple days ago, first one I’d seen in a good while.
Modern RVs are so different. Now you need a big truck, preferably a one ton or larger dually, to haul most of the larger fifth wheel trailers. There are still several varieties of the bumper pull models, but the small “canned ham” ones are rare now.
Back when I was a kid, think I was around 6 or 7, maybe 8 at the most, the extended family went on a camping trip to the Texas coast that summer. We had a canned ham trailer, I called it “the egg” because of its shape and it was brightly colored, pulled with my aunt’s ’67 Chevy C10 stepside, 250 straight six, three on the tree. We weren’t in a big hurry, but the truck did fine. Five of us lived and slept in that trailer for a couple of weeks, in a few different campgrounds. Grandma and I had the front bed, Mom and Aunt Beth had the rear one. My cousin David slept on the floor, as the “man of the house” and protector of the womenfolk, he had his pocketknives out next to him! He was twelve…..
Later my folks got a used Holiday Rambler trailer from the parents of a school friend. Wish we could’ve gotten the big block square body Suburban they towed it with too, because the trailer was a little bit much for Dad’s ’75 GMC Sierra Classic pickup with its smogger 350. The ’78 GMC Sierra Heavy Half shop truck handled it well though.
Lots of memories with these pictures!
You’re an excellent story teller, Carol! I live in a 1962 Double Wide Riviera and it still have the wheels on under it even though it was carefully placed here so long ago.
It was all OG except the bathroom sinks and the kitchen stove, which I was sad to see the owner had removed between the time I saw it and the time I moved in. I had been looking forward to using the chrome levers it had to adjust the gas burners! But he took it out because the wall oven didn’t work, and it was cheaper (as in cheapest oven & range off the big box floor!) to replace the counter top range than to remove the Brown Manufacturing yellow porcelain wall oven. Which is now a storage cabinet lol.
I paid the rent on time for 8 years, and when the owner wanted to sell the property (which in this park, includes the Land And the home), he offered to carry the loan for me. I still pinch myself every day.
That was in late 2018 and I’ve decided to this year to fix up the bathrooms. I’ve been looking for a period yellow porcelain sink to match the pale yellow bath tub, but there were 3 different yellow porcelains used in that era, and I don’t know which brand mine is.
I don’t even know what company manufactured the house!. It says Riviera on my registration documents (you have to renew it like a car 🙂 and on the back of the house, which also has 2 big, round, red tail lights and og B&yellow CA plates. So good!
But there are a LOT of Models of mobile homes (pre 1976) and manufactured homes post, called Riviera model. I guess it’s still a dream destination!
SO if anyone here has any knowledge about the Wild West of Early Double Wides and can tell me some good stories and particularly where to find out if there was a manufacturer named Riviera, or who made that model in 1962, I’d be very thankful! I’d love to see pics, plans, specs, owners manual (they really should come with one but that was a joke.)
and If you look at the pic, yes, sadly, I will be replacing the spectacular vinyl(?) on masonite walls
In the 1970’s, you’d still see some of these ’50’s or ’60’s era large mobile trailers, used as site trailers by construction companies, or at remote hunting camps. Trailer and RV styling advanced quickly, and these designs, quickly looked very dated.
Disney’s ‘Mickey’s Trailer’ from 1938, was sold as a movie cartridge in the 1970’s, by Fisher-Price. To play in their manual hand-held movie projectors. As a kid, it helped spur my interest in animation, at the time.
Those are on the extreme large end, but most are what were once travel trailers. Pulled by cars, generally station wagons. I moved one back in the 70s with a pickup truck, just a half ton, but 4WD, down a hill that was so steep a 2WD couldn’t make it up. 6V trailer brakes worked well but I used a car at the top daisy chained as an anchor just in case. Not sure it was going to come out of there with out a tractor or a pair of 4X4’s, but I did as requested and moved it down there.
But I also remember people living in them, full time, back in the 70s. Not sure where/how, but IIRC easy mice access was part of the deal too.
Ever since I was a kid in the 60s I was fascinated by mobile homes and camping trailers. I don’t know why but I made a point of learning everything about them. I had files that had brochures for the camping trailers, or as some called them travel trailers, which was the more classy way to refer to them. In 1966 my uncle Bob bought a 16 foot 1961 Aljo travel trailer. It had an overhead double bed that allowed it to sleep 8. We would use it once a month for camping in places that were typically around 200 miles from home.I was living large. In 1969 my parents bought a 16.5 foot Aristocrat Land Commander trailer. My uncle used a 64 Chrysler 300 as his tow vehicle, that 300 had a stock 383 ci engine under hood and the famous Chrysler Tourqueflight automatic transmission and it never missed a beat. In the summer we would take a 2 week camping trips in the Sierras which had many steep grades, some as steep as 6%, that 64 300 never overheated. After some tricky 6 maneuvering in a remote campground up at Rock Creek Lake, at an elevation of over 9,000 feet the 64 300 blew the power steering pressure hose. We had to drive 30 miles south to Bishop and we were lucky to find a gas station that had one, otherwise we would have had to wait 3 days for one to arrive by truck from L.A. Meanwhile, dad’s 69 300 had the fantastic 440 under hood and of course Chrysler’s Tourqueflight automatic transmission. By that time I was 14 years old and I had already become quite the mini Gearhead, so I would make make sure the engine oil was fresh and full, the transmission fluid was fresh and full, so I made sure the equalizer hitch was set correctly and I always made sure dad was using the right gear to climb and desend the steep grades. My dad was never into cars so he needed the help. Uncle Bob knew about cars ever since he grew was growing up in Detroit. Back then, .most guys that lived in Detroit were Gearheads. When I grew older I bought a 33 foot Southwind motorhome built on a F450 Super Duty chassis. My dad called it an expensive hole in the road I threw money in to. He wasn’t wrong but I didn’t mind. I plan to get another motor home, very soon.
Great stories and recollections William! You should write a couple of CC articles based on your interest, knowledge and experiences.
I know nothing about cars and trailers …but I love these photographs and comments…terrific!
Oh, that top shot. If offered only one of the cars in that shot, I would truly agonize between that Stude Daytona hardtop and the 62 Chrysler! That Studebaker almost looks like the average between the Chrysler and the VW Microbus.
I find those vintage trailers to be really cool, and agree there was once a gray area between the biggest travel trailers and the smaller “mobile homes”. Big older travel trailers often became stationary vacation homes at several of the smaller lakes in northeastern Indiana when I was a kid.
Those larger trailers were probably considered “park model” trailers, intended to be towed by a car only to get it to a seasonal site. Btw, there was a “5th wheel” type travel trailer back in the early 70s called the Harmon Shadow. It was designed 2b towed by a car…. using the roof! There was a base plate bolted to the car roof that the trailer swiveled around; & the car could even face backwards while still connected to the trailer! (for trunk access). They made several sizes; one small enuf 2b towed by a VW. Popular Mechanix even road tested one back then. The concept did last long tho, as roof structure damage occurred with frequent use (ya think?!). U can see pix of it online.
When I was growing up my folks (along with my Dad’s parents) bought an Airstream trailer. It wasn’t the huge ones. It was what they called a Bambi. Meant for four people. Suited us just fine. A bit tight but we didn’t live in it, just travelled. I grew up in Southern California, Newport Beach area. My folks owned a then-new ‘56 Ford Fairlane two door hardtop and a ‘53 Chevrolet pickup ( 5 window). Straight 6, column shift. Every year we drove Route 66 out to visit family in Western Kansas. Flagstaff, Albuquerque, etc. What a terrific way to spend a vacation: Shiprock, the Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest, small towns, fields of corn, peach orchards in Farmington and wheat fields that rippled in the breeze like the ocean.
My relatives have all passed away, as has my family. Route 66 has gone the same way. Now in my ‘70’s I have some rich memories of places and sights generations after us won’t experience.
In the ’60s and ’70s, my great aunt and uncle pulled their “Lil Loafer” behind a sky blue ’57 Chevy. My sister and I stayed with them a few times at their beachside lot on Guemes Island (near Anacortes, WA).
Lennie and Harry never had kids of their own, and they fussed over us like crazy. The Loafer was like a bread oven to sleep in, especially since they made us go to bed when the sun was still out. Good Times!
Very cool. When I was growing up, we had a Serro Scotty from the late 60’s/early 70’s, in addition to a 1970’s pontoon and fishing boat, and a 1960’s sailboat. Unfortunately none of those survived. The only thing I was able to rescue was the 1970’s sears aluminum jon boat.
To experience a great piece of related Americana, check out the 1954 Lucy and Desi movie, The Long , Long, Trailer . Imagine purchasing a brand new trailer and car (’53 or ’54 Mercury and New Moon trailer) in the process of relocating, rather than traveling conventionally. One of the enjoyable parts was when the salesman is explaining to Desi how to use the electric trailer brake. and the ensuing result when he tries to use it the first time in traffic and forgets how to do it! Enjoy.
I see the ’61 Chevy wagon has the full rear mud flap / skirt, this used to be a real thing on many wagons, not just those that towed .
Beautiful pictures here but my memories of trailers were dirt cheap housing when I was in correction, I hope to never live in a trailer again .
Sadly most older trailers were very poorly built so the roof would leak after a few short years and the water ingress would cause the always green pine to begin to rot.
Travel is very good for children, it teaches them wider horizons in life .
-Nate
Hi, I came across this site looking for information on my parents old Cabover camper. I have yet to find any information regarding the name ( WanderRite) an old sticker of some sort on front of cab.
I’d like to know if anyone knows the make or any information on it. It’s been covered under carport forever, but seems to be in very good condition. Thinking about selling it, as I am cleaning out my folks property.
Here is the pic of the (Wanderite) Cabover camper in case this may help. The yr. make and model info would be greatly appreciated, or a referral to another place that I may contact for further information.
Thank you,
Donna Laughlin