Texas

The Bob Berkshire Roadster of Tarzana, California. Bob built the roadster after returning from WWII, and the first photos of the car started appearing in 1947. Back then he was a member of the Idlers car club. Sometime between 1947 and 1950 Bob moved to Dallas, Texas fo engineering school, bringing the roadster along. According to Hot Rod Magazine August 1951, the car was later owned by Gene Howard of Dallas.

Bud Ward's 1924 Ford Model T Roadster, of San Antonio, Texas was completed in 1954.

John Males' 1926 Ford

Ralph Stone's 1931 Ford Model A Roadster, of San Antonio, Texas. Ralph was a member of the San Antonio Road Runners. His roadster was built in the early 1950s, and it was featured in Rod & Custom February 1954.

Sid Kayman's 1932 Ford Roadster of St. Louis, Missouri. Sid bought the car in 1944 or 1945, and it had already been channeled and hot rodded when he bought it. By 1956 or 1957 the car had found its way to Fort Worth. Don Newhouse came across it in a backyard in a local neigbourhood. He bought it, and got it back on the road again.

Tommy Traylor of Houston, Texas bought Paul Sylva's 1927 Ford Model T Roadster in 1960.

Wayne Kleb's 1927 Ford Model T Roadster - The Satan's Chariot/The Fuzzy Cart

Art Tremaine's 1929 Ford Model A Roadster of Whittier, California. Art was a member of the Strokers of Whittier car club and his roadster was built in the late 1940s. By 1957 the roadster had been sold to T.W. Buck and Roger Bohls of Austin, Texas. Buck and Bohls built it into a drag racer.

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Don Wagers' 1929 Ford Model A roadster of La Blanca, Texas. Built in the late 1950s, Don's roadster was powered by a 1935 Cadillac V-16 engine.

Michael Lamm's 1930 Ford Model A Roadster of La Feria, Texas. In 1951, when he was 15 years old, Mike came across what was left of a hot rod that somebody had started to build a few years earlier. He bought an engine, transmission, Columbia axle and radiator at a local wrecking yard and had the car up and running within a few months. At the time it was the only hot rod roadster in La Feria.

Gene Peterson's 1931 Ford Roadster

Bob Huddleston & Harry Fake's 1932 Ford 3 Window Coupe. Bob & Harry were member of the Arlington Auto Club.

Don C. Breithaupt's 1932 Ford B Altered Championship 5-Window Coupe of Grand Prairie, Texas as it appeared in 1959.

Ian Cusey's 1932 Ford Roadster of Bell Gardens, California. Ian sold the roadster to Randy Pimpler of Austin, Texas.

G. C. Woodard, Jr's 1932 Ford Roadster, of Fort Worth, Texas.

George Jezek's 1949 Chevrolet 2-Door Sedan of West, Texas. Jezek was a local pinstriper and a founding member of the Eliminators of West car club. Known as The Candy Cart, Jezek's Chevrolet went through several modifications during the late 1950s and the 1960s. This photo shows how it appeared in 1962 after Jezek had installed a heavily chromed 283 Chevy engine and removed exterior chrome accessories such as dual spotlights and lakes pipes.

Leon Kendrick's 1932 Ford 5-Window Coupe of Houston, Texas. Featuring stacked dual headlights and a panel paint job, the "Wild Deuce" iteration of the coupe started appearing in magazine in 1963.

Max Magness' 1932 Ford Cabriolet of Grandfalls, Texas. The build was started in 1959 and completed in 1960.

Mike Brown's 1932 Ford 5 Window Coupe, of Dallas, Texas.

Mike Tomforde's 1934 Ford Roadster, of Houston, Texas.

Pat Weise's 1934 Ford 3-Window Coupe of Texas. Pat was a member of the Chaparrals of Dallas Car club, and he was a teenager when this photo of his coupe was taken circa 1953. Photo from The Pat Weise Photo Collection.

Texas, 1953. Pat Weise took this photo of a 1936 Ford Convertible Sedan at a drag meet in central Texas, near San Antonio. "It could have been at a military base. Kerrville," Karl told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama in 2020. "I don't remember where exactly he said. The car likely was brought to Texas from California." Photo from The Pat Weise Photo Collection.

Rene J. Leonhard's 1938 Chevrolet Business Coupe of Corpus Christi, Texas was built by its owner, and completed in 1953.

Bill Collins' 1939 Ford Convertible of Dallas, Texas. Bill ran the ford in the mid-1950s. He lived in the Oak Cliff part of Dallas and was one of the early hot rodders there in the 1950s.

Eddie Dominguez' 1939 Mercury convertible of El Paso, Texas. Eddie bought the already customized Mercury from a local kid in 1960. According to rumors the car came from the San Diego area. Another rumor claims that it was sold new in Long Beach, and restyled shortly thereafter.

The Eliminators of West Rod Club was a car club established in West, Texas in 1960. Founded by a group of six passionate hot rodders, the club was dedicated to the world of rods and customs. With a motto of "Dedicated to Safety," the club played a significant role in the local car culture of the early 1960s. The club had a relatively short lifespan, disbanding in 1962. The primary reason for its dissolution was the departure of its members for various reasons, including college, military service, and work commitments. As George Jezek reminisced, "It was a good time to be a hot rodder. We enjoyed this hobby, and a couple of us remain friends to this day." His testimonials offer a glimpse into the joy and excitement of that era, a time when cars were more than machines – they were a canvas for creativity and a means to forge lasting bonds. Photo from The George Jezek and Charles Andrle Collection.

Joe Smith's 1934 Ford Four-Door Sedan of Waco, Texas. Joe's C/A Four-Door was Oldsmobile-powered and competed at drag strips in Waco and Dallas. Known for his mastery over the flathead Ford engine, Joe's reputation extended far beyond West, making him a local legend and an inspiration within The Eliminators of West Rod Club. The Four-Door Sedan featured striping by Jezek. Photo courtesy of Joe Smith.

John Holland's 1950 Ford Convertible of West. Holland was a member of The Eliminators of West Rod Club. Established in West, Texas in 1960, the club was founded by a group of six passionate hot rodders. Photo from The George Jezek and Charles Andrle Collection.

A 1951 Chevrolet Convertible that belonged to a fellow named Dennis from Lacy Lakeview, Texas. Dennis was a member of The Eliminators of West Rod Club. Established in West, Texas in 1960, the club was founded by a group of six passionate hot rodders. Photo from The George Jezek and Charles Andrle Collection.

[[File:Eliminators-of-west-texas-car-club4.jpg|400px|thumb|A 1951 Ford that belonged to a member of [[The Eliminators of West Rod Club] from Clifton. Established in West, Texas in 1960, the club was founded by a group of six passionate hot rodders. Photo from The George Jezek and Charles Andrle Collection.]]

Danny Schonerstedt's 1955 Chevrolet of Bellmead, Texas. Schonerstedt was a member of The Eliminators of West Rod Club. Established in West, Texas in 1960, the club was founded by a group of six passionate hot rodders. Photo from The George Jezek and Charles Andrle Collection.

Jack Willenborg's 1956 Ford of West. Willenborg was a member of The Eliminators of West Rod Club. Established in West, Texas in 1960, the club was founded by a group of six passionate hot rodders. Photo from The George Jezek and Charles Andrle Collection.

A Mercury belonging to an Eliminators of West Rod Club member named Mutt from Clifton. Established in West, Texas in 1960, the club was founded by a group of six passionate hot rodders. Photo from The George Jezek and Charles Andrle Collection.

Charles Andrle's Volvo PV of West, Texas. Andrle was a member of The Eliminators of West Rod Club. Established in West, Texas in 1960, the club was founded by a group of six passionate hot rodders. The club was dedicated to the world of rods and customs. With a motto of "Dedicated to Safety," the club played a significant role in the local car culture of the early 1960s. The club had a relatively short lifespan, disbanding in 1962. Photo from The George Jezek and Charles Andrle Collection.

Ron Smith of Odessa, Texas bought Don Moore's 1940 Ford Coupe in 2010.

Jack T. Chandler's 1941 Ford of Huntsville, Texas. Jack's Ford was restyled by Spohn Coachworks in Ravensburg, Germany. It was completed around 1951 - 1952, featured in Speed Age October 1952, and it is the first LeSabre inspired Spohn build we have found in print. The rear end of Jack's car was inspired by both the LeSabre and the Buick XP-300.

Warren Dorrill's 1949 Ford - The Shark

Heath Murray's 1951 Chevrolet Bel Air of Fort Worth, Texas. Restyled by Heath at Murray Kustom Rods, the build was completed in October of 2015.

Bill Collins' 1951 Ford Two-Door Sedan of Dallas, Texas. Bill lived in the Oak Cliff part of Dallas, and he was one of the early hot rodders there in the 1950s. Bill bought the Ford as a stocker, and he restyled and repainted it in the mid 1950s.

The Little Jewel is a sport custom built by Garner Jones and Herman Lawhon of Lamesa, Texas. The build was completed in 1953.

Jerry Ledlow's 1952 Ford Tudor

Ken Atkinson's 1952 Ford Club Coupe

Bill Collins' 1951 Oldsmobile of Dallas, Texas. By 1957 Bill's Olds had been dressed up with a flame paint job and drag style exhaust. According to Bill, he ran the first flame paint job in the area on the Olds.

Chet Herbert's Beast III

Don Broyles' 1932 Ford roadster of Dayton, Ohio. The car was originally built in 1951. In 1956 Don installed a 1956 Chevrolet Corvette 283 engine in the roadster. Dale Shaw of San Antonio, Texas bought the car in the mid 1970s.

The 1952 Spohn Palos was sold to Wayne Graefen of Kerrville, Texas in 2011.

Martin S. Papazian's Cordster of Worcester, Massachusetts. The first version of Martin's Cordster was completed in 1953. In 1955 the top was chopped and the car was fit with a widened laydown windshield from an MG. Martin’s objective in building the Cordster was to produce a “Sports Custom” family car. He felt that the two seater sports cars of the day were limited to people that could afford to own two cars, so he set out to create his own. Around 1957, Martin's son, C. William Papazian took possession of the car. At the time he was stationed at Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, Texas. When he was discharged from the military, he enrolled at Midwestern University in Wichita Falls, using the Cordster as his daily driver.

The order for Allen Bobys' 1953 Dodge Convertible. Allen came from Corpus Christi, Texas to have his Dodge restyled by Barris. The estimate from Barris Kustom Automobiles included a front end reparation, a custom grille shell, a custom grille, molded hood, deck, and side emblems. Photo from The Brad Masterson Collection.

Buddy Williams' 1953 Ford Victoria, of Port Arthur, Texas.

The restored version of Lee Talbot and Sam Chakries' 1953 Studebaker Pickup was sold to a collector in Texas in 2009.

Bobby Rodriguez' 1954 Ford, of San Antonio, Texas was restyled by Crown Custom Shop.

Emory Ashpaugh's 1955 Chevrolet of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. In 1963 Emory's Chevrolet was shown as the Krimson Kart. Mark Crowe of Harpersville, Alabama owned the car in 2016. When Mark bought the car it came with a 1985 Texas title.

David Rolin's 1957 Ford of Sacramento, California. Dave's Ford was restyled by Dick Bertolucci of Bertolucci Body & Fender Shop and Harris' Body Shop between 1956 and 1958. Later on the same year, the car, named "Tormentor" received a paint job, pinstriping and eventually a scallop paint job by Dick Katayanagi of Katayanagi Custom Paint. Rumor has it that the Tormentor was sold to Texas in 1959.

Forest Cutler's 1959 Chevrolet Impala was sold to Texas around 2003.

Mike Budnick's 1960 Pontiac - The Golden Indian

Billy F. Gibbons' 1948 Cadillac Series 62 Sedanette of Houston, Texas. Named "Cadzzilla," Gibbons Cadillac was designed by Larry Erickson. It was built by Boyd Coddington Hot Rod Shop. The build was completed in 1989.

Jim Dworschack's 1951 Nash Healey of Soldiers Grove, Wisonsin. The car supposedly spent its first 55 years in the panhandle area of Texas, and the lore that came with it was that it was used as a dirt track racer at a place called the Rattle Snake Raceway. Dworschack believes the custom bodywork on the car was performed sometime in the 1950s.

Dave Facey's 1940 Willys Special of Lakeland, Florida. Facey bought the old Sport Custom from a collector in North Florida in 2021. The collector bought it from someone in Texas 10 years earlier, and rumor has it that it was built in California.

Charles McDonald's 1955 Ford Thunderbird was restyled by Don Roberts of Bear's Custom Body Shop in Inglewood in the late 1950s or early 1960s. In 2005 Toni Aulicinco bought the car from Chuck. In 2013 she moved to Weatherford, Texas, and she brought the Thunderbird along.

The Cam Twisters of Dallas was a car club out of Dallas, Texas.

Chris Casny's 1940 Mercury Coupe of Austin, Texas. Chris is a member of the Kontinentals car club, and his Merc first hit the road in November of 2018.

Bill Smith's 1934 Ford Roadster Custom of Alameda, California. Bill was a member of the Shamrocks of Alameda car club, and he set out to build the roadster in 1955. Built from a retired Tudor Sedan, Bill modified the body by cutting off the roof and moving it down to form the trunk. He completed the build the same year, showing it at the 1956 National Roadster Show. In June of 2019 the car was sold to William Young of Austin, Texas.

Mike Young's 1933 Ford 5-Window Coupe of Austin, Texas. Lee Pratt turned Mike's coupe into a late 1950s early 1960s hot rod. The build was completed in 2016.

Danny Vandergriff's 1957 Chrysler New Yorker of Fort Worth, Texas. Restyled by Danny and his father, the build was started in 2016 and completed in 2019.

Mark Stewart bought Ron Sweeney's 1957 Ford custom early in 2020. In 2022, Stewart told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that his plans were to get the car out on the national show circuit again. "Seaburst was in the Grand National Roadster Show this last January 2022 and was awarded the Early Custom Radical 1955-1964 best of class award," Stewart told Kustomrama. Photo courtesy of Mark Stewart.

The KHJ Surfin' Bird was restyled by Bill Cushenbery at Cushenbery Custom Shop for 93 KHJ Boss radio's "Big Kahuna" promotion in 1966. The Surfin' Bird is one of the last known true custom cars to be completed by Cushenbery. Kevin Bennett ogf Austin, Texas bought the old custom in Apil of 2020.

The 1952 Fageol Pataray Roadster, a unique creation by Ray Fageol, featured a 300 horsepower Fageol bus engine in a roadster body. It was a standout cover car for Mechanix Illustrated, embodying a two-tone design that merged family legacy with automotive innovation, highlighting the Fageol's influence in early American sports car history. In 2023, the car was owned by Mark and Newie Brinker of Houston, Texas.

The 1953 Kurtis Sorrell SR-100 Roadster, with its unique aluminum body by California Metal Shaping and Bob Sorrell, debuted at the Petersen Motorama in 1953. Built on an Indy 500 Kurtis chassis, it featured a 302-ci GMC I-6 engine, a Howard 12 port head, and six carburetors. This model is notably the only SR-100 with an alloy body.

The 1954 Edwards America Convertible, envisioned by Sterling Edwards, melded European design with American muscle. Built on a Kaiser-Frazer Henry J chassis with an Oldsmobile "Rocket" V-8 engine, it was a rare blend of fiberglass coachwork and robust performance. Norman Timbs helped design the car for Sterling.Gary and Cathy Edwards of Houston, Texas owned the first Edwards America in 2023.

John Lane's 1924 Ford Model T Roadster Pickup of San Leandro, California. Lane purchased the Model T in the 1940s. The build was started in 1951 and completed late in 1956. It made its debut at the 1957 National Roadster Show in Oakland. Bob Owens of Wellingron, Texas purchased the old hot rod in 2023.

A Gene Snow Racing Enterprises business card. This card was advertised for sale on eBay in June of 2023. Click here to visit the auction.

1 Hot Rodding in Central Texas in the 1950s and 1960s: The West and Waco Scene
2 Hot Rods of Texas
3 Custom Cars of Texas
4 Sport Customs of Texas
5 Sport Cars of Texas
6 Streamliners of Texas
7 Custom Body Shops of Texas
8 Upholstery Shops of Texas
9 Car Shows of Texas
10 Custom Car and Hot Rod Clubs of Texas
11 Pinstripers of Texas
12 People of Texas
13 References

Hot Rodding in Central Texas in the 1950s and 1960s: The West and Waco Scene

In the 1950s and 1960s, towns like West and Waco saw the rise of a vibrant community of car enthusiasts united by their passion for customizing cars and racing. Drive-in restaurants in these towns were the social epicenters where hot rodders showcased their modified vehicles and shared their knowledge and stories. Founded in 1960, clubs like The Eliminators of West Rod Club played a pivotal role, creating a sense of camaraderie and collective creativity among members. These groups were more than just car enthusiasts; they were tight-knit communities dedicated to pushing the limits of automotive design and performance.^[1]

Racing was a significant aspect of this culture. Local drag strips became arenas where speed and skill were displayed and celebrated. Despite the challenges in sourcing parts and equipment, these enthusiasts displayed remarkable resourcefulness, often relying on mail orders, local wrecking yards, and occasional trips to distant speed shops. The influence of hot rod magazines also cannot be understated, as they provided inspiration and connected Texas hot rodders to the larger national scene. This period in Central Texas was marked by innovation, community spirit, and a deep-seated love for hot rodding, contributing significantly to the rich tapestry of Texas's automotive history.^[1]