1948 Ford

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This car represents the end of an era, the last wood-bodied car from Ford. Auto makers had been manufacturing all-steel auto bodies since the mid 1930s; the Ford and Mercury Sportsman models were a premium option recalling the kind of quality workmanship seen on boats and in custom homes of the period. As a manufacturer Ford was unique in that they owned their own forests and large-scale wood working plant in Iron Mountain, located in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Henry Ford was insistent on being self-sufficient, not being at the mercy of supplier firms. The operation of the forest and wood works plant was vital in the teens, twenties and early thirties when the structural frames of all automobiles was hardwood—the steel was just the stamped “skin” that gave the car body its appearance.

This car is thought to be the last Ford Sportsman built.