Hudson dealer photos

lostmind
lostmind Expert Adviser
There's a story somewhere in these photos
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Comments

  • Jack Brown Colorado. The buildings are gone, but there is still a car dealer there.
  • Vic Hebert Denver. All the buildings remain. It's offices and a cross fit gym in the service area. 
  • railknight
    railknight Expert Adviser
    edited December 2022
    I took this shot this past August (2022) of what apparently was a Hudson-Essex dealer on the south side of Peoria, IL.  Looks like it went from selling/servicing cars to selling Budweiser Beer or maybe even both! 
  • ESSX28-1
    ESSX28-1 Senior Contributor
    edited December 2022
    In a small NZ town in 1930. All HET products including the tow truck. The young apprentice mechanic hiding at the back was my friend's father.





  • lostmind
    lostmind Expert Adviser
    another
  • The first photo is from Australia (New South Wales)
    See link for all the information
  • lostmind
    lostmind Expert Adviser
    @ken1962, I didn't know about that Hudson dealer article. Looks a lot more thorough than I could come up with.
    Maybe should be a "Sticky" here.
  • VicTor Z
    VicTor Z Senior Contributor


    Pick this up at the National in Denver.


  • VicTor Z
    VicTor Z Senior Contributor


    Denver National
  • dholck
    dholck Expert Adviser
    There were several dealership photos associated with the 1934 "Ruggedness Run" with dealerships participating in various places in the country, including my hometown dealership;



    And Corning, CA


  • LanceB
    LanceB Senior Contributor
    Dealership in Pasadena, CA, now a Bentley and Fisker dealer.

  • The Walter Murphy Company was located in Pasadena, Ca and in addition to selling Hudsons, did custom body work on other makes. Their in house designer was Frank Spring who was approached by management at Hudson to come and work for them as a full time in house designer. This is the man who was the main designer of the Stepdown. He was fluent in French and was a licensed pilot as well. Now you know where the term 'Terraplane" comes from.
  • lostmind
    lostmind Expert Adviser
    1. Old dealer uncovered after accident
  • railknight
    railknight Expert Adviser
    edited January 2023
    Well at least we get to see this former Hudson-Essex service-dealership in Peoria, IL somewhat come back to life, for the time being, due to an apparent nasty accident.  Thanks, "lostmind," for setting the record straight about this structure.  
  • 50C8DAN
    50C8DAN Senior Contributor
    I think these are great photos, but in a different context, you can see why in a lot of areas the independent car companies faired worse than the big 3. Hudson, Studebaker, Nash, Kaiser, etc. had really small mom and pop dealers in a lot of places.  Some had only one or two cars as demos.  The dealership weakness spelled big problems in the 50s and the start of consolidation of dealerships, and the beginning of the mega dealers began to take place.  Near my hometown of Anderson IN, I barely remember the Studebaker dealer (very early 60s) as a small lot on the outskirts of town, while the GM dealers (it was a GM town - Delco Remy and Guidelamp HQ) had these huge dealerships in the prominent locations.   Hudson was long gone before I was old enough to remember any of their dealerships.
  • bull_islander
    bull_islander Expert Adviser


    Hillsboro, OH.  From a facebook post
    May be an image of outdoors
  • Geoff
    Geoff Senior Contributor
    Looks like a Buick to me!
  • It is but see the Coupe in the background
  • 50C8DAN
    50C8DAN Senior Contributor

    Wilmington DE


  • railknight
    railknight Expert Adviser
    Those inside walls of the above Hudson dealership need some advertising signs and banners to help spruce things up.  Perhaps that was going to be done next.  Otherwise, nice period photo with what appears to be a '51 Super Six or Commadore in the foreground.  
  • 50C8DAN
    50C8DAN Senior Contributor
    edited January 2023
    The closest one I believe is a Commodore and the next one is a Super - fender ornaments. The third one?

  • Funny, I thought the same thing. I assume it was a freshly opened showroom based on how sterile it is.
  • The third one is a Pacemaker convertible 
  • 50C8DAN
    50C8DAN Senior Contributor
    edited January 2023
    Correct - no fender ornaments, convert top and shorter front.  Good assortment for the dealership. Wonder how many others they had in stock?


  • I wonder where it is now…
  • railknight
    railknight Expert Adviser
    Maybe tucked away in a barn or garage waiting to be discovered.  


  • Not a dealer photo but in the far left of the picture it looks to me like one of the five 46 woodies built that year.  Boland’s was one of Hudson’s top dealers and it shows with a woodie and a ragtop inside his showroom. 
  • Sorry, I believe it is one of six built in 46
  • Not sure where Boland's was located. Unless there was more than one, the Boston Hudson dealer was the Henley Kimball Co located right next door to Fenway Paaak.
    My grandfather was a service manager there
  • lostmind
    lostmind Expert Adviser
    Says " Dunmore , PA" in the caption.
    The Boston 1949 photo is not of " Boland" dealer, showing a Station wagon as reference.