While working with the "agent" of the owner, the owner got impatient and sold this car for $475 . She had this all happend in less than a week from start to finish. The husband had died, and the widow just wanted everything gone.........
The one that got away
- Thread starter Paul Steinberg
- Start date
Josh Gentry
PCS Member
Wow, I would have doubled that price. Deffinently looks worth saving.
Josh
Josh
Red Angels of Mercy
The Phillips-Robinson Funeral Home has served the people of Nashville, TN since 1929:
http://www.phillipsrobinson.com/ContentPage.aspx?WebPageId=11912&GroupId=2885
Over the years, their fleet of ambulances was called the "Red Angels of Mercy." The PRFH's last REAL ambulances were four red 1970 Superior/Pontiac 48" hightops. Options on these girls included dual #17-D (yes, D!) beacons, Q2B whistles, dual hanging hardware, and four lighted roof signs that said PHILLIPS-ROBINSON. These cars were traded in on four red GMC lowtop van ambulances in 1975.
Pat Mace of Central in Tulsa bought all four trade-ins from the dealer. Even though they never saw street service in Tulsa, he promptly had their tops painted white to match his fleet (see first photo, taken in 1976). The funeral home advertsing was replaced with generic AMBULANCE signs. All of these cars were leased and/or sold to other services.
One of these was sold to Enid Ambulance Service (now Life EMS), a private service in Enid, OK. They later sold it to Major County EMS in Fairview, OK. This car now sits in a salvage yard in Fairview (see second photo, from 1994).
The car Paul posted above is one of these. I would very much like to know where this car went from Tulsa...Paul, do you mind telling us where this car is/was located?
(SL photos)
The Phillips-Robinson Funeral Home has served the people of Nashville, TN since 1929:
http://www.phillipsrobinson.com/ContentPage.aspx?WebPageId=11912&GroupId=2885
Over the years, their fleet of ambulances was called the "Red Angels of Mercy." The PRFH's last REAL ambulances were four red 1970 Superior/Pontiac 48" hightops. Options on these girls included dual #17-D (yes, D!) beacons, Q2B whistles, dual hanging hardware, and four lighted roof signs that said PHILLIPS-ROBINSON. These cars were traded in on four red GMC lowtop van ambulances in 1975.
Pat Mace of Central in Tulsa bought all four trade-ins from the dealer. Even though they never saw street service in Tulsa, he promptly had their tops painted white to match his fleet (see first photo, taken in 1976). The funeral home advertsing was replaced with generic AMBULANCE signs. All of these cars were leased and/or sold to other services.
One of these was sold to Enid Ambulance Service (now Life EMS), a private service in Enid, OK. They later sold it to Major County EMS in Fairview, OK. This car now sits in a salvage yard in Fairview (see second photo, from 1994).
The car Paul posted above is one of these. I would very much like to know where this car went from Tulsa...Paul, do you mind telling us where this car is/was located?
(SL photos)
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Josh Gentry
PCS Member
Thanks Steve, that is very interesting. I know that FH well, I had no idea that was one of there old cars.
Josh
Josh
The car was located in Denton Texas. I was working on finding transportation and also to find someone that wanted to buy this and restore it. Unfortunately, the lady that I was working with let a couple of days go by without calling the widow to tell her that she had an interested party. I learned about the car on a Wednesday, and it was sold over the weekend by a word of mouth "advertisement". I have a feeling that this isn't the last that we will see of this car. The back was filled with a lot of junk, and I was hoping to get it looked at before committing. It has been sitting in the same place for many years, and I feared that it might be rusted badly in the floors and frame.
The last time that I sent someone to look at a car for me, they made an offer on it, and purchased it. They did ask if it was OK after the deal was made, so what could I do but say yes. Now, I am very careful who I ask to look at cars for me, and I am very leary of a certain person in Ohio...:rofl1:
The last time that I sent someone to look at a car for me, they made an offer on it, and purchased it. They did ask if it was OK after the deal was made, so what could I do but say yes. Now, I am very careful who I ask to look at cars for me, and I am very leary of a certain person in Ohio...:rofl1:
Jeremy D. Ledford
PCS Volunteer Chapter President
Phillips-Robinson is a well known funeral home around here! P&R was well known for "tactical driving skills" back in the ambulance days! They rode those cars had and put them up wet! Back in the 1960's they wrecked three cars in one night, two ambulances and a combintion, totaling one of them out literaly driving it though a service station north of downtown Nashville!
Paul (and others)...the next time you're interested in a car that's this close to me (in this case, less than three hours), please let me know. I'll be glad to put hands and eyeballs on it as well as take some pictures.
I would have liked to have those hob cap for the 70 suburban.
Wow, Someone got a great deal. I would have paid the asking price just to have the rear bumper.
I meant the $475 it sold for.
Paul,
If it's in Michigan I may be able to look at it. And you would be safe, if I bring ANYTHING else home I would need an ambulance......so says the Mrs.
If it's in Michigan I may be able to look at it. And you would be safe, if I bring ANYTHING else home I would need an ambulance......so says the Mrs.
For those that have asked, this car is still in the salvage yard. There is no drive train. Some of the rear glass has been broken out for years, so the interior is not in very good shape. It has generally deteriorated in the 17 years since I took the picture. If you need more, here is a link to their site:
http://www.fairviewautosalvage.com/
Do you (or anyone else here on the board) have any photos of the '70 Pontiacs, while they were in service with the PRFH, that you could share with us?
Thanks Joe..... the car was in Texas, but I will keep you in mind if anything comes my way that is near where you live. A friend of a friend who is a Pontiac guy was going to look at it for me, but it was sold by an impatient widow that just wanted it gone. From the time that I learned about the car from the person that the widow asked to find a buyer for the car, to the time it was sold, it was 3 days. Even the intermediary didn't know of the sale until she called to say that she had located an interested party. I probably should have just committed to buying it, and then gone from that point in finding a home for it, or having it brought North to CT.
Jeremy D. Ledford
PCS Volunteer Chapter President
Wished I did! But do have a couple pics of some older P&R Red Angels I'll get posted before I head off to Flint!
Jeremy D. Ledford
PCS Volunteer Chapter President
It loaded much quicker than I thought it would with dial up so here is an early P&R Red Angel. 1949 Meteor Cadillac photographed in front of the Davidson County Court House in downtown Nashville circa 1949. The gentelman in the photo is Dalton "Dizzy" Phillips, one of the late owners of Phillips-Robinson Company. Check out the lighting folks! Mars lights flanking both fenders, red grille marker lights, red tunnel lights, right and left hand spot lamps, and a Buckeye Roto-Ray which was a long time P&R trademark on their ambulances! Not counting the headlights, 11 count em 11 forward facing warning lights!!!
Note the dual AMBULANCE plaqcards in the front windsheild, red lensed Meteor side marker door lamps and the rear vent windows on this Meteor!
Needless to say the P&R boys beleved in being seen and heard!!!:cheers:
Who wouldn't want this baby in parked their stable today!
Photo, Jeremy D. Ledford collection.
Note the dual AMBULANCE plaqcards in the front windsheild, red lensed Meteor side marker door lamps and the rear vent windows on this Meteor!
Needless to say the P&R boys beleved in being seen and heard!!!:cheers:
Who wouldn't want this baby in parked their stable today!
Photo, Jeremy D. Ledford collection.
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Has this car resurfaced anywhere?
Kurt Arends
PCS Elected Director 2021-2024
There is a '72 Superior Pontiac near Omaha, NE that has a good rear bumper. Are the center sections the same?
These cars were all red when P&R owned them. These were the cars that Rob had the speed monitor gadgets mounted in. The drivers were not allowed to drive over 50 or 60 mph and if a driver slipped and did, he was called up on the carpet. If memory serves me correctly the cars they traded off for these were 67 RED Cadillac combinations with a model 17 on each corner and I want to think a Q on top as a model 28 was not loud enough. Their funeral caoches were silver with black tops. Phillips-Robinson always ran Superior cars. They were in competition (fierce) with Pettus-Owen and Woods Funeral Home and Buena Vista Funeral Home. These three were arch rivals and the speed exerted was to beat the competition to the call, not to the hospital with the patient. Most all other funeral homes provided ambulance service but these were the big ones, the rest were "normal".
Jeremy D. Ledford
PCS Volunteer Chapter President
These cars were all red when P&R owned them. These were the cars that Rob had the speed monitor gadgets mounted in. The drivers were not allowed to drive over 50 or 60 mph and if a driver slipped and did, he was called up on the carpet. If memory serves me correctly the cars they traded off for these were 67 RED Cadillac combinations with a model 17 on each corner and I want to think a Q on top as a model 28 was not loud enough. Their funeral caoches were silver with black tops. Phillips-Robinson always ran Superior cars. They were in competition (fierce) with Pettus-Owen and Woods Funeral Home and Buena Vista Funeral Home. These three were arch rivals and the speed exerted was to beat the competition to the call, not to the hospital with the patient. Most all other funeral homes provided ambulance service but these were the big ones, the rest were "normal".
The funeral coaches at P&R are still black over silver and are now Eagle Cadillac's. I think they started running Superiors in the late 1950's. I know they had a fleet of 1959 Superior Cadillac's one being a flower car. Pettus Owen & Wood and Buena-Vista Funeral Homes are both now closed down.