Country Squire Wooden Wagon

The seventies were the absolute zenith of American station wagon manufacture. The flagships of the Ford station wagon fleet featured acres of simulated wood paneling – usually a shade lighter than the millions of sheets of actual dark brown wood paneling used to convert the basements of American split-level homes into rumpus or bar rooms. This fake wood paneling trend began with actual wood. 1950 was the first year of production for these most deluxe of Ford wagons, known as the Country Squire until the last monster lumbered off the assembly line in 1991. The 1951 version shown here at the 2009 Jimmy’s Old Car Picnic in San Francisco features genuine wood paneling. Owner Fernando Robleto picked up the Country Squire complete with wood and decided to leave the car in as found condition. A few replacement parts later along with a cooler full of beverages and the Squire was pressed back into intended service. “I was ready to start sanding it, and I thought – don’t touch it”, said Robleto of the well aged station wagon, made in part with the renewable resource known as wood.