Our '51 Pontiac
This 1951 Pontiac began life as a panel wagon, then was cut in half and lengthened by the John Little shop in Ingersoll, Ontario. Center doors were manufactured of solid oak. These "suicide" doors were very heavy and were supported by three hinges.
This ambulance was manufactured for the Canadian Armed Forces, however they never used it and sold it as surplus army stock to Imperial Oil for use at Devon, Alberta.
Imperial Oil stationed the car on standby at their oil drilling wells from 1951 to 1954.
In 1954 Imperial Oil sold the car to the Town of Devon for $1.00. The Town of Devon Public Works employees operated the ambulance and affectionatly named it "Leapin Lena".
In 1979 the Devon Legion purchased a Chevy van and brought it to Crestline for a basic ambulance conversion. Crestline took the Pontiac in trade as partial payment for the ambulance conversion. The car was equipped with a 6 cylinder engine and still had the original cot. The odometer stood at 26,000 miles.
Ke Sawatsky is at right in the photo.
Crestline used this ambulance as a Parade Car until 1983 when it was sold to the ambulance service in Shawinigan, Quebec.
