The Forgotten Chevy - 1928 Chev National AB Coach

The incredible journey of a 1928 Chevrolet National AB Coach, purchased new, parked in a garage and not driven again until 1993, some 65 years later.

During the 39 years that I have been a fan of Chev 4's, there have been a lot of great cars and great stories, but the story of "The Forgotten Chevy" is one of just a few that have all the ingredients to capture the imagination of any serious car enthusiast.

A great 1928 Chevrolet National AB Coach.

and

A story with a history to support the car.

So, after having this site on my favourites list for some time, I read it again and decided it justifies a separate posting highlighting, the car, its history, and Art the current owner who is preserving the 28 for future generations.

After contacting Art, I have been given his permission to present  "The Forgotten Chevy" as part of my blog using details from his site.

Enjoy

Ray

The following is from The Forgotten Chevy

You can contact the proud owner Art at artp@cbs-inc.com

The Story so far:

Few stories in automobile history can match the events of this restored 1928 Chevrolet. Purchased new on April 28, 1928 it was parked in the owner’s garage with 12 miles on the odometer, never to be driven again until 1993-65 years later. In 2000, 72 years later, it was sold to its final purchaser with 18 original miles.

The 1928 Chevrolet was a milestone event in the history of Chevrolet products, and became the first car to outsell Ford’s Model T. It paved the way for the historical competition between Chevrolet and Ford for the hearts, minds and wallets of American automobile drivers.

All of the information contained herein was obtained from documents and statements of people who had a role in the ownership, sale, or preservation of this vehicle, and are true and accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time written.

 

 

 

 Summary History of the Vehicle

 

On April 28, 1928 Helen Six of Indianapolis, Indiana purchased a new 1928 Chevrolet National AB 2 door coach, serial #1AB39521 from Downtown Chevrolet in Indianapolis as verified by the attached registration issued by the state of Indiana. Downtown Chevrolet no longer exists.

 

 

The vehicle had 12 miles when parked by Nolan Six in the family garage after being picked up at Downtown Chevrolet.

 

 Nolan Six, the husband of Helen Six (registered owner of the 1928 Chevrolet), was described as an eccentric inventor, who drove the car home, raised it off the ground on blocks, removed the tires, drained all fuel from the gas tank and water from the radiator. Periodically he would rotate the engine with a hand crank to keep the oil circulating in the engine.

 

Mr. Six was supposedly going to add “accessories” to the car, as stated in a hand written letter from his 2nd cousins on April 9, 1994 (below is a copy and a typed version of the original hand written letter attesting to the mileage and ownership of the vehicle). The cousins, now deceased, told Mr. Harold Badger that they remembered sitting on the car while in the Six’s garage.

 

No one ever knew for certain what Mr. Six planned for the Chevrolet.

 

Copy of Original Letter from Nolan Six’s Cousins-April 9, 1994

One story circulated that Mr. Six and his sister bought two Chevy’s at the same time, and the sister got the car that Nolan Six wanted. It was said that he was so mad over it that he took the other car home and refused to ever drive it again.

 

This is in contradiction to the story told by Mr. Six’s second cousins who said that Nolan Six planned to put accessories on it. The real truth may never be known. Maybe a little of each represents the truth.

 

Mr. Six died on January 20, 1972 (almost 44 years after the purchase date of the car) and the vehicle was still on blocks in his garage the same as it was on the day it was driven home with 12 original miles.

 

By that time the car began to show signs of age due to lack of care and operation and long term storage. The upholstery was deteriorated to the point of being unsalvageable (a dark green corduroy material). The paint was severely oxidized and powdery and easily removed.

 

The battery had dried out and cracked, the tires were severely dry-rotted, and the original oil had deteriorated due to years of storage. However, underneath it was still a “new” car with a solid frame, body panels, glass, engine and drive train.

 

Helen and Nolan Six
(date unknown)

 Helen Six disposed of the car to a family attorney (identity and sale price unknown), but she may have given the car in trade for legal services on her husband’s estate. The attorney apparently did nothing with the car during 2 years of ownership. Eventually, in 1974, it was sold to a Mr. Omalia, the owner of a local fireplace store in Indianapolis. The store is still run by Mr. Omalia’s wife and sons.

 

Other sources say the vehicle was taken by Mr. Six’s nephew, and eventually traded to two plumbers for work performed on a house. It turns out the nephew was an attorney so both stories may be true. Mr. Omaila eventually acquired the car about 1974 from Mr. Six’s nephew or the plumbers, but the true events surrounding the car in the intervening two years has not been verified.

 

Helen Six died August 29, 1993, and left no children. Her only daughter died on November 5, 1941 prior to her 16th birthday.

 

In 1994 Terry MeElfresh, a car collector in Indianapolis, and Harold Badger a fellow car collector, acquired the vehicle from Mr. Omalia. They had heard about this Chevy with only 14 miles on it but thought it was one of those “phantom car legends”. At that time, October 13, 1994, the vehicle had 14.3 original miles. Together, Mr. McElfresh and Mr. Badger completely restored the vehicle by doing a “frame off” restoration. This was easily done because the vehicle was almost completely disassembled by prior owners, and they transported the pieces in two pickup trucks.

 

The car’s original pieces and parts were still accounted for except the horn button, which was replaced with an original horn from another 1928 owned by someone in Tacoma, Washington. Terry McElfresh died around 2004, but according to his friend Mr. Badger, they found the following:

• The vehicle had a broken light switch.¹
• Some minor bolts and brackets were missing.¹
• All major components and documents were present.¹
• The steering wheel was painted the original brown color, but later changed to its natural finish, which was not how they were originally delivered to customers.

1 Repaired or replaced with original 1928 Chevrolet parts.

 

Mr. McElfresh and Mr. Badger located a 1928 Chevrolet that had been converted into a “street rod” by its owner in Tacoma, Washington, and had all of the original 1928 Chevy factory parts. He shipped these parts to Mr. McElfresh and Mr. Badger to be used to restore the vehicle to its original state.

Messrs. McElfresh and Badger sold the vehicle to Jim McMullen in 1997, and the vehicle had approximately 15 original miles at that time. Mr. McMullen sold the vehicle to Ken McGee, an automotive book store owner and car dealer in Ontario, Canada. On August 10, 2000 he sold it to Willard Brunkow of Nelson, Wisconsin with 18 miles on it.

Newspaper Clippings

22^nd September 2012

Good afternoon Mr. Przybyl,

I received your envelope today in the mail. Thank you very much for sharing the information regarding the Chevy.

I am planning to write a summary of my knowledge and experience with Mr. Six to share with you. However, it will take a few weeks as I want to do it right. I plan to do a little preliminary research in order to be able to answer the questions that you posed concerning Mr. Six and the car.

I enjoyed our telephone conversation of last Thursday. As I noted in our conversation, your research of the "Forgotten Chevrolet" really solved my curiosity of "what happened to Mr. Six's Chevrolet".

Below is a copy of an email that I sent last Wednesday to several family members and friends who had heard my story many times over the past 45 years about the 1928 Chevrolet with 12 miles on the odometer. It was always the one that "got away".

-------------------------

You may recall me talking about a 1928 Chevrolet that had only 12 miles on the odometer when I saw it in a carriage house back in 1965-1966 when I was out seeking an antique car to purchase.

The Chevrolet belonged to a man who was first an acquaintance and who subsequently became a friend. His name was Nolan J. Six. Mr. Six lived in a house facing White River that was located on 2130 E. 75th Street just west of Keystone in Indianapolis.

The Chevrolet was sitting in the southeast corner of the carriage house behind a 1923 Model T Ford, which was sitting behind a 1939 Nash. Sometimes when I visited Mr. Six, he and I used to take trips to the grocery store in the Nash.

Unfortunately, I was never able to buy any of the cars. Mr. Six always said that the cars were to go to his nephew and unfortunately I had to respect his wishes.

After about a year of trying to buy one of the cars he told me that he had a couple of motorcycles. A 1908 Indian, single, battery ignition, and a 1912Harley-Davidson, single, battery ignition.

The Harley-Davidson was not put together. It was a pile of parts. He had wrecked the Harley-Davidson in a run in with a new just off the assembly line "Cole" automobile at the intersection of E. Washington Street and S. College Avenuein Indianapolis by the Cole factory.

Over a period of about six (6) months of weekly visits he gave me the parts to put the Harley-Davidson back together. Each time I visited, he would give me another part and tell me exactly where the part went and what each nut and bolt was for.

Mr. Six was the original owner of both cycles and I became the second owner. When I purchased the cycles, Mr. Six only asked that I not sell them and make a profit. I promised that I would honor his request.

I have kept that promise and still have the cycles in unrestored and running condition. All of you have seen the cycles at some time during the past several years.

Back to the car....for years, I have often wondered what happened to that 1928 Chevrolet automobile with 12 miles registered on the odometer. Today, I found the website www.theforgottenchevy.com quite by accident while doing a Google search for Nolan Six of Indianapolis.
Take a look and you too will find out the story of Nolan Six and the 1928 Chevrolet.

My curiosity is now satisfied. (Mr. Six's grand-nephew does have the 1923 Model T Ford.)

Thanks to all those people who were responsible for preserving Mr. Six's Chevrolet.

------------------------

Sincerely,

Les Gordon II

Based on the above additional information is now known about Nolan Six:

• The current address where he lived and stored the Chevy #
• He was a motorcycle rider
• He owned several old cars that he passed on to family members.
• Mr. Gordon got to intimately know Mr. Six during his weekly visits over an extended period of time, and derived much information about The Forgotten Chevy, which confirms previously reported information, but which also adds new information.

 Mr. Gordon’s information will be included in a revision to the detailed report on The Forgotten Chevy, and the website.

^#  Over time the house address has changed, and does not agree with the original vehicle documents for Nolan or
Helen Six.

All Documents are Scans of the Originals

Upon Mr. Brunkow’s death in February 2008 possession of the Chevy transferred to his daughter. Her husband undertook a year long search of its history. He contacted previously living owners or their surviving family members, and was aided by original documents that remained with the Chevy when purchased by Willard Brunkow to identify and locate those who played a part in this car’s history. Following are a few of the original documents relating to this vehicle

Indiana Motor Vehicle Title [Front]

Indiana Motor Vehicle Title [Back]
 

 

 

Nolan Six Indianapolis Drivers License [Front]
 

Nolan Six Indianapolis Drivers License [Back]
 

Indiana Drivers License Envelope for Carrying License
 

There are many other documents relating to this vehicle that are not included in this summary, but are shown in the full report on the vehicle.

Acknowledgements

 

The history of this vehicle would not have been possible without the contributions of many people. Each of the living owners , or their surviving family members, provided information and details that proved to be invaluable and should not be overlooked. Detailed profiles on each are contained in the full report on this vehicle, and includes:

Mrs. Terry McElfresh, whose husband co-owned & worked with Harold Badger on the car’s final restoration.

Mrs. Helen Omalia: Her husband was the first owner to attempt serious restoration of the vehicle after acquiring it from the Six family. Her contributions were invaluable in tracing the original ownership.

Mr. Jim McMullen, for providing information on the car’s previous ownership.

It is also necessary to give special thanks to one individual whose contributions went above and beyond the call of duty, and continually provided extensive information.

Our Special Thanks To

Mr. Harold Badger: As one of the co-owners, with Terry McElfresh, responsible for final restoration of the vehicle Mr. Badger provided many original documents and historical leads:

• An original newspaper (new condition) of the Indianapolis News dated 1994 describing the vehicle.
• Photos of the vehicle during its restoration.
• Photos of the McElfresh and Omailia families with the vehicle.
• Leads and information on prior ownership as well as documentation regarding the vehicle.
• Hand written letters describing events in the vehicle’s history.

Mr. Badger retained some of the original items removed from the Chevy during restoration, such as the oil, upholstery from one of the seats, and has pictures of the vehicle during restoration.

From The Author:

The 1928 Chevrolet was a milestone in automotive history, and this vehicle represents a small glimpse into that history. As such it represents more than an antique vehicle. From a purely collector value standpoint the 1928 Chevrolet is neither the most valued or desirable in comparison to Cords, Auburns and Duesenbergs of this era. However, from the view of mass transportation the 1928 Chevrolet was an automotive icon. At a cost of $585 it provided affordable transportation, and was the foundation for future cars.

Many people do not know that it was lengthened by 6 inches over the 1927 model to make way for the new 6 cylinder engine that was soon to be introduced. It was also the first year that Chevrolet outsold Ford with over 1 million vehicles sold.

Considering the depression of 1932 when vehicles were often sold to raise money, it is beyond comprehension as to why this one vehicle was not driven or sold. The fact that it survived largely intact over several owners with all original owner documents is also amazing. Few cars of any type or variety have a history comparable to this vehicle.

It is a privilege to own this vehicle, but it is also a sacred trust to ensure that it is preserved for future generations.

There are many other 1928 Chevrolet's in existence. There are many low mileage 1928 Chevrolet's in existence. There are many fully restored 1928 Chevrolet's that are better than the original. But there are none to our knowledge with this degree of originality, low mileage and documentation of this vehicle. This alone makes it unique in the annals of antique car collecting, and gives this Chevrolet a value that is beyond estimation.

It has been a truly interesting and joyful experience to have performed the research on this vehicle to determine its history of ownership.

Accessories

The tool kit below was acquired on January 15, 2012. The tools and contents are currently being vetted to determine if they are an "original" tool kit for a 1928 Chevrolet National AB Coach.

Description from Ebay Merchant.

For your consideration is a vintage General Motors tool kit.

This kit includes:
1 x ignition wrench with feeler gauge (for delco)
1 x adjustable 9" wrench
1 x 10-1/2" hammer (marked Vlchek)
1 x pair of 6-1/2" pliers (made in USA Vlchek)
1 x open end wrench labeled "drop forged" and "made in USA" that is 1/2" x 9/16"
1 x open end wrench labeled "drop forged" that is 11/16 x 19/32
1 x hub nut wrench 1-7/8 x 1-1/16 x 15/16
1 x sparkplug socket 13/16" (fits into hub wrench)
1 x socket 7/8" (fits into hub wrench)
1 x 7-3/4" flat screwdriver
1 x Schrader tire pressure gauge and original leather case
1 x alemite grease gun
1 x copper/brass grease gun
1 x 3 5/8" gem oil can
1 x Mazda headlamp case
1 x canvas and leather tool pouch.
 

UPDATE Jan. 10, 12:00 pm:

 

"I just pulled the kit out again to answer some questions and I realized I forgot a wrench. It is a 9" Auto with the Vlchek logo, it is the earlier model with the wrap around steel lower jaw, not a cast jaw. It is in really nice condition! Please see the last pictures of this tool, it is included with this kit (you will recieve both adjustables pictured) I just missed it first time around"