Building a dream museum in Louisiana
By Sara Pepitone
Heading to Texas in his F-250, Sean Carrigan Sr. is en route to pick up a vintage Ford military vehicle. When he brings it back to Louisiana, the vehicle will join 18 others. Carrigan says he purchased the F-250 in 2012 because it’s a tough truck “that drives like a [luxury car]”—perfect for this type of haul.
From 1942 to 1945, Ford Motor Company shut down civilian vehicle production and dedicated its resources to building military vehicles of all kinds. Ford produced four models for wartime use, plus a prototype used to win the contract, says Carrigan. “I’ve seen them, but they’re really rare.” His goal is to have one of each military vehicle model made since the start of World War II. A 1942 Ford GPW Script is among the jewels. The GPW was a licensed version of the famous Willys-Overland MB Jeep that Ford built to help supply the military with enough rugged light reconnaissance vehicles. It’s one of the first 50,000 of 277,000 Ford built, says Carrigan, who researches the vehicles’ history extensively with help from stories told by his dad, a WWII U.S. Navy veteran. Members of the local military club he runs help him find vehicles, as well as military uniforms and all kinds of equipment.
A collector since age 14—the income from his first job supplied the money to buy a WWII military vehicle he still owns—Carrigan is using his collection to found the Military Motors Museum of Slidell, La. “I spent all my life restoring these vehicles, and I want to keep them together.”
Carrigan studies Henry Ford too. “I love everything he did. He was meticulous,” says Carrigan, citing the way that every part of Ford’s military vehicles was marked with an “F,” from seat backs to bolts. “The F marks are the sign of a prize possession. When you restore the vehicles, you search for them hidden under the old paint.” Their purpose, Carrigan explains, was to separate them from other manufacturers’ parts that might come back under warranty. Today they’re what make the vehicles so collectible.
The group also includes a 1970 Ford M151A2. “This [military light utility vehicle] is a go-anywhere, go-anytime vehicle that is truly Ford tough,” he says. It has played a role in film productions, which is one way that Carrigan is raising money to build the museum. Selling bricks also raises funds. He’s planning a giant Quonset hut, modeled after the half-cylindrical metal structures used by the U.S. military in WWII.
Once he saves enough cash, Carrigan says, he’ll get serious about finding a Ford GPA “Seep,” the amphibious version of the prized collectible GPA Jeep.
Tags: Super Duty, Trucks
Heading to Texas in his F-250, Sean Carrigan Sr. is en route to pick up a vintage Ford military vehicle. When he brings it back to Louisiana, the vehicle will join 18 others. Carrigan says he purchased the F-250 in 2012 because it’s a tough truck “that drives like a [luxury car]”—perfect for this type of haul.
From 1942 to 1945, Ford Motor Company shut down civilian vehicle production and dedicated its resources to building military vehicles of all kinds. Ford produced four models for wartime use, plus a prototype used to win the contract, says Carrigan. “I’ve seen them, but they’re really rare.” His goal is to have one of each military vehicle model made since the start of World War II. A 1942 Ford GPW Script is among the jewels. The GPW was a licensed version of the famous Willys-Overland MB Jeep that Ford built to help supply the military with enough rugged light reconnaissance vehicles. It’s one of the first 50,000 of 277,000 Ford built, says Carrigan, who researches the vehicles’ history extensively with help from stories told by his dad, a WWII U.S. Navy veteran. Members of the local military club he runs help him find vehicles, as well as military uniforms and all kinds of equipment.
A collector since age 14—the income from his first job supplied the money to buy a WWII military vehicle he still owns—Carrigan is using his collection to found the Military Motors Museum of Slidell, La. “I spent all my life restoring these vehicles, and I want to keep them together.”
Carrigan studies Henry Ford too. “I love everything he did. He was meticulous,” says Carrigan, citing the way that every part of Ford’s military vehicles was marked with an “F,” from seat backs to bolts. “The F marks are the sign of a prize possession. When you restore the vehicles, you search for them hidden under the old paint.” Their purpose, Carrigan explains, was to separate them from other manufacturers’ parts that might come back under warranty. Today they’re what make the vehicles so collectible.
The group also includes a 1970 Ford M151A2. “This [military light utility vehicle] is a go-anywhere, go-anytime vehicle that is truly Ford tough,” he says. It has played a role in film productions, which is one way that Carrigan is raising money to build the museum. Selling bricks also raises funds. He’s planning a giant Quonset hut, modeled after the half-cylindrical metal structures used by the U.S. military in WWII.
Once he saves enough cash, Carrigan says, he’ll get serious about finding a Ford GPA “Seep,” the amphibious version of the prized collectible GPA Jeep.
Tags: Super Duty, Trucks
