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1958. "Photos show life in Texas. Coverage is broad. Among the many subjects covered are ranching, rodeos, the Texas State Fair." Somewhere in there was this buckaroo and his Buick. From photos by Earl Theisen for the Look magazine assignment "Revolution in Texas: Change on the Range." View full size.
Zcarstvnz: "More correctly, this is a 1955 Chevrolet, 2nd Series truck."
To me, the Shorpy pickup grill looks like the green pickup in your pics, which I believe is labeled '1955 Chevy 6500'. So, I can't understand why you state it's a 2nd Series truck like the creme colored one.
Am I not reading your picture labels correctly?
[The white Apache and green 6500 are both Second Series trucks. -Dave]
More correctly, this is a 1955 Chevrolet, 2nd Series truck.
Originally Chevrolet had hoped to introduce a whole new car and new truck lineup at the same time (October 28, 1954). But GM was still busy with war contracts (Korean War) so the introduction for the all new trucks, designed by Chuck Jordan, was delayed until March 25, 1955 (except the Sedan Delivery which was based on the One-Fifty model car). So 1955 trucks made before the March introduction date are 1st Series and the later trucks are 2nd series. The entire 2nd series truck line consisted of 75 available models and 15 different wheelbases.
Is it an Apache? No. The grille of a 1955 Apache is composed of four vertical bars and three horizontal bars which results in 20 openings in the grille. If this was an Apache we should see at least one more vertical bar in the grille.
So what is it? It is a heavy duty Chevrolet truck which had a different grille than the light and medium duty models. See the photos below for the differences. From the information that I could find, some trucks as small as 1 1/2 tons used the grille shown in the last photos below and the Shorpy photo.
That Chevy is from 1955. The smooth hood eliminates 1957, and the top heavy emblem is unique to the '55. The big back window makes it a desirable truck for restorers.
It looks like a serious effort, maintaining that pose. Just looking at it is tiring me out.
That's a nearly new Buick. Love seeing luxury cars used hard.
Guy has that McQueen coolness about him.
The pickup truck in the background is from 1957. Rather new to have on a ranch in Texas in 1958. They probably still use that truck today.
The rear-window sticker promoting conservative Democrat William Blakley of Dallas marked the first of two times he would fail to be elected to the U.S. Senate, a position he was twice appointed to. In 1957 Blakley was appointed to fill Price Daniel's term after Daniel became governor of Texas, but lost to liberal Ralph Yarborough in the 1958 Democratic primary. He was appointed to the Senate again in 1961 to assume Lyndon Johnson's seat, but lost the special election to Republican John Tower. Blakley never held public office again.
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