MANSFIELD — Dale Morris remembers the day he picked out his 1967 Ford Mustang.
It was April, just a few months before he was due to go off to college. His dad took him to the R.E. Moorhead dealership on Park Avenue West.
They looked at Chevy Camaros and Pontiac Firebirds, but the sharp lines and shimmery metallic green of the Mustang caught his eye.
More than 58 years later, Dale and his wife Vickie still own that Mustang and regularly take it to car shows like the Heart of the City Cruise-In.
“We dated in the car. We got married in this car. We honeymooned in this car. I imagine they’ll be hauling us off to the old folks home in this car,” Dale said with a chuckle.
Hundreds of vintage cars packed into the Richland County Fairgrounds Saturday for the Heart of the City Cruise-In, which temporarily relocated this year due to construction on Main Street.
Each car had a story behind it.
For their owners, they’re more than just a mode of transportation or necessity of modern life. They’re an embodiment of creativity and craftsmanship. They’re a souvenir from simpler times, linking them to bygone years and departed loved ones. They’re a vehicle for community.
“We’ve made a lot of new friends (at car shows),” Dale said. “That’s what we enjoy most.”
Vintage Mustang connects generations
Morris drove the car back and forth to Athens, where he attended Ohio University. He kept it after he married and started a family.
Not long after Morrises tied the knot, the Mustang started to show its age. It sat in the garage, awaiting repairs they couldn’t afford.
Other costs soon took precedence — cribs, school supplies, braces, tuition.
“Finally, after about 35 years, my wife said to me, ‘Are we ever gonna do anything with that car?'” Dale said. “So we got it restored. It took a few years to get that done. We’ve been having a lot of fun with it.”
Dale said he tried to keep his restoration of the car as authentic as possible — but made one major concession.
“We put air conditioning in it,” he said. “(Vickie) insisted on that. I told her, ‘It didn’t have air conditioning when it was new. She said, ‘We’re not 18 anymore.’ I couldn’t argue with that one.”
A vanity license plate on the rear of the vehicle reads “PETE 67” in honor of Dale’s father, who passed away less than two years after he took him to buy it.
Dale said the connection to his father is part of the reason he held on to the car all those years.
“There’s a lot of things that made me keep it and I’m glad I did,” Dale said. “Hopefully one of the kids will want it when I’m gone.”
Passion for cars brings family together
Gene and Kathy Highfield brought a pair of Chevys — his turquoise 1955 Chevy Bel Air and her 1951 Chevy Styleline Deluxe, which features a rare three piece back window.
Gene restored the Bel Air from bumper to bumper.
“Everything’s new — every bushing, every bolt, screws, motor, transmission, dry shaft, radiator,” he said.
The Styline used to belong to Kathy’s dad Billy Eldridge. Kathy said her father always had a hot rod growing up, but got into car shows later in life.
“He quit riding a Harley at 78 and got an old car so he could follow us around,” she said.
Kathy inherited the car after her father passed away in January. A framed photo of Billy, standing with his Chevy at a car show a few years back, sat underneath the hood.
“He wanted me to keep going to the car shows,” Kathy said.
Ashland man recreates patrol car from The Andy Griffith Show
Right after he bought his 1962 Ford Galaxie 500, James “Jim” Berry gave it a fresh coat of its original chestnut brown.
Then a friend pointed out the car’s resemblance to a certain fictional patrol vehicle.
“The second year, we stripped it down and started all over,” he said.
Berry and a friend transformed the car into an Andy Griffith inspired Mayberry patrol car, complete with a working red light and wind down siren.
“It’s been the best thing that ever happened to us,” Berry said.
“We’ve got to meet many of the stars from the show. They’ve autographed the car. We just bring smiles everywhere we go.”
The inside of the car has been autographed by The Andy Griffith Show cast members including Betty Lynn, Maggie Peterson, Doug Dillard, Rodney Dillard and Ronnie Schell.
It’s also been signed by Jay Leno and Charles Dowell, longtime owner of the Snappy Lunch diner in Mt. Airy, Griffith’s real-life hometown.
But the most exciting moment for Berry was meeting Don Knotts, who played bumbling deputy Barney Fife.
“He was doing a show with Tim Conway over in Marion, Ohio, and they had us bring the car over and display it in front of the theater that day,” Perry said.
Knotts briefly sat in the car for a picture, even donning a sheriff-style cap at Perry’s request.
Berry has taken it to across Ohio and to Indiana, but hasn’t made it to Mayberry yet.
“I haven’t taken it down to Mount Airy,” he said, referencing the North Carolina city believed to be the inspiration for the show.
“I’m not that brave enough to take it down through the mountains. If it breaks down, it’s a little bit hard to find some of the parts.”
