This ad appeared in the May 1949 of the Greenfield Daily Reporter. Similar ads appeared in newspapers in Ohio and Michigan as the Monroe Auto Equipment Company rolled out its spring 1949 marketing campaign. The “Free Movies” (we believe there was only a single movie shown) mentioned in the ad is presented below. To provide some context, we offer a brief narrative to set the stage for this bit of Farm Jeep history.
It is early summer 1949. You’ve seen this newspaper ad for a couple of weeks and now you are on your way to Greenfield, Indiana. It has been a good spring in central Indiana and you can allow yourself a day off from planting and field work. It has been almost 3 years since you were discharged from the Army and had returned to the family farm. It is time to make some changes.
Your wife and dad had managed the farm while you were away for almost 4 years with just your old Farmall tractor and your dad’s team of horses. Both your dad and the horses are ready to retire. You have saved enough money to replace the tractor, but you need a new pickup too. That might stretch the budget, especially as you want to think about buying more acres from the next-door neighbor.
You know about the jeep from your Army days and how it was designed by the military to replace the horse and mule. The folks at Willys think it can replace the horse and mule on the farm too. But you’ve seen the ads for the new Ford 8n tractor with the 3-point implement hitch. You need a labor-saving machine if you are going to replace your dad and those horses.
As you arrive at the airfield you see a large crowd of fellow farmers from all over the state. There is a large circus-like tent setup in addition to a dozen or more Willys Jeeps parked outside. You are invited to step into the tent to see a short movie presentation.
Let the show begin….
Some background
This movie is full of interesting tidbits, from how to plow with the Jeep to pictures of a heretofore unknown Newgren trailer. It also provided footage for later films. We will be posting about those in the future.
The “Revolution in Farming” campaign will also get its own article. This was the only ad campaign that Monroe produced with the Newgren company. You can read more on the Monroe/Newgren story in Clint Dixon’s article here.
We hope you have enjoyed the movie. We look forward to hearing your comments and observations.