Anyone who grew up on a farm likely has vivid memories of their early years. For many people, these memories involve a classic tractor or truck that Grandpa drove around the farm. Terry Williams, Elwood, Ind., remembers his Grandpa Frank driving a 1938 Dodge pickup truck. He even remembers the paint scheme.

Fast-forward to almost a decade ago. Williams began restoring a 1937 Dodge 1.5-ton farm truck. It took him nine years to finish the restoration project, but he completed it on Aug. 16. Notice the paint scheme.

“It’s the same colors that were on Grandpa Frank’s pickup truck,” Williams says. “I did my best to make the colors look the same as they did on his truck.”

Dodge trucks, both pickups and farm trucks, have an interesting history, dating back more than a century. According to internet sources, the Dodge brothers sold their first Dodge truck in 1917. By 1938, Plymouth, another company under the Chrysler umbrella, also sold pickup trucks under the Plymouth name.

Notice that Williams doesn’t refer to his grandpa’s pickup or his truck as Dodge Ram trucks. The first Dodge Ram pickups appeared in 1981. They became so popular that in 2009, Chrysler decided to split off Ram as a separate company to focus just on trucks, still under the Chrysler umbrella. Technically, Dodge doesn’t make trucks today. Instead, Dodge concentrates on cars and minivans. If someone buys a new Ram pickup today, it’s truly a Ram, but technically not a Dodge.  

Do you want to share your special truck with others? Send a quality picture and information to: Indiana Prairie Farmer, P.O. Box 247, Franklin, IN 46131; or email [email protected].