Route 66 in the News
Plymouth Unearthed Early, Some Say
2007-04-11 17:52:24
TULSA, Okla. - Among the more persistent rumors about the 1957 Plymouth Belvedere buried at the Tulsa County Courthouse is that it isn't really there -- that it was secretly removed from its concrete vault during the last 50 years and put somewhere else.
The story isn't true, and it isn't even very logical -- digging up a car at a busy intersection and making off with it in the middle of the night is not exactly like sneaking in and out of a graveyard after midnight -- but it might get a boost in the next week or so.
Sometime soon, perhaps as early as Saturday morning, workers will remove the plaque marking the car's burial spot and dig down to the vault containing it.
No, they're not sneaking a peek -- at least not at the car.
"They are going to dig down to a corner of the vault to see the thickness of the concrete, the depth the car is buried, and the condition of the rings used to set the lids down," said Ron McMahan, director of Tulsa County Building Operations.
The dig is a reconnaissance mission, so to speak, for the real excavation June 15.
Interest in that event apparently continues to grow.
Sharon King Davis, co-chairwoman of Tulsa's state centennial activities, said automobile customizer Boyd Coddington has contacted her about incorporating the excavation and unveiling of the Plymouth into Coddington's program "American Hot Rod."
Also, more than 150 applications have been received for an invitational car show to be held in the Maxwell Convention Center with the Plymouth as a centerpiece. The show is limited to about 100 cars.
Organizers said about half the cars will be arranged as if parked at a drive-in theater and the rest as if they are at a drive-in restaurant. A number of 1950s-themed exhibits also are planned, with American Airlines and the Tulsa Air and Space Museum, QuikTrip, the Route 66 Association, the city of Tulsa and the Tulsa World among those already committed.
Although interest in the car and accompanying activities has been high, sponsors remain short, Davis said Monday. Even with most of the excavation work donated, organizers are about $97,000 short of the money needed to rent the Maxwell Convention Center and cover other expenses.
The car will be excavated at noon on June 15 and taken to the Convention Center, where it will be assessed and unveiled to the public at 6:30 p.m. the same day.
It will then be on display at the car show through the weekend.
~Randy Krehbiel, Tulsa World
See also:
- Earlier article on the buried Plymouth
- Full List of Route 66 In The News Articles
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