Crowds flock to Falls Village for car show

FALLS VILLAGE — The Falls Village Car and Motorcycle Show on Sunday, July 10, drew a massive crowd. Judy Jacobs of Jacob's Garage, the sponsor, said there were 550 vehicles registered and probably another 30 unregistered.At 9:30 a.m. the village was already packed.

“Oh my gosh, it goes on forever” a teenage boy said to his father as they made their way up Main Street.

Vehicles occupied territory from the old depot (home of the Falls Village-Canaan Historical Society) all the way up Beebe Hill Road to Route 7. Cars filled the lots at the David M. Hunt Library and the Lee H. Kellogg School, plus the grass in between.

Cars lined Main Street and even down the hill on Railroad Street.

At 10:30 the official count was over 500 registered vehicles, but that did not include the unregistered cars that volunteers were trying to track down.

Jody Bronson’s 1958 Willys Jeep wagon(a precursor of the modern Jeep Wagoneer) was on hand, with camping equipment, a telescoping fly rod and a 1950s Abercrombie & Fitch sporting catalog.

Bronson was asked if the Jeep runs.

“Downhill,” he replied. He thought a bit. “About as well as me.”

Bronson said the other participants arrived and immediately started buffing their cars. He, on the other hand, looked around for some hay to throw on it.

Mitch Crawford of Winsted brought his 1964 Dodge Power Wagon. This is a serious truck.

It carried a camper in the bed. Not just any camper, but a 1972 Alaskan camper.

This unit has hydraulics, for vertical and horizontal expansion.

Both truck and camper have been modified by Crawford.

The front end could haul anything short of a battleship, sideways if necessary.

And the camper?

“I put a cedar floor in it,” said the garrulous and affable Crawford. “It smells good, because after three days in the woods I won’t.”

Speaking of garrulous and affable, vendor Don Clady of the Connecticut Cruise News magazine was selling all sorts of things, including military ephemera and merchandise expressing sentiments supportive of former President Donald J. Trump.

Asked if anyone gave him a hard time, Clady laughed and said no.

“The people who don’t like it skip it,” he said.

Other highlights:

A 1958 Chevy Stylus Deluxe guarded by what appeared to be a dog skeleton.

The “Ram-bulance,” a modified 1968 Jeep Kaiser.

A 1970 VW Beetle decorated with a checkerboard and really big checkers pieces.

Members of the Housatonic FFA chapter circulated, selling raffle tickets. (The proceeds from the show go to the FFA.)

Boy Scouts sold bottled water, the restaurants and vendors were busy, and everybody seemed to be having a really good time.

  

Main Street in Falls Village was full of car show spectators Sunday. Photo by Patrick L. Sullivan