JOHN A. BREIDFORD
FORD DEALER

1929 TO 1978
  This is a story of "Johnnie's" days as a Ford Dealer, as I remember from stories told to me by my Dad, and from information told to me by my Uncle Leonard Breidford, about Johnnie's school days and before his taking over the Ford dealership in 1934. Most of the story from about 1946 is from my experiences, hanging around at the dealership and later as an employee.
 
-John T. Breidford,
Palmer, Alaska,
November, 2006

 

 
     L-R:Dale Jensen, Al Calhoon, John T. Breidford, Ed Freeman, Maxine Harris, John A. Breidford (1955)  
 

 

Johnnie started his formal education at the California Creek School at the age of 8. After completion of the eighth grade in 1927, he left school, and began a variety of endeavors, including working at the box factory in Blaine.

At one time he lived at and worked on the Hawkeye Ranch, which was later known as the Vogt farm on the Blaine-Lynden Road, (Sweet Road), just east of Odell. I remember him telling me that he earned $10.00 per month plus room and board. During this time period, he took some correspondence courses towards earning his High School diploma.

  
  (L-R) Johnnie about 10, sister Rosalind, brother Leonard riding "Old Cap."    
  Johnnie also worked for Chris Freeman for a time, delivering milk. It was during this time when Dad and my Mom, Nina, became acquainted. Dad eventually purchased the milk business from Chris in 1928, when he was 17 years old. Then "City Dairy" was operated from the Agust Breidford home on B Street, in Blaine. His brothers Elias and Leonard and other members of the family participated in the operation of the dairy. The delivery truck belonged to Elias.

 
   

Johnny about age 9, and brother Leonard, age 4, in 1920.

  
 

Dad purchased the milk from the Chris Freeman farm and Adolph Anderson farm. The bottling was done at the Blaine location.

At the time, prohibition was in effect and bootleggers were smuggling booze into the US, through the border at Blaine. One morning, as Dad told it, he was delivering milk to a customer at the Blaine waterfront, when suddenly he felt a hard object jabbing him in the back, then a voice telling him to leave and don't come back. As advised, he didn't turn around, but he knew it was a whiskey runner. He also knew it was good advice to discontinue delivery service at that location.

After a time the business became unprofitable, since many folks would not have the money when it was time to pay their milk bill. According to Johnnie's younger brother, Leonard, they had had to raise the price of milk to 11 cents per quart, which made it harder for families to afford.
 

  
 

Breidford Motors in 1934

    
  In 1929, Dad went to work as a mechanic at the International Garage, (which would later became Breidford Motor Co.). During the late "model A" days and then after the 1932 Ford V8 was introduced, Dad remembered working for Grady Royal, who then owned the dealership. Grady was a one armed man, and according to Dad, Mr. Royal was adept at driving the 1932 V8, 80 miles per hour with one finger on the steering wheel.
 		  
       
 

On April 22, 1933, Johnnie and Nina were married. They purchased the house on C & 2nd street where the family lived, (and where I was born), for 20 years. They paid $400.00 for the house, partly furnished, and paid it off in monthly payments.


Meanwhile, two other individuals were proprietors of the garage over the next few years. One of them, a guy named "Shorty Adams", took over and was less than credible in his dealings with customers and the financial institutions. The country was deep into the great depression when Adams finally left town, abandoning the business. Before his departure, the situation had gotten so bad that there was no money for firewood to fuel the big potbelly stove. To stay warm, the remaining employees resorted to busting up the office furniture and using it for firewood.

When Adams closed the business in early 1934, Dad was left without a job. By then, he had become known locally, as a talented mechanic, and began doing auto repairs in his little garage at home. One day the local banker approached Johnnie, and asked him if he would be interested in taking over the garage. It isn't clear to me what interest the bank had, other than they had probably seized any equipment or other assets that Adams had left behind. I'm sure they were interested in the revenue that a local car dealer would produce.

 
  Nina and Johnnie Breidford on their wedding day, 1933. (Photo by Elias Breidford)    
  Dad has said "since I didn't have any better job offers, I took them up on it". So, in June, 1934, Dad borrowed $50.00 from his brother-in-law, Charles Kley, Sr., for operating capital, and opened up his new business, a venture that lasted nearly 45 years. At the same time he became a Union oil dealer, another association which lasted nearly 45 years.

The following month, July 6, 1934, Johnnie and Nina's first child, Virginia was born.
On April 26, 1938 John T. was born.

 
    Johnnie speaking with his father, Agust, with Nina looking on.  
 

Johnnie began building a clientele and with Nina's assistance as bookkeeper did a good business throughout the remainder of the 1930s. Many local men were employed at the dealership, as mechanics during those years, including Johnnie's brother Leonard Breidford, and Nina's brother, Ray Freeman.


Another local, Al Calhoon, an outstanding mechanic, was an integral part of the operation from the 1930s to the 1960s, and a lifelong friend.

  
  Al Calhoon and Ray Freeman, in the garage.    
  In 1936 the dealership had an exceptional year in new truck and school bus sales.
In early 1942, shortly after Pearl Harbor was bombed, Ford and the other car manufacturers stopped production of civilian passenger cars and trucks, and began producing Jeeps, Airplanes, Army trucks and tanks, for the war effort. So, the dealers had no new cars to sell all through the duration of the war until production started up again in late 1945.

Al Calhoon, and a couple other employees were drafted, leaving Johnnie with no crew and no cars to sell.

So, for the next two or three years, he operated the auto repair shop, mostly on his own, and managed to keep the business open. He stayed busy repairing customer's cars. Business was good, since people couldn't buy new cars, they had to keep their old ones running. Sometimes a customer didn't have the money to pay for his repair, so Johnnie would come home with a fresh caught salmon, or a couple of chickens he had received for payment. In those days, parts kits were available to rebuild components such as water pumps, generators, starters, etc., rather than replace a complete unit. So, he would keep rebuilt components in stock. When a customer needed a unit repaired, Dad would replace it with a rebuilt part and then rebuild the traded in part and put it in stock. I remember Mom mentioning that she couldn't figure out how he never got his hands, or his clothes dirty, while doing this kind of work.		  
       
   
L-R: Sharon (age 4), Jonina (Nina), Virginia (12), John A., John T. (8).

In July 1955, Johnnie's son, 17 year old John T.  was tooling around Blaine in his purple and white metallic laquer '50 Ford Coupe. Sideswiped that winter, the paint couldn't be matched and it transformed into red and white coupe that the Blaine police reportedly hated.
In 1940, Johnnie and Nina took a trip with their neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Bill Willahan, across the US, in Willahan's 1939 Ford. They rode as far as Dearborn, Michigan and then picked up a new 1940 Ford at the factory, where they parted ways and went on their own to Niagra Falls, and did some sightseeing before driving back to Blaine. Dad had just purchased an 8MM movie camera and projector, and took many fine pictures of that trip. This began a hobby which he enjoyed from then on. Over the next 40 years he took many home movies of family activities and of trips and important events. His 1940 Kodascope model 70 projector is still in operating condition. He also accumulated more than 2000 slides, including many taken in Iceland, when He and Nina visited there. Dad also kept up to date with audio recording equipment and produced many tapes of Church choir programs and other family performances.

On October 14, 1942, Sharon was born.

When the new 1946 Ford was introduced, they were not much changed from the pre war Fords, but it didn't matter because cars were so much in demand. Johnnie was an associate dealer, which meant he purchased his new vehicles from a full factory franchised dealer. Most of his cars came from Diehl Motor Company, (which is one of the oldest family owned dealerships in the world.) The founder of Diehl Motor Co., Hugh Diehl and his son Bob Diehl Sr., always treated Dad almost as a member of the family. They were top notch folks to deal with.

In 1946 and 1947, Chuck Kley was bookkeeper for the Company.
 		  
       
 
In the late 1940s, Dad purchased the building and property that he had been renting, since 1934, from two spinster sisters, who lived in Glacier, Washington. In 1948 Johnnie started a thirty-year tradition of furnishing the Blaine School district with a new drivers ed car. In late 1948, Breidford Motor Co. was remodeled to include a showroom, a new parts department and two new offices. The two gas pumps that had been in front of the building were removed. The new '49 Fords were introduced and they were so popular that sales for the next three years were outstanding. For a short time, Dad rented a new showroom, which was located on Peace portal drive, between D and E streets, which was owned by Bud Dodd and Joe Clark. He used that showroom to display the new Mercury.
 		  
       
 

Don Hrutfiord, a talented mechanic was hired in 1949, and served the dealership until 1969, except for two years of service in the Army. After leaving Breidford Motor Co., Don moved on to a new career, teaching auto mechanics at Skagit Valley Junior College. One of Don's hobbies was building hot rods. He produced many, based on the Ford flathead V8 engines. At least one of them, a dragster, which he designed and built, won honors at the British Columbia auto show.
 		  
  Don Hrutfiord (1959)    
  Also, in 1949, Dad bought a 1924 Model T from Charlie Hamley, (grandfather of Charlie Hawkins). The car was one of the first cars Johnnie worked on, after he was hired in 1929, at the Ford garage. He paid $100.00 for the car. Al Calhoon straightened some dents in the fenders and did a paint job on the car. Al and Johnnie performed the mechanical work that it needed to make it almost like new. The previous owner had covered the upholstery with gunny sacks and when the covering was removed, the upholstery was in perfect condition. Dad enjoyed that car for the next 32 years.  
   

Johnnie, his Model T and grandkids
Mike, Jeri, Janet and Kris in 1974. 

  
  During that same period, Calhoon and Dad went in partnership on a small speedboat. Al built the boat , which they named the "CEE BEE" and Dad furnished the materials . It was a 14 ½ foot boat with a Ford 60 Horsepower V8 inboard engine. The boat was very fast, but after a couple years, they decided to sell it since it was too heavy in the bow, and they figured it was too dangerous, because their "kids" would soon want to start using it. Jim Leighton bought the boat.  
       
  In about 1950, Dad leased a ½ block of frontage across Peace Portal drive, from the dealership, for a used car lot. He used that property for many years, until the owners, the Barney Hanson family sold it to Richfield.

During the 1950s the dealership included an auto body shop.

 
       
 

In 1956 Johnnie was awarded a factory franchise from Ford Motor Company, and from then on every year brought new challenges and expanding varieties of cars and trucks to sell. Johnnie had a reputation for being fair and honest, and took pride in offering good service to his customers. Because of this, he enjoyed lots of repeat business.

The mid 50s were exciting, with introduction of the Thunderbird, and then in the 60s, the 64 ½ Mustang.		  
 

Breidford Motors in the 1960s.

    
 

FIRE!

On July 5th 1971, the dealership burned to the ground. It was on a Monday, the day after Independence Day, so there was no one in the building at that time. Fortunately, former mayor Andy Anderson, knew that Dad's model T was in the basement of the garage, and with the help of another Blaineite, he broke into the building and pushed the car outside, saving it from damage.
 

  
   

Breidford Motors July 5, 1971, view from behind the building.

  
  The fire was devastating. But, Dad had a way of bouncing back, and about a month after the fire, he asked me if I wanted to start the business again. I told him I was in favor of it, so he decided to do so. He bought a mobile home, put it on the lot and we operated out of there, with the service dept. downstairs, until early 1975.

Every year, the City of Blaine threatened to not renew the business license, claiming the City fathers no longer wanted a car dealership within City limits.

This, of course was when the main street of Blaine consisted mostly of bars, taverns, an Adult book store and a couple of XXX movies theaters.

  
 

Breidford Motors July 5, 1971.

    
  In 1975, the dealership was moved to Ferndale. Three years later, Dad sold the business to Dave Peterson, ending his 49-year association with the automobile business.

Dad loved gadgets of all kinds. Everything electronic or mechanical appealed to him, and he had a keen understanding of how things worked.

His lifetime hobby of audio and video recording left a wealth of family and local history to be enjoyed by many generations to come.