Prewar car and truck barn find collection in Enid, Okla., to be offered by VanDerBrink Auctions

Hundreds of cars from the 1910s and through the 1930s and 1950s to be offered by VanDerBrink Auctions’ sale of the Oliver Jordon Collection in Enid, Okla., on weekend of June 7; preview begins June 6.

JUST ADDED: List of cars offered at the sale. Click here for list: TitledCarList-Jordon Collection

By Yvette VanDerBrink

Oklahoma is a state that has endured many booms and busts, from the Dust Bowl of the Dirty Thirties to oil and cattle booms. Residents of the state are just as tough as the worst times they have endured, and their stories are equally amazing.

Oliver Jordon is one of those Tough “Okies.” In 1945, Jordon purchased an existing salvage yard in the town of Enid, Okla. He bought and sold parts until the city told him to make changes to his business for zoning.

Being a tough old bird, Jordon thought no one was going to tell him how he was going to run his business, so he shut the doors in 1953. However, Jordon continued to buy cars and soon his property was covered with hundreds of collector vehicles from the 1910s to the 1940s along with some 1950s vehicles. The collection eventually grew to approximately 250 vehicles comprised of such treasures as 1936 and supercharged 1937 Cord automobiles, an aluminum-bodied 1939 Lincoln seven-passenger sedan and many other 1930s and 1940s vehicles.

Jordon guarded to his fortress with barbed wire and mean dogs. Nobody was going to take his property and tell him what to do.

Jordon became known as the “man with all the cars” and endured constant inquiries from people who wanted to buy his cars and parts, but the answer was always a resounding “No!” When he wasn’t guarding his land against expansion by the city of Enid, Jordon was constantly trying to maintain his privacy.

In one story, a color-coded map of the City of Enid was drawn up to show an area for incorporation. Jordon’s three acres were coded with a single “pink middle finger,” a testament to the old man’s resistance to being incorporated and following the city’s rules, which he thought would endanger his collection.

Along with all of the old iron, Jordon shared his life with his wife Ruby, and both were very dear to Jordon. In 2001, Ruby fell off a ladder and the family came in to help. One Grandson, Stuart Piontek, became determined to better know this tough character and he started working with his grandparents to help them get ready for their end years. He helped move the cars, inventory them and event built a building to help protect some of them. Many of the original buildings were in disrepair and had begun falling on the cars, including a 1936 Cord.

When Jordon died in 2004, he left his wife with all the old iron. The family again worked to help her and at one time, they had advertised the collection as one lot and images from it were widely circulated online. This led too many visits from several famous people, but didn’t conclude in a deal. Ruby Jordon has now passed and the family is now offering vehicles from the amazing collection individually at auction to the highest bidder on the weekend of June 7, 2014.

VanDerBrink Auctions, LLC will offer this amazing collection of about vehicles from the 1910s to the 1950s with the majority being from the 1930s and ’40s. Many of the vehicles are restorable and rare, and some are incomplete bodies that could be made into hot rods or serve as part donors.

The collection is not limited to vehicles. There are also hundreds of parts for vehicles primarily from the 1930s and 1940s.

This will be a big weekend for restorers, hot rodders and rat rodders. The auction will be held on-site and online at the Jordon home in Enid, Okla. Many of the parts will be offered only to on-site bidders, but for those who cannot attend, VanDerBrink Auctions, LLC will also offer the vehicles and some parts on an online auction.

The property must be cleared so this is your only chance to buy one of these unique pieces of history. Chances start at 9:30 a.m. June 7 and go all day; if any vehicles and parts remain to be sold, they will be offered June 8. A preview will be held June 6. All vehicles will be sold as is at no reserve.

Watch for details on Facebook, vanderbrinkauctions.com and through VanDerBrink Auctions’ free newsletter.

Related resources

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