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I just bought a 1954 Packard Clipper Deluxe and had it towed to my house. It towed fine lifted in front on a tow truck but now I cannot get it to move. It is a 3 speed manual so I put it in neutral, turned the key to the on position (I read that this could be the problem) and still could not get it to move. It is as though it is locked down. Any ideas?

Have you checked to make sure 1) the parking brake isn't on. 2) one of the drums isn't seized?

Barring all that checks out ok, it is possible the car is stuck in park. There were several service letters on that issue.

Aside from brakes which after sitting have been known to lock one or two wheels, Does the car have overdrive? If so can the knob be pulled out to lock OD out of service without any difficulty? Does the shift lever seem to be able to select all the gears? Some worn parts in the detent block inside trans can allow two gears to be selected at once which would lock things up nicely. Was an issue on slightly earlier years and may still have been in 54.

The parking brake is not on. I'm going to check the brakes. The shifter does go through all gears. I also shifted them from under the hood to make sure that more was moving than just the shift lever. I thought this just happened after it was towed to my house but it dawned on me today that it could very well be the front brakes so when the car was lifted in front the back wheels turned in order to be towed.I will start there. Thanks for the information.

Whether the key is off or on makes no difference to standard tranny. Sounds like one or both front wheels are locked up, but that is simple to remedy. Good luck and post some pictures.