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The Old Motor ran this feature on the workers dismantling the East Grand Boulevard assembly line for the move to Connor Avenue:

theoldmotor.com/?p=171283

My car has parts on it, that are stamped as late as Aug 19, 1954. So I've always wondered why they are on the car after the date the line was supposed to have been ripped up.

Several of the more knowledgeable here and in some of the books have said there was a large storage yard and rework area for cars coming off the line either missing something or needing some fine tuning or finish work before they could be shipped. The cars remained there until they could be completed. Apparently the area was particularly well used and full with all the body fit issues on the early 55 models but perhaps there were some out of stock pieces that missed being installed when your car went down the line. What kind of items had a late date?

The casting date on my block is 7-28-54.

Also, my heater box had a yellow paint stamp on it that was dated Aug 19th, 1954.

My car is 5492-9578, and the production run was 7,610 for my model. So, based on my calculation, if the first car was 2001, then my car was one of the last 33 Deluxe Clippers built in 1954.

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Bob Neal's book (1951-1954), page 145 lists the last day of production at Grand Ave as September 16th, 1954.

"Less than two months later, on September 16, they ended the 54th Series production at a total of 31,291 cars and then tore up the East Grand assemble line and move it to the Conner Avenue plant."

September 16, 1954 is quoted in the B. Kimes edited book titled 'Packard A History of the Motor Car and the Company'. It also states that the transfer process completed on October 17, 1954, with the first '55 automobile completed on November 1, 1954.

Given that the company was striving to develop the impression of two separate car model types as in the Cadillac/LaSalle, Buick/Marquette, Oldsmobile/Viking, Pontiac/Oakland relationships, could the Packard advertising department herald two separate events? One on June 25, 1954 for the last Packard produced at East Grand Boulevard, with no ceremonial dismantling of the production facility, and another on September 16, 1954 for the last Packard Clipper produced at East Grand Boulevard with some ceremonial assembly line dismantling. That time line would be supported by the dates on several of 'BigKev's' parts.

dp

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September is a more accurate date. I recall when they were moving things from Grand Blvd. to Conner Avenue a large flatbed transport got stuck making the turn at East Forest Ave. and McClellan... and this was in the fall.

Any urgent issues that came up upon assembly with 1955-56 Packards were not handled at Grand Boulevard unless there was some very unusual reason. They were handled at a special building set aside for this purpose off of Conner Avenue.

The large storage lot at the corner of Mt. Elliott and East Grand Blvd. was there primarily for shipping preparation and storage of production backlog. Cars that had been prepped here were shipped out either by truck or train. Cars that went to big distributors like Earle C. Anthony usually skipped this step and went straight to the distributor (if said distributor was of significant size to do their own dealer prep work). In such a case, the 1955-56 Packards left directly from Conner Avenue and went to major distributors.

But if a car wouldn't start or the suspension was doing the herky-jerkey and hokey-pokey or the doors wouldn't open or close, such a car would go to the refit/countermeasure building just south off of Conner.

Leeedy, does that retrofit building still stand, or did that get the "Chrysler bulldozer modification" too?

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Hello... As I recall, that building survived longer than the Conner Avenue Packard plant... but as far as I know it is also long gone.

I can tell you that I recently drove all around the rather depressing area just on the outside chance, but I could not find it. So much is gone. The building where our store that was located at 12718 East Jefferson is also completely gone.

Only thing I found that I still recognize from the old days is the chimney of the old Continental Engine plant... which is still standing (amazingly) and still says "CONTINENTAL" on it in black letters.

I also drove around the Packard plant on East Grand and again was depressed to see not much has happened there. Concord Avenue has been blocked off, debris has been cleaned up... but otherwise things look B-A-D.

I was again surprised however that the little shipping building off of Mt. Elliott is STILL standing. In spite of everything... it is sTILL there. Everything around it is gone, but that little building still stands and even has new ugly graffiti on it. Biggest shocker of all is that somebody... in the midst of all the chaos, graffiti and destruction...SOMEBODY actually took the time and energy and money to remodel the front of the building!!!! The glass blocks are mostly gone... and the front of the building is now covered in red brick! And the end column is now covered in stone!!!! Incredible. Yet the side windows of the building are covered in very weathered old plywood. The once beautiful aluminum and glass entry is now covered in green painted wood with a wooden door. The rear is likewise boarded up. What a town. And what a sad, sad, heartbreaking thing to see this little building huddled there by itself and holding on by its fingernails. Waiting for what?

Leeedy-would it have been one of the buildings on Mack, near the center of this 1956 aerial?

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