Yellow ambulance co-louisville

Mike McDonald

PCS Member
I was just watching an episode of the "Live PD" TV Series and they showed a current model Chevy Box "Yellow Ambulance" responding to a scene in Jeffersonville. IN. Circa 1966 I lived in Louisville, KY for about a year and remember that YELLOW AMBULANCE was a Division of Yellow Cab running a large fleet of (low top) Cadillacs and Pontiacs out of the same ornate-brick multi-story downtown garage as the cab company. All their ambulances were painted solid Omaha Orange. At the same time, the Louisville PD ran (two officer) Ford Station Wagons (with Q's on the RF Fenders and gurneys in the back) for initial responses with exclusive patient transports by Yellow. Probably not too many century old ambulance companies still around that were started from a cab company? MM
 
Yellow Cab had the city ambulance contract in Des Moines, IA, during the 1950's until the mid-sixties when Capital City Ambulance won the contract. Yellow Cab ran out of a downtown garage using all red Superior Cadillacs and the cab drivers doubled as ambulance drivers/attendants.
 
Color Correction

Correction on the COLOR of the Yellow Cab Ambulances running out of their downtown Louisville Cab Garage in the mid 60's...they were kind of a Burnt Orange versus Omaha similar to the YELLOW TRANSIT trucks seen across the nation decades later. May have been part of the same corporate umbrella? MM
 
Yellow Cab of Philadelphia Pa. had a "Cabulance" service no emergency service but transport service. My mother was involved riding in a Taxi in 1951 in a bad accident spent a week in hospital. She came home from hospital in a Cabulance. The vehicles were Dodge Limos dark blue with Cabulance in yellow on the front door. Yellow Cab and PUC numbers on right front fender. Front and rear seats were half seats and rear door opened with the post so a full size cot would be easily loaded. Quite basic but for the time it worked. In Philadelphia emergency transport from accidents etc. was done by Philadelphia PD using 3/4 ton Chevrolet Panel trucks. In the suburbs we had rescue squads mostly with Cadillacs or Packards. In Langhorne where I grew up and attended every race at The Langhorne Speedway the Bucks County Rescue Squad was always standing by with their beautiful white Henney Packards.
 
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