Chrysler hearse in Muncie, IN

Jim Tighe - Deceased 1942 - 2012

March 10, 1964 - April 27 2012
Last week, while visiting my home town, my daughter and I found a hearse conversion of a mid-'70's Chrysler New Yorker T & C station wagon. It is sitting on a lot at the corner of 5th and Macedonia, on the east side of town. It is a light blue, with a white top, and has a for sale sign on it. Doesn't look great, but not like junk, either. Don't have any more info than that.
 
Chrysler hearse

Jim,
What? no pictures? And the hometown would be? Glad you were feeling up to making a road trip.
Mike
 
Mike, the post heading says "Muncie, IN." No, no pix. I am not on that techno level. My guess is that this conversion was done by a body shop, rather than one of the usual suspects. No landau irons on the white top, but does have drapes in the rear side door windows. When we found the car, my dau was driving, as I didn't feel too good and didn't get out of her car to look more closely at the Chrysler. My oncologist didn't want me to go, but I thought it might be my last chance, so I went anyway. It was a sometimes rocky venture, but I am glad I went. On the way back, I spotted a '59 moon rocket Fleetwood in New Bremen, OH, that appeared to be a daily driver, complete with dingy wide whites. Over the 4 days, the Cad and the hearse were the only interesting cars I saw.
 
I looked at a 1974 Chrysler Thacker hearse at a Funeral Home in Muncie back in 1998. I don't remember it having a white top but it was blue.
 
My guess is that this conversion was done by a body shop, rather than one of the usual suspects.

Likely not one of the big guys, but there were actually a lot of smaller companies building these. Thacker as Tim mentioned was one of the bigger ones, as was A.G. Solar in TX. There was another decent size operation in TX making T&C conversions also, but I can't remember the name. Sumner, maybe? And supposedly Abbott & Hast in CA was even building T&C wagon conversions through those years, although I've never actually seen one.
 
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