Help finding my Grandpa's '49?

[WillBilly53]

This might be a shot in the dark, but either way I hope you dig the photo. This is my mom's dad's 1949'? Roadmaster (edit: Super). He served in WWII and was on the front line in Battle of the Bulge and survived. After coming back to the states, he purchased this baby. He had a drinking problem that was exacerbated by the war and eventually had a stroke in the 70's I think, just before I was born. I remember visiting him many times and he was a sweet man. Mom has told me he was a very fun loving guy and amazingly generous. He most likely sold the car, or lost it in a bet. No one knows. She said he never talked about the war. After his stroke, he could only say a few cuss words and nothing else. He eventually learned to write his name with his right hand (he was left handed) and managed to get around with a cane (He lost use of his left arm after the stroke and some use of his left leg) He succumbed to various ailments back in the mid 90's. R.I.P. William Mundy Lineberger.

I hope that wasn't too heavy, but I thought a little backstory was in order. I'm hoping that someone could confirm that this is indeed a '49 Roadmaster. And the shot in the dark is - How would one go about trying to find this exact car? I know it's probably futile without any kind of (as of yet, found) documentation or VIN number, but I have to at least ask. I'm going home next weekend and hopefully Mom and I can find some more photos and maybe some other leads. Either way, I hope you all enjoy this photo!

[BUICK RACER]

WillBilly, where is home, might help if we knew where this '49 lived?????

[WillBilly53]

WillBilly, where is home, might help if we knew where this '49 lived?????

ha-ha! my apologies - long week. Shelby, NC would be the area in question. It's a small town. I contacted my Mom to see if there are any surviving friends or acquaintances of his that may have some knowledge of the dealership that he bought it from or who he may have sold it to (if that's what happened to it) My uncle Bill (his son) has the majority of his belongings and there's a very small chance there may be some receipts or something.

[TG57Roadmaster]

WillBilly, that's a great shot of your family's '49, and really shows off its one-year-only design.
As a "3-holer" in Buick parlance, it's a Super, Model 51, rather than the "4-holer" Model 71
Roadmaster. Not a big deal, as the two shared their bodies from the cowl back (Supers have
a slightly shorter front clip), and both share that beautiful '49 face.

Good luck on your search, any recollection of color might help,
and I hope you can find some papers or info for it.

TG

[WillBilly53]

thanks for the clarification, TG. To find out it's a Super, gets my heart thumping a bit!

[Rob McDonald]

WILLIAM II, great photo, sweet story. I also had a grandfather who drank too much, hurting lots of people, and for whom payback was a crippling stroke. Charming man though, on a good day, and I loved him anyway. He was fond of Hudsons but that was before my time.

Your paw-paw's car was a '49 Super - notice the three portholes. Specials that year still used the prewar-style body and Centurys weren't back in the lineup until 1954. The Super had a 121" wheelbase, while Roadmasters rode 126". I think the difference was all in the front fenders, accommodating a 4" longer 320 cid engine in the big Buick. Supers and Specials also had straight eights but with 248 cubic inch displacement in a smaller casting. Dr. Freud would have had something to say about the attraction of long hoods but that really does make the Roadmasters of that year stand out, for me.

I can't imagine how you'd ever find your grandfather's actual car, without some amazing, cosmically-aligned coincidence. Still, post more photos and stories please, if your mom is willing to share them.

[49_buick_super]

thanks for the clarification, TG. To find out it's a Super, gets my heart thumping a bit!

What color was your Grandpa's 49 Super?

[WillBilly53]

Thank you Rob! I just got off the phone with Mom and she remembers it being a darkish gray. Upon my research of paint chips for '49, this leads me to believe that it was either Bahama Blue, Sunmist Gray, Elan Blue, or possibly Mariner Blue. I'm leaning towards Sunmist Gray. I'll show her paint chips next weekend when I see and hopefully she'll be able to confirm. She told me that she has some more photos as well. Her and my Dad are compiling a list for me of GM dealers that they remember during that time. They said there's a friend of the family that probably knows who sold the car to him. It's a small town and everybody knew everybody so chances of at least finding some leads are pretty good. Thanks for the info and help, everybody.

[JohnD1956]

Wow, what a story! Thanks to your Grampa for his sacrifices during the war. While I don't know where the car is, I might suggest that these model 49's seem to surface occasionally, and it may be possible to build a tribute car if you can find any documentation to lead to his original color choice.

I think I know where there may be one, in New York, which came from the Midwest, if memory serves me well. Not sure if it's for sale or not. This fellow bought it because it was just like his father's 49. But I believe he has stopped using the car for several years now because he could not get it started.

[WillBilly53]

That's a great idea, John. I'll have more info from Mom when I see her next weekend. I was looking up 1949 production info and although PawPaw's was a Sedan, I noticed the Sedanet (sp?). I did a google image search and, holy cow the sedanet's look hot! Love the "fastback" on them. I'll need to finish my '53 before I can even look at 49's. I think it would also be cool for me to do a real restoration of a '49, per PawPaw's original, as my '53 is my first car and I've done a lot of customization

[retirednow]

Great story! I would love to find my late uncles '51 or '52 56 C somewhere, but i was told as a little tyke that the transmission went, and assumed it was junked -best car ever- So, i did the next best thing- bought another 1 that needs a ton of work-Dave BCA#46470 1952 56C

[WillBilly53]

I showed Mom the '49 paint chips and she positively confirmed the color was "Sunmist Gray". I haven't gotten anymore info as of yet, but she's going to get on the horn and find the dealership. In the meantime, I thought I'd post another photo.