Paul ... I don't know what I was thinking about dates. The frame is dated August of 54. Somewhere in my brain I processed that as August 53, which couldn't be right because of the fire that you mentioned and the later release of the 54s.
This car was in VA in the 80s based on some parking stickers in the windows. It moved to MD at some point then to Johnstown PA. It's now outside of Gettysburg. Someone started a 50s custom at some point. The hood letters, globe and rocket have been removed and the holes filled, the holiday fender script was filled, and the gas door closed off. The headlights were also frenched. That's as far as they got.
The hood looks to be an easy return to stock as I can see the holes from the underside. The same with the fenders. The gas door will be a little harder because they just took tin snips to the inner quarter panel to get access to the filler neck. Not impossible to fix ... just a little more difficult. I won't know more about returning the headlights to stock until I dig into it more ... assuming we agree on a price.
I don't know if the interior picture here gives you a clue to the electric vs. hydro-electric windows. My suspicion is that they are electric. When I went to look at the car it had been sitting for awhile and the windows were still completely up. For as long as this car has been off the road, I would have suspected that the windows may have sagged slightly due to pressure changes in the hydraulic system. Only a guess.
If the deal goes through, consider yourself invited to come see the car and it's progress. I'm sure that I'll need some expertise along the way.