Ralph Dunwoodie

[1913Moline]

I would guess that there are lots of forum contributors which have been assisted in their restorations and research by Ralph Dunwoodie of Reno. I just learned that Ralph passed away this past month.

Ralph forgot more than most of us will ever know about automotive history. I feel lucky to have gotten to know him really well over the past 7-8 years. He loved cars of all kinds, but had a particular soft spot for KisselKar.

His passion was collecting and indexing automotive periodicals. He had one of, if not the best collections in the country.

Hearing what D-Day was like from someone that was there is something that I will never forget.

Here is a copy of the text of his OBIT from the Reno paper:

Ralph Harold Dunwoodie

Longtime Reno resident, Ralph Harold Dunwoodie, passed away at his home on May 1, 2003. Aged 79, he died unexpectedly of heart failure. He was born in Jamestown, ND, April 16, 1924. A D-Day veteran, Ralph was a member of the Navy from 1942 to 1947. He was a signalman & was a prolific source of information for anyone interested in World War II history, often speaking at schools & being interviewed for war documentaries. We was a brilliant & caring man who was able to do what very few of us get the opportunity to do -- live his dream. His infatuation was antique automobiles. He spent most of his life pursuing that dream, becoming world renowned as an expert on antique automobiles. He played a leading role in the growth of the Harrah's Automobile Collection, the greatest in the world. The entire industry has lost its' mentor. He will be dearly missed by his family & friends. He will probably not be equaled in his profession.

Ralph is survived by his son, Steve Dunwoodie, Steve's wife, Jeanne & their son, Cory, of Reno. He was preceded in death by two grandsons, Trevor John Dunwoodie, who died in 1986 & Ian Pace Dunwoodie, who died January 28, 2003. He is also survived by his daughter, Linda Dunwoodie & her husband, Charles Wattenberg & their daughter, Aleah, of Petaluma, CA. He was a wonderful stepfather to Cami Sizemore of Reno. He is also survived by his sister, Hazel Mullins of Torrance, CA & his brother, Earl Dunwoodie of Fargo, ND. Ralph is also survived by his beloved aunt, Grace Miller, age 98, of Redding, CA. A memorial service is being planned & will be announced at a future date.

Greg

[1937hd45]

I'm sorry to learn of Ralph Dunwoodies passing. I never got to meet him personally, but he was always at Hershey with Bill Harrah. I always enjoyed the story about the Type 57SC Bugatti that Bill Harrah displayed at Hershey one year. This was a no cost spaired restoration, drop dead gorgeous car. A rookie judge tried to do a bondo check with a magnet AACA used to hand out. The magnet would not stick to any area of the flawless car. I guess Ralph overheard the rookie judge say he was giving the car a full deduction for four fiberglass fenders! The team captain was called over, Ralph took out a pocket knife and scraped off some paint on the inside of a fender, and asked if anyone had ever seen a car with aluminum body panels.The car won a First Junior.