Butler-Conti Dodge
I grew up in Concord, CA, and I went to Butler-Conti occasionally for parts. Ogre Backwash, can you remember the names of any of the other Dodge-Chrysler-Plymouth-DeSoto dealers in the East S.F. Bay area in the '50s and '60s? I remember a few: J.E. French in S.F. and Oakland (opened in 1922); Doten Dodge and Melrose Motors in Oakland; and J.C. Pierce in Concord (a notorious odometer whacker). I forget the name of the Chrysler dealer in Martinez. But when I was a hippie/student and a slacker, and wanted the most expert and economical repair to my '60 Valiant Suburban, I would take it to Muller-Gordon motors on Shattuck Ave. in Berkeley. After they repaired your car, the mechanic who did the work explained exactly what he did, and why it was necessary. Muller-Gordon was really into keeping old Chrysler products on the road, and they really prided themselves on doing everything exactly by the book. I wish dealers were still like that.
Here's the Dodge Brothers dealership in Placerville, Ca (on the right hand side of the street) (where I live) in the early years:
Although the caption says the picture was taken in 1913, that is impossible because the Dodge Bros. car was not first manufactured until 1914. Since the sign opposite the DB dealership is for an ice cream shop selling "Liberty Ice Cream", the picture must be from during WWI because they called everything "liberty' during that war.
I grew up in Concord, CA, and I went to Butler-Conti occasionally for parts. Ogre Backwash, can you remember the names of any of the other Dodge-Chrysler-Plymouth-DeSoto dealers in the East S.F. Bay area in the '50s and '60s? I remember a few: J.E. French in S.F. and Oakland (opened in 1922); Doten Dodge and Melrose Motors in Oakland; and J.C. Pierce in Concord (a notorious odometer whacker). I forget the name of the Chrysler dealer in Martinez. But when I was a hippie/student and a slacker, and wanted the most expert and economical repair to my '60 Valiant Suburban, I would take it to Muller-Gordon motors on Shattuck Ave. in Berkeley. After they repaired your car, the mechanic who did the work explained exactly what he did, and why it was necessary. Muller-Gordon was really into keeping old Chrysler products on the road, and they really prided themselves on doing everything exactly by the book. I wish dealers were still like that.
Here's the Dodge Brothers dealership in Placerville, Ca (on the right hand side of the street) (where I live) in the early years:
Although the caption says the picture was taken in 1913, that is impossible because the Dodge Bros. car was not first manufactured until 1914. Since the sign opposite the DB dealership is for an ice cream shop selling "Liberty Ice Cream", the picture must be from during WWI because they called everything "liberty' during that war.
