Butler-Conti Dodge

Bill Crowell said
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:

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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.

Hi Bill,
Sorry I missed your inquiry. I have a 1957 Dodge D-100 that was sold new by J.E. French, probably the Oakland location. I remember the Martinez dealership but not it's name. I think it was a partnership with two names. (something like Cochran and Roselli?) I do recall that it must have been the tiniest dealership crammed into the old Martinez downtown. I also recall that they were still in business through the 90s and possibly the New Century. I don't know how they stayed in business, I figured they had an inside track supplying the city and county with vehicles and service.
There are a bunch more dealerships whose names I can't remember but I did find a website that is a history of Bay area dealerships. Can't find the link at the moment though.
Placerville looks nice. I'm may be looking to buy a home in the Grass Valley, Nevada City area. The Bay Area is getting too expensive for me.