Lowell told me, the thing he loved most about the Nash, was the rear seats converted to a double bed. The thing he may have disliked most was, was the massive turning circle, due to the aerodynamic, enclosed front wheels.
"The aerodynamic 1949 Nash "Airflyte" was the first car of an advanced design introduced by the company after the war. Its aerodynamic body shape was developed in a wind tunnel. Nils Wahlberg's theories on reducing an automobile body's drag coefficient resulted in a smooth shape and enclosed front fenders. The "cutting-edge aerodynamics" was the most "alarming" all-new postwar design in the industry.[16] A one-piece curved safety glass windshield was used on both models. Wide and low, the automobile featured more interior room than its 1948 predecessor although its height was 6 inches less. Due to its enclosed front fenders Nash automobiles had a larger turning radius than most other cars. The 600 models used a 112-inch (2,800 mm) wheelbase while the Ambassador models stretched to 121 inches (3,073 mm). Both shared the same bodies. Coil springs were used on all four wheels. Three trim lines were offered in both models; Super, Super Special, and the top line Custom. Power was provided by an 82 Horsepower 176 cubic inch flathead inline 6 cylinder in the 600 and an 112 HP OHV 234 cubic inch inline 6 in the Ambassador.
The few changes for the 1950 Airflytes were a wider rear window, concealed fuel filler cap, some dashboard features and addition on Ambassadors of a GM Hydramatic automatic transmission option. The 600 models were renamed the "Statesman". A new first for an American car were seat belts, also new was a five-position Airliner reclining front passenger seat back, both optional in both models. The stroke on the Statesman engine was increased 1/4 inch giving 186 cubic inches and 85 HP and the Ambassador received a new cylinder head that increased HP to 115." Text Source: (
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Red Oak's II - A relocated Town with original vintage 1920's buildings, created by artist Lowell Davis over the last decade. A must visit, whimsical Route 66 roadside attraction.
Take a stroll through the past in the number One ranked tourist attraction in Carthage. Red Oaks II is a unique, quirky & whimsical, village with many sculptures & odd ball attractions, amongst real working vintage buildings, including the Oldest Phillips Gas Station along Route 66. If you want Photos of Vintage American, this place is a photographers dream.
From the Roadside America Web site:
"Lowell Davis has moved an entire pioneer Missouri town from its original site, 25 miles away, and reassembled it as Red Oak II. Heralded by roadside Burma Shave-style signs, the buildings there have been preserved as a credible replica of a crossroads town, circa 1929, and include an antique Phillips 66 gas station, a general store, a blacksmith's shop, a feed store, a town hall, a one-room school house, an old country church, and a cemetery.
The town also includes a streetcar diner, Belle Starr's home, and the oldest surviving Standard Oil gas station from Route 66." Text Source: (
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From the Legends of America Web Site:
"A couple of miles northeast of Carthage, Missouri and just off Route 66 is Red Oak II – a ghost town, but not really. But, it has authentic old buildings, and an old cemetery, and it looks like a ghost town. Well, it is and it isn’t.
Red Oak II was actually the brainchild of artist Lowell Davis who grew up in the "real” Red Oak, Missouri, about 18 miles northwest of the "new” Red Oak II. The original Red Oak, like many other rural agricultural towns across the country, started to fade sometime after World War II, when people began to move to the cities in earnest.
After Davis had left the area for a number of years, he returned in the 1970’s to find his home town had become a ghost town." Text Source: (
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Address of Icon:
County Rd 130, Carthage, Missouri, USA.