[h=1]Salvage yard shut since 1953 finally sells its secrets[/h] By Justin Hyde








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The difference between a treasure trove and a scrap yard may just be good marketing. How else to explain the interest generated by a Oklahoma man who closed his junkyard over a zoning dispute in 1953 and protected it like the Fort Knox of rust until his death? Later this summer, his cache of some 250 cars from the first half of the 20th century will finally go to auction, and within all that broken-down metal rest a few true rarities.
Handled by Vanderbrink Auctions, the firm that staged last year's madhouse sale of the Lambrecht family in Nebraska, the collection of Oliver Jordon doesn't have anything to compare to a five-mile Chevy kept new since 1966. Jordon bought a scrap yard in Enid, Okla., in 1945, and when the city asked him to alter the property for zoning reasons, Jordon just closed up instead, surrounding the property with barbed wire and attitude.
Jordon kept adding vehicles here and there, but he never sold any. His grandson built a few sheds to protect some of the stash from the weather eating the rest away, and after Jordon died in 2004, his widow tried selling some of them individually. When those deals fell through, the family decided to go to auction.
No cars in the group will draw more attention than a pair of Cords — a 1936 and a supercharged 1937. Fully restored examples of these front-wheel-drive classics can fetch $200,000, but the dire condition makes their values harder to pin down. Other rarities include a 1939 Lincoln seven-passenger sedan — one of the few rust-free cars in the mix thanks to its aluminum body — along with what may be only the fourth known surviving example of a 1924 Rollin Touring sedan, the product of a little-known Ohio automaker.
The rest of Jordon's empire of dirt holds some promise for those hardy hot-rodders who can see past the rust and weeds for just the right spare part or chassis. What's not sold at the June 7 auction in Enid will go the route of many other scrapyards in middle America, recycled back into metal for the rest of the world. You can see the entire list at the Vanderbrink auction site here.

 

Each gearhead has their own reasons for getting excited about an ancient collection of cars. For some it’s the mystique of it all. For others, it represents the chance to finish their own hotrod project. We’ll let you decide what it is about dusty barn-finds that turn your crank.
Recently, a massive trove of classic pre-war automobiles was discovered in the small town of Enid, Oklahoma, home to just under 50,000 people. The collection belonged to Oliver Jordan, a salvage yard owner who closed up shop in 1953 and is believed to have kept his entire car collection intact since then, making this barn-find a genuine 60-year time capsule. Jordan spared no expense in keeping his collection private. He installed large fences topped with barbed wire around his property, and only allowed a scarce few visitors to enter his yard – for good reason.


The entire 220-car collection features some of the rarest and most iconic American motors from the early years of the past century. The bulk of the collection includes around 50 complete Ford models from 1929 to 1949, along with numerous partial vehicles and spare parts offered. Chevrolet vehicles comprise the second largest group, with just over 20 intact models. Some anticipated hot-sellers look to be a pair of Cadillac V12 sedans, a 1937 supercharged Cord (pictured below), and a Hudson Super 6.
Jordan sadly passed away in 2004 at the age of 95. His wife Ruby died in 2013, which initiated the auction process on the entire lot. All of these cars will go up for sale on Saturday, June 7 2014.