In 1927, the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma was celebrating 50 years since it achieved statehood. Usually, there would be an annual festival called “Tulsarama” to commemorate the event. However, officials decided to bury a time capsule right outside the city courthouse with the historical item. And that item was a brand new desert gold and sand dune 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Sport Coupe! The car was dug up for the first time, exactly 50 years later. The condition of the car will amaze you.

The Unique Legacy of Tulsa

Additionally, the residents of Tulsa wanted to make sure that their legacy would live on after them. In order to make this happen, they buried small waterproof steel containers under the strong and heavy cement vault. The city officials believed that future generations could find these items and learn more about what life was like during that time.

History of Plymouth Belvedere

The chairman of the city’s Jubilee Commission, Louis Roberts, explained that the Plymouth Belvedere Sport Coupe was selected as the historical item to be buried because they wanted a car to commemorate Tulsa’s industrial ingenuity. It was a fully-loaded Plymouth V8 Coupe in a shining desert gold and sand dune color. And the white color from the vinyl top really made the car stand out.

The Plymouth in a Hole

On May 28th, 1957, the Plymouth was driven into a pre-dug hole outside the Tulsa County Courthouse. Then, it was lowered by a crane onto a concrete platform that can bear the nuclear bomb explosion. The car was filled with various items that were common during that time, such as a pack of cigarettes, a can of Schlitz beer, a bottle of Oklahoma crude oil, and many more. After these items were placed inside the Plymouth, the car was covered with a car cover and then a heavy-duty cement vault was placed on top of it.

After 50 years

After 50 years on 15th June 2007, the car was dug out for the first time since it was buried. To ensure that the process went smoothly, preparations had been made 18 months earlier. The event was attended by 9000 people which includes tourists, media, and city residents. Unfortunately, the area where the car was buried was not waterproof. Due to this, the color of the car has changed in a very bad way. Additionally, there were some engineering errors at that time, which caused the water to seep in and damage the car.

What happened to Miss Belvedere?

Everyone was shocked to see the car in that condition. In those 50 years, it had obviously been through a lot. The interior of the car was completely ruined, and it appeared as if Miss Belvedere had been in a lot of water. The cans were totally rusted, the engine was seized and the tires were completely flat. In short, the car was a write-off.

The Lucky Winner

Raymond Humbertson was announced as a lucky winner of a 2007 jackpot from the population of 348,743 people. Unfortunately, Raymond Humbertson is no more and his wife also passed in 1988. But they have left two sisters and a nephew who are now the owners of the car. Along with the car, they also received total money of $666.85. According to the pictures, this amount of money is not enough to fix the car.

Restoring a Classic Car

The heirs are now in charge of the vehicle’s restoration. They finally decided that they will take every effort to restore the car back to its original beauty. But there is one big problem. The corrosion has damaged quite some portions of the paintwork. The procedure will be time-consuming and laborious. The experts will have to be very careful while removing the corrosion, as they don’t want to damage the original paintwork. This exceptional beauty took too much money which was not affordable for many people during that time. Around $15000 was spent on this car, which might have bought another Plymouth.

The Car’s Fate

Because of the intense rust, it was not possible to remove it without causing damage to the original paintwork. So the repair was called off. The condition of the car is not ideal, but it can still be put on display for public viewing. The chassis got damaged and engine parts were rusted beyond repair.

The Restoration decision

The owner of Ultra one, Dwight Foster came forward with his views about the car. He said that it’s mostly papier-mache now and it would be foolish to spend any money on its restoration. The restoration business owner made many attempts to have this wonderful car back on her feet, but it was not successful.

Dwight Foster’s Decision

The help came too late but Mr. Dwight Foster, the owner of Ultra one said that the car is very fragile and I can’t do all the repairs that I wanted to. He was sure that if he tried to repair it, the car would fall apart. And it can even damage further during the process. As a result, he chose to do nothing and leave it as is.

Miss Belvedere’s new home

Miss Belvedere got a new home in the museum, but it’s not in a driving condition. It is the Historic Auto Attractions museum which is located in Illinois. The visitors can still see this car and its impressive story. Robert Kearney, the new owner of this special car, is very happy that the car is safe and has got a new home where it can be preserved for future generations.

Art of work

Not only this but the car is now considered to be an art of work. The car is no longer just an average competition jackpot; it’s a stunning work that will be treasured for years to come. Additionally, the car was sent off to Ultra One, Illinois in 2017, after 10 long years.