Dec 29, 2003 By Jenny Susa 7 min read

In November 1995, Albert L. Smith and Janice Higdon, both residents of California state at the time, presented their parents, Albert and Marie Smith, with a 1930 Ford Tudor Sedan. The surprise gift was not for a birthday, holiday or any other special occasion, but only because their children said they were “the best parents in the world.” Albert Sr. said that because the car was purchased for them while they were visiting California, they had some difficulty deciding how to get the antique vehicle home.

“We had considered getting a U-Haul for it or perhaps having it towed home,” Albert said.

His wife added that it was their son who suggested that they should drive it home, but she was hesitant to drive the old car all the way to Pennsylvania.

They left the car with their son for the winter, and in May 1996, Albert persuaded Marie to make the trip across the country driving the car.

“We drove it home on Highway 50, the old Pony Express route,” said Albert. “We wanted to do that because that highway is not heavily traveled.”

“Albert bought some parts that he feared might go bad along the way,” Marie said. “There is no trunk on the car, so he bought a roof pod, and put it on top. We had to fill it with the parts, and extra water and gasoline. We also had all of our luggage in the back seat of the car, so it was pretty well packed.”

After the antique car had been tested on the road, the Smiths headed to Old Sacramento to the statue of the Express pony and rider, which marks the beginning of the Pony Express route. Albert kept a journal of all their experiences on the trip, and in it he wrote that, “Such a trip needed a formal beginning.”

After taking pictures, they returned to their son’s home where they started their two-week journey the next morning.

The Smiths drove through Carson City, Nev., and went on to Fallon, Nev., which they said was very sparsely populated.

“You could travel for hours and never see another car,” said Albert. “It was also miles between homes, but we did see mail boxes along the road occasionally, and assumed that the houses were behind the trees.”

The couple laughed as they recalled that through many parts of Nevada, it was not uncommon to see cattle in the middle of the road.

“That is open farm country,” Marie said. “The livestock are allowed to roam free, so the drivers have to watch out for them.”

Albert added that the drive through Nevada was very scenic, “if you like desert scenery.”

They said that one notable part of their trip was stopping at Sand Mountain, also commonly known as the “singing mountains,” because of the moaning sounds made by the sand continuously shifting in the wind.

The Smiths said that throughout the entire trip, they enjoyed meeting other people who were interested in their unique form of transportation.

“There are so many people who you meet along the way that tell you ‘my father had a car like this’ or ‘my grandfather had this kind of car,’ and their stories are so interesting,” Marie said. “That is really what made this trip so much fun.”

Albert and Marie said that at first they felt a bit uneasy about all the people crowding around to see their car, but later were happy to talk to their friendly fellow travelers. Since the California license plate came with the car, the Smiths said that other motorists they talked to were amazed at how far they had driven the vehicle, and that they were taking it all the way back to Pennsylvania.

Although Albert said the old car can travel at a speed of 60 mph, he felt safer keeping it a 45.

“Albert would pull over when there were cars behind us so that they could have a chance to pass,” said Marie.

The couple recalled that when they did this, some of the travelers would pull over behind them and ask to see the car or even take pictures.

When the couple drove through Utah, they said the scenery was not much different than Nevada, as it was sparsely populated and they only passed through small towns.

“We spent the night in Salina, which had a lot of empty store fronts,” Albert wrote in his journal. “It was somewhat reminiscent of Brownsville, Pa.”

Although the Smiths said they would have liked to do more sight-seeing along the way, they had to get home within their planned two-week time span because the car’s license plate was about to expire. Albert said they did, however, stop at Arches Park, which they had always wanted to see. He described the park as having many “strange and wonderful rock formations,” with one formation standing 70 to 100 feet high, and thousands of feet long.

Marie remembered that, as she was taking pictures, one tourist had joked that she should have been using a Brownie box camera driving “a car like that.”

After passing through Colorado and spending the night in Ottawa, Kan., the couple drove to Independence, Mo., where Albert noted that they visited the Truman homestead, the courthouse where Truman had held court, and the Truman Presidential Library.

“At the library we visited the Truman’s graves,” said Albert. “While we were there, I got on my knees and thanked Truman for signing an order that allowed me and other soldiers to take discharge from the military during the Korean War, due to having three or more dependants,” said Albert.

He said the old Ford made it through most of the trip without difficulty, until they reached Cincinnati, Ohio, where they encountered their first problem.

“There were three lanes of traffic, and we stayed in the center lane because it was less congested,” said Albert. “When we topped off a hill, I saw a large dip in the pavement of the center lane. After hitting it, the car became erratic and was hard to keep straight.”

Albert said that after pulling over into a parking lot at a store, he got permission to inspect his car there, and he found that a shock absorber had bent two break rods. While he fixed the problem, he said that two ladies came over to inquire about the car, as so many people had done on their trip.

“One lady said her husband worked at a Ford assembly plant, and would have been so jealous to see this old Ford,” said Albert.

Marie added that because the ladies said they wished they had a camera so they could show everyone what they saw, she offered to take some pictures with them and send the copies.

“The two ladies insisted on buying us dinner then, so we also had to take pictures of us leaving the Subway, so that they could see where we went to eat,” said Marie. “We sent their pictures and they sent us a Christmas card the following year.”

Once again the Smiths said that it was the friendliness of others who were interested in their car, and the stories they heard that made this trip unlike any other they had taken before.

“I’ve been to California and back several times, and I’d say this was our premier trip,” said Albert.

Marie said they pulled into their driveway on May 31, the last day before the license plate expired. The couple said they have enjoyed taking the car to shows and parades, and taking people for rides in it ever since, but their fondest memory of the car might always be the drive home from California.

“We enjoyed the attention of our fellow travelers and those we met along the way,” said Albert.

Marie said some people they met commented that they must have been wonderful parents to receive such a gift from their children.

“I don’t know about that,” said Marie. “But we certainly have wonderful children.”