BUTLER COUNTY, Pa. — The Jeep has certainly evolved since its early days in the 1940s. Its birthplace is in Butler, where a small car company rose to the occasion to meet a tall request from the U.S. Army.
Around Butler, few people know more about the Bantam Jeep than Bill Ringeisen.
There’s nothing he enjoys more than refurbishing a Jeep with his family members or taking one of his Jeeps out for a drive on the open country roads on a nice summer day.
The Jeep enthusiast has been feeding his obsession for decades, and he has the hardware and souvenirs to prove it. That includes a bedroom jam-packed with Jeep merch, mementos and trophies. He also has several Jeeps parked outside.
“I got the 42 GPW, which Ford built. I got a 151M38, which is Korean War, and then I’m redoing a 45MB,” Ringeisen said.
For him, it is about family, country and hometown pride.
“There’s a lot of people that don’t know the Jeep was invented in Butler,” Ringeisen said.
In 1940, the United States Army was searching for a motorized vehicle to replace the horse. It put out a request for proposals to 135 automakers.
“They had 49 days,” Ringeisen explained. “Design it, build it and deliver it in 49 days.”
The big car companies did not bite.
“Only one come with a prototype. Bantam,” Ringeisen said, adding that Bantam’s crew made the deadline by a matter of minutes.
American Bantam Car Company produced a vehicle that was small and lightweight yet tough enough to haul soldiers and heavy artillery. The company was awarded a contract for 70 vehicles.
General George C. Marshall is famously quoted for calling the Jeep “the greatest contribution” to American warfare.
Each year, the history and evolution of the Jeep is celebrated at the Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival, which currently holds the Guinness World Record for the largest Jeep parade. The festival broke that record twice.
No surprise here – Ringeisen has the world record plaque in his home that, in totality, rivals a makeshift Jeep museum.
“I wanna keep the history rolling on it, let people know where the Jeep comes from, how it got started,” he said.
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