C&T Publications Eye on Fine Art Photography - July 2014 | Page 32

Rusting in Peace - Harvey Family Ford Truck Collection
by Carla Parris, photos © Carla Parris

South of Tallahassee, Florida, on Highway 319 between Crawfordville and Medart, there is a wonderful collection of old, rusty
vehicles arranged in a semicircle in a field. Because this truck graveyard is on the route to some of the Gulf coast’s spectacular
beaches, I have passed it often. For many years the field was overgrown, and the vehicles were hidden in heavy vegetation.
However, in recent years the field is occasionally mown, and the trucks are much more visible. They are a curiosity which attracts
the attention of visitors and locals alike.
The vehicles, loosely called “Harvey trucks,” were placed here, in chronological order, by current owner Pat Harvey, whose father
previously owned them and kept them for parts. The trucks, and the other assorted dilapidated vehicles assembled in the collection,
are all from the Harvey family farm. They are full of memories for their owner. They include a 1941 Ford pickup, the first vehicle
in which he remembers riding; a station wagon, which was the first car he drove, the car he used to take on dates, and his family’s
first car; and a 1959 Ford he drove to get his driver’s license.
Left to “rust in peace” around a spreading oak tree, the vehicles are full of yesteryear charm, and evoke nostalgic feelings, for
others, as well. They are also irresistible for photographers. I am fascinated not only with the novelty of the vehicles themselves,
and their appealing arrangement and natural setting, but also with the rusting metal, peeling paint, broken glass, and authentic patina
visible upon closer inspection.
As the years continue to take their toll, and the trucks present an ever-changing view, as they have since I discovered them, they are
sure to continue to beckon first-time and repeat passersby and photographers who will undoubtedly feel compelled to stop, and who
will most certainly be glad they did!
It turns out the cars, called the “Harvey Trucks” by their owner all come from the Harvey family farm. They’re lined up in
chronological order. And for their owner, Pat Harvey, they’re filled with memories.
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