“Our goal was to keep the trailer as original
as possible, but I wanted it to match our
1956 Chevy tow vehicle, so the graphics
on the outside are Winnebago original
except for the change in color to teal and
natural aluminum. We painted the trailer’s
graphics Laurel Green with burgundy pin
striping to match the upholstery and the
rest of the trailer in Crocus Yellow. These
are all original Chevrolet colors. I still
would like to match wheels to the car
but that would take a big piece of that
‘original look’ away, so it’s Baby Moons
for now!”
By a stroke of sheer luck, the Stollmeyers
found out that their little “Minnie Winnie”
was more valuable than they had initially
realized.
“When I first found it on eBay I didn’t
know that I had found a jewel, says Ken.
“It wasn’t until later when we scratched
the tongue of trailer to find the original
serial numbers, that we found out it was
one of the first Winnebagos ever built!”
When they were lucky enough to meet
legendary trailer builder Jim Hanson’s son
at a vintage trailer rally they attended, the
Stollmeyers found out that their model of
Winnebago had originally been inspired
by the Hanson “Love Bugs” built in the
1950s. This is before they found out that
the trailer was one of the first trailers in
the first run of Winnebagos ever built!
The 1956 Chevrolet B210 Station Wagon
tow car is very special to the Stollmeyers
as it was built to honor the oldest son
who passed away in 1996.
“His legacy was his desire to build the
baddest tri 5 era vehicle 1 (1955-1957)
around. So we built this car in his honor.
It has a new crate 350 motor, 700r4
transmission, 370 rear-end (for towing).
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