Old Red at 60

This is the story of a mundane 1966 International Harvester Pickup affectionately known as 'Ole Red. My name is Tim McElhannon and I'm the fourth owner of 'Ole Red. The story of this truck is quite interesting — it has been in the family its entire life. My uncle, Roland Brown, owned the International Harvester dealership in a small west Georgia town called Tallapoosa. In 1966 he special ordered a new red International Harvester pickup to serve as his shop truck. The truck arrived at a dealership in Columbia, South Carolina. Roland and my dad, Aubrey McElhannon, lit out for a road trip to bring the truck home. Roland used the truck daily in the shop and as his prime means of transportation until 1976. During its first ten years the truck proved its mettle over and over again in the hay fields, hauling wood and doing daily shop chores for the dealership. She affectionately became known as Ole Red. In 1976 Roland replaced 'Ole Red with a new Baby Blue International to assume the chore duties and Dad bought the truck from Roland. In 1977 I turned 16 and got to drive 'Ole Red to school. My first transportation... I was free! The memories from that time are precious to me and the truck is forever etched into my high school days. I joined the US Navy in 1980 and 'Ole Red stayed home with mom and dad. Some years later while I was away deployed on ships, 'Ole Red broke down. Her transmission went out and dad couldn't find a replacement so the truck was parked. A cousin in the family, Michael Brown, bought the truck from dad with intentions to fix her up, but never did and the truck sat in a barn until 2024. Michael contacted me and asked if I wanted 'Ole Red back — if not, he was going to scrap her! Of course I wanted her! I rented a trailer and drove home to Tallapoosa to get my old friend. Red has been sitting in a friend's barn until this past January when I found a great restoration man.