In the 1960s, Rambler automobiles represented middle-of-the road family transportation, but by 1969, the last of more than 4 million Ramblers produced in North America rolled off the assembly line in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
The accompanying photo from the Chattanooga News-Free Press archives dated July 1964 shows the Patten Rambler dealership in its then-new home on Brainerd Road.
(READ MORE: A landmark Chattanooga Airport expansion in 1964)
A newspaper article from July 17, 1964, reported that more than 1,000 people were invited that day to the ribbon-cutting at the new showroom at 5949 Brainerd Road, just north of Chickamauga Creek. The Patten Motors group also had agencies in East Ridge and Dalton at that time, according to the article.
A "help wanted" ad in local newspapers that month said the Rambler dealership was looking for additional sales staff. The jobs promised "$100 a week, guaranteed" and a new demonstrator car to drive.
Meanwhile, the sign outside the dealership in this photo promised a new 1964 Rambler for just $99 down and under $14 a week. In the 1960s, Rambler offered a full range of compact to full-size automobiles. Models included the Ambassador, the Classic and the American.
Rambler dealerships were ubiquitous in the 1960s. In addition to the Patten Rambler dealership, which was owned by a prominent Chattanooga family, there was also a Smith-Owens Rambler dealership downtown on Market Street.
ChattanoogaHistory.com
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(READ MORE: When Chattanooga's Market Street was filled with auto dealerships)
The president of the Patten Rambler dealership here in the mid-1960s was William T. Patten, a Princeton University graduate, who later went to seminary, according to news reports.
Reports about the grand opening of the brand new dealership on Brainerd Road noted that it occupied a 12,500-square-foot building with 16 service bays and a first-in-the-city computer-controlled parts department.
"The service department will facilitate the flow of maintenance with an airport-type control tower," according to an article in The Chattanooga Times.
The 75,000-square-foot tract also contained the Patten Rent-A-Car business. The area is now home to a Midas auto repair business.
To read previous articles in this series visit ChattanoogaHistory.com or join the "Remember When, Chattanooga?" public group on Facebook.
Remember When, Chattanooga? is published on Saturdays. Contact Mark Kennedy at mkennedy@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6645.