5 in 1955

[Joseph T.]

Years ago...the Chief Inspector of the St.Louis Corvette Plant told me there was a point where he had 5 workers building the entire 1955 Corvette. When the time and motion people in Michigan Headquarters found out they said that can't be done. His response.." come to St.Louis and watch "

You don't read anything about John Evans in Corvette History but he is quite important. He came over from the St.Louis Chevrolet Truck and car division and was given the responsibilty of moving the temporary Flint assembly line to St.Louis ( he recruited Harvey Green and a few others and made numerous trips to Flint to get the move accomplished ). He was in charge of the St.Louis Corvette operation until about 1970 when he retired.

Among other things he was friends with the producer of the hit show Route 66 and when they came to St.Louis they partied at his house. One episode was even written with John's son in mind. Another episode was filmed at the local rock quarry where a Corvette was driven off the cliff.

Somewhere I have a picture of John sitting in my old 54.

Joe

[Lynn H.]

Re: 5 in 1955

Joseph,
I have long believed that most of the "high profile" names we have all heard over the years, are not the only individuals who deserve credit for the car we have all come to enjoy so much. I am sure there are quite a few names, such as the one you mention, who deserve some of the credit for the prodcut that was produced. It is a shame that most of these people we will never hear of, will never receive their due when it comes to what went into the design, and building of these automobiles.
Lynn

[Terry M.]

Re: 5 in 1955

Lynn It is always the case that the unsung heroes continue to go unrecognized. It is true not just in the automotive business, but in business in general and the world as a whole.

[Lynn H.]

Re: 5 in 1955

Lynn It is always the case that the unsung heroes continue to go unrecognized. It is true not just in the automotive business, but in business in general and the world as a whole.

Terry,
I could not agree more. There have been times I have felt I was "that guy". I sure just about eveyone else feels the same.

[Tom P.]

Re: 5 in 1955

Who knows the name of the person(s) that invented the transistor?

[Michael A.]

Re: 5 in 1955

Who knows the name of the person(s) that invented the transistor?

John Bardeen, William Shockley, and Walter Brattain, scientists at the Bell Telephone Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey.

To your point, I didn't know it but you can find it out with a quick Google. Of course these 3 won the Nobel prize for the invention so they do have SOME notoriety. The guys who fight the daily battles to keep a production line running, overcome the obstacles put in their way by the "suits" or carry the torch for performance options that don't have a great "business case" are the kind of guys we should all tip our hat to. Their recognition was the self-satisfaction that they know what they did was the right thing to do along with the weekly or monthly paycheck. We all benefit from the efforts of the nameless every day. Sometimes others benefit from our efforts as well. That's how society works... when it works.

Merry Christmas everyone! It's a great time of year to remember all that is good in the world! I hope everyone has a great holiday.

Cheers,

[Joseph T.]

Re: 5 in 1955

Lynn It is always the case that the unsung heroes continue to go unrecognized. It is true not just in the automotive business, but in business in general and the world as a whole.

About a year after Bill Lacy and I went to John Evans house to visit with him and ask questions about the early days of Corvette..I called him to do a follow up. A person answered the phone and advised me that John had passed away and they were preparing all the contents of his house for an estate sale.

She told me if I wanted to come immediately I would have first choice of anything in the house.

I drove over during lunch and was able to find and save files of Corvette documents..which would have otherwise been thrown out. In the basement were numerous Engineering Trophies John Evans had been awarded for his engineering contributions during his career at GM. They were marked .50 cents each. I did not have the prescense of mind to buy them and surely they were thrown out.

John was responsible for numerous improvements on the assembly line to include using different tools, shipping Corvettes by rail and so much more. I have the original documents he submitted over time with his recommendations and the follow up putting his ideas into action.

Bill Lacy and I were very lucky to have met John before it was too late.

John personnaly took care of the PR dealing with Celebrity plant pick ups...Like Dinah Shore, Presidents Nixon's daughter, all the Shriner cars, the Astronaut cars, certain driveaway race jobs etc..

Joe

[Steven B.]

Re: 5 in 1955

Joe, it would be beneficial to include all of the documents, etc. in a book so the knowledge is preserved.

Thanks for the info.

Steve

[John H.]

Re: 5 in 1955

John also served as the Planning/Launch Coordinator - I worked with him on the '67 buildout and '68 launch.