In 2005, US 'car nut' Marc Lassen stumbled upon an iconic 1918 US Cadillac, bought it online, drove out to find it 'moth-balled' for the best part of 70 years and then spent the following years lovingly restoring it, researching its World War One history and making it available for Great War commemoration and memorial events.
Listen to this remarkable story in this Mentioned in Dispatches podcast for The Western Front Association with Tom Thorpe > The 1918 Liberty Bell Cadillac U.S. 1257X
Marc Lassen recently shared his latest news:
After several interesting years, the Liberty Cadillac is now in Mt. Penn, Pennsylvania, rebuilding the cooling system so she can finally be safely driven in parades.
This brought Liberty close to DC and synchronised with the unveiling the new WW1 monument. It would be in our collective best interest to have Liberty present and in action there as a fully operational automobile. It would certainly generate some excitement. We just pulled her out of the Henry Ford Museum after a six-month stint & the AACA museum before that. Museum exhibitions are helpful and safe, but their reach is limited. I want to share Liberty with a much broader audience.
As she is already on the East Coast, I have my eye on returning her to France to tour the locations where Dr. Denison and Mrs. Roosevelt were stationed. We will actively learn as we go, just as they did 106 years ago. Hopefully, this will happen in 2025-2026. Driving in the armistice parade in Paris is, of course, a must. It's a bucket list item for me. US1257X must be driven along the Champs-Elysees and past the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc de Triomphe in an entire military parade. I'm sure she will be welcome!
We are in a race against time to include Liberty in the WW1 monument unveiling on September 13th. She is available and in the neighbourhood, but I need to know if this interests those already involved with the monument project.
We will be seeing you soon in D.C.
Listen to the remarkable story of how Marc stumbled upon this iconic 1918 US Cadillac, resorted it and researched its history > The 1918 Liberty Bell Cadillac U.S. 1257X
Watch Marc Lassen here as he tells his story and the story of the 1918 Liberty Bell Cadillac in this YouTube video >