History WHAT HAVE I FOUND? PRISONER TRANSPORT??

I found this on FB going to pull it behind my 37 Ford Panel Delivery Ice Cream truck.

Questions any ideas Guys?
is it a 1938 or 39 Ford was it from a Panel or Sedan? Kinda short!
See the reinforced cage walls just inside the doors.
Looks to have had an inner steel door!
Looks like it has a driver peephole
Looks like an access panel on the passenger side cab. Opens towards the passenger side so the driver cant get hit?
Any Ideas? Got any old prisoner wagon pics? Thanks

 

Back half of a 1941-1946 Chevy/GMC panel truck. Could have been used for anything even a hunting blind.

 

tijuana taxi

 

Probably used as a paddy wagon in Chicago in the 40's 50's

 

Maybe it was Buffalo Bill’s? “It puts the lotion on the skin or gets the hose again!”

 

A CLR scrub would be interesting to see if it raises any of the old lettering.

 

It's clearly homemade and I don't think any municipality would ever put prisoners in a trailer behind another vehicle, this looks more like a homemade horse trailer or maybe for chicken cages or something. Although the wood side pieces do look like seats, so that's odd.

 

It could have been pulled by horses for all we knew!

 

Getting out here boss

 

It was made into a storage box after some hillbilly cut the front off.

 

I think it was a running vehicle and someone cut off the back then made a trailer. The trailer part appears to be newer but not recent.. I can see very faint lettering on the back doors. On the left I can see "S" then unclear space "AV" and then what looks like the top of an X or a Y. A Stretch but US Navy? It has a vent on the roof very old like a vintage travel trailer (Pics are in the wrong order left is the "S" Maybe a bottom of a "U" before it

 

OMG Check this out ! POWER WAGON see the lettering on the back of this one The reflectors are in the same spot on the sides also

 

^^^^Nice hit

 

That would be my guess. Similar to cutting a wrecked pickup in half and using the box as a trailer.

 

might have been a paddy wagon https://www.catspawdynamics.com/the-1946-chevrolet-suburban-calgary-police-paddy-wagon/

 

Sure appears to be a “People transporter”. Would pretty hot in there, but wondering, I’ve seen old movies where prisoners were taken out for road crews, clearing fields, etc. memory/movie made it seem it was close to the prison. Maybe? Maybe something for farm workers way back then? They had about the same amount of rights that prisoners had.
Interesting for sure.
If it was at my place, I’d have it filled with useless junk by now

 

That is pretty cool. Are you going to refine it, or use it as is?

 

I Knew it was Dodge!

 

Not Sure! Use it as is put some older wheels on it era correct at least. I am going to do the floors last so I dont fill it with crap LOL

 

The remnants of the large lettering on each side look like "SHORE PATROL" to me. The lettering is almost cut off at the front so I'll agree with the others that the front of the truck was removed in order to make a trailer. If all this is true, this could have been part of a WWII-era Navy wagon to pick up sailors causing trouble off base to bring them back to sober up.

 

The short bus at the juvenile prison farm? Might need more than the usual cut and buff to bring the finish back.

 

That would be a WWII dodge weapons carrier. They were labeled as " WC....." then a number. For example a WC4 is the open cab half tons, the WC6 the closed cab half tons etc. Not sure what number the panel truck was but some googling would bring it up. I believe the panel would have been on the longer chassis than the pickups, like an ambulance , carryall, and panel

 

It’s always a Dodge .

 

Whatever it was, it's cool as hell. I'd say you're onto something with the transport idea. Looks pretty fortified to be anything else.

 

If it was anything but a prisoner carrier like for ammo I would think Shelves and racks, not benches. There is a spray pattern of bullet holes on the driver's side that looks like a machine gun from a distance. Some just dented some penetrated the steel. If only rust could talk LOL

 

Agree. Something like this, but a few years earlier:
https://www.firstgeartrucks.com/chevy-panel-delivery-trucks-1949-1/34th-scale/u.s.navy-shore-patrol/

Cheers,
Harv

 

Comparing the pictures to the pic of the Dodge Power Wagon panel, I'm saying it's a Dodge and that it's an old paddy wagon that somebody cut off to make a trailer.

 

GM and Studebaker also made similar military trucks as the Dodge Power Wagon. Dodges had different back windows, they match that of a Chevy or GMC