Saw some old cars in a creek (pics)

Saw some old cars in a creek bed while me and some buddy's where going to look at a 63 Belair. They are in Illinois a few miles east of Quincy north off I72.

 

looks like there are a few good pieces left you should get!!!

 

OOOOOhhhhhh! There looks to be alot of usable parts to salvage. Private or public land? U need to do some investigating. Looks like a fun spring cleaning project. Remember, the important thing is that you are helping the environment by getting that junk out there

 

Cool and sad all at once

 

Didn't someone say that this was common practice to prevent rapid soil erosion through the river bottoms?

Adam

 

Yep. Thats what this is. They were stacked neatly along a bend in this creek. By the looks of it there is a layer of cars under the visible car i got shots of. You don't see this much any more because by now Dept. of Natural Resources would have come pulled them out of there. There were two 53 Chevy Belairs, a 2 door that was up right and 1 that was upside down, and all the cars that were in one piece still had motors in them. Some cars were from the 30s and 40s at the very bottom, they had a little roof showing.

 

More pics pls..love to see them cars.

thx

 

id be geting the grill from that 53

 

Looks like a nice place to take your wife/date on a outing/picnic.lol
I wonder if the 54 chev hardtop, still has the rearend in it?

 

Sometimes I forget how wet it is back East and how dry it is out here.

 

Cool photos Matt!! Gotta' find my "creek car" pictures, I remember seeing a '58 Olds and late 30's Pontiac two door sedan in a creek near here.

 

I need that center tooth off the 54 Bel Air grille!!!

 

The upside down one has the rearend still in it.

 

didnt know we had stuff in IL. like that ...jones

 

Cool find, Time to do some parts pullin if you find out about the land. I could use the grill and upper bar from that 54 if it is in good shape.....Where are these at?

 

thats quite a group of cars... Some good 2dr cars.

That rearend in that 53 is still there cause its a torque tube and sucky... IMO

 

super neat.

 

They're east of Hannibal off I72. Rt96 Plainville exit. Take the exit north about a half mile the creek runs along the east side of the road and then bends to go under Rt96. They are right there at the bridge, east side of the road. Its probably conservation property. Its in a valley, no houses around. I doubt anyone would care if people took parts off them. It would be helping the state clean up.

 

Hello Matt,
I'm from Hannibal...so you go east on 172. Now that's toward Hull and Berry correct? So if you go north on 96 off of 172, that means you have to cross an overpass right? I'll check it out if you don't mind. Where in IL. are you from?

Thanks,

Sonny

 

fun adventures....

 

Thanks for sharing. I love running across stuff like this. Seems to be happening less and less these days though.

 

Great Find, I wish I was a little closer. I would love to check them out.

 

Yikes, a 59 Ford, and I need trim parts! Also a bullet nose Stude, W.T.F.~sololobo~

 

corvair steering box.

 

Hey, LowLifematt, THANKS for the great winter pix! Here's another one. I've always been kind of fascinated by the concept of cars being conceived and built, serving long and well, then coming full circle to return to the land. At the very least, there seems to be a little poetic justice in cast-off things continuing to serve good purposes. At sea, once-great ships, rail cars and buses create artificial reefs to benefit wildlife. Here, no longer shiny and new, Detroit's finest now prevent creek bank erosion. The rubber, glass, iron and copper that went into these cars came from Mother Nature and, fittingly, all those elements are returning to their source. This pic was originally posted by OlSkool31Coupe.

 

For those who live close to Cincinnati Ohio there were some along a river north of 275,get off 275 and go north on Bluerock road and when you get to the river start looking. Its been a few years since I was there and always too wet to go walking along the river and should of went this summer when it was dry,all I could see where 50s and early 60s and when the old bridge was there you could see more but it was gone the last time I went by it.

 

Im from the Decatur area (central). Good luck. let me know if there still there.

 

That '54 Chevy, if a guy was desperate for a hardtop you could take the roof, quarters and doors, maybe the upper cowl with it, and have a dandy donor for a 4-door conversion. Solve the glass problem by chopping the top and filling it with some other window opening. Side glass is flat and can be cut, and use the 4-door windshield up front (cut down).

For that matter, imagine using the top and so forth on a 50-53 Buick Special or something, you could go pretty wild for a minimal expense.

 

All of the components of these cars leach into the water table, the oil and fluids have compounds in them that cause cancer, a couple hundred yards away could be a family on a well that is indirectly drinking the fluids from this and having to let their young kids drink it, not knowing it's there. The high iron content causes problems for algae and aquatic plants, and kills fish. The worst thing that could have been done is to toss these cars into a water resource. That's the way the world was back then. If you do get involved with any of these cars be mindful, if you disturb them and they start leaking junk into the river DNR may have an issue with that. Be careful. You can get into trouble in some places for disturbing embankment and infrastructure on a waterway. The one old guy on the logger show got in big trouble for pulling up old logs. Might be worth a little info sniffing.

 

Get them all