1937 Packard Super 8 Club Sedan
John McCarthy

1988 was a special year for me at Hershey. Not only did I purchase my first Packard, a 1953 Patrician, but I also saw a Packard that I would be the owner of twelve years later. Thursday afternoon I came upon an Iridium Metallic Gray 1937 Super 8 Club Sedan in the back of the Chocolate Field. The Packard was in original condition but still quite presentable. The unusual thing about this Packard was that it did not have side mounts. The car look longer since the front fenders gracefully flowed down to the running boards. This Packard started my love affair with the 1937 Super 8 Club Sedan. The Packard was owned by an elderly couple selling parts and was not for sale. Despite having attended every Hershey and Macungie since, I never saw this Packard again. Hopefully it is in a warm dry garage waiting to be discovered.
Saturday morning I was at the show field looking at the Classics when at first glance I thought I saw the Club Sedan a few cars down the aisle, but soon realized that it was not the same car. This Club Sedan was also Iridium Metallic Gray, but this one had side mounts, and was in excellent condition. Upon further examination I noted from its award badges that it had won an AACA Senior Award, CCCA Senior Award and Packard Club First Place Award. I briefly spoke with the owner, C. Stanley Eckenroth, who advised that he owned the Packard since the mid 1970's and had a ground-up restoration completed in 1985. From this point on I saw this Club Sedan at least once a year. Stanley drove the Packard to all the meets he attended. The Club Sedan was always at Hershey and Macungie, and at AACA and Packard Nationals held in the Eastern part of the U.S., including the 1999 Packard Centennial Celebration in Warren, Ohio.
At the Macungie show in 2000, Steve Billett told me that Stanley had passed away the prior week. As I did not know Stanley's family, I asked Steve to let me know if the Packard was going to be sold. Stanley also owned a 1955 Caribbean and 1955 Patrician. A few weeks later Steve called and said that Stanley's cars were going to be auctioned at the Landis antique car auction in Lebanon, PA the week before Carlisle. The auction was over a three-day period and Stanley's cars were to be auctioned on Saturday. Kathy and I left New York early Saturday morning with several certified checks, some cash, and thankfully a credit card. The bidding for the Club Sedan started and moved up very quickly to the point where I was beginning to think the Packard was going out of my price range and I had not even bid yet. As quick as the bidding started it stopped, and after several seconds of silence, I put in a bid. The bidding was now down to myself and one other bidder with the dollar increments getting smaller and smaller. Suddenly the bidding stopped, I had the top bid, and it was over. The entire bidding process took about a minute and was very nerve wracking.
Since moving to Pennsylvania in 2001, Kathy and I have had the Super 8 to a number of shows and in October 2002 participated in the Packard Club fall foliage tour.