man every site seem believable so im now certain i wont ever really know.....................
How did it get to be called a jeep anyway?
There were several things called by the name jeep before there existed a 1/4 ton 4x4 by that name. Where the word jeep was originated and was first spoken doesn't hold much interest to me. My efforts are focused only on my interest; how did my favorite vehicle get its name? Sure it was called a peep, or a pygmy, quad, Bantam, and others by some at it's birth, but in short order it TOOK the name 'Jeep' away from everything else that was using it. There is only one vehicle that comes to mind when you say the name Jeep. There are not many things that can be referenced to universally with just one word, a quick list I can think of would be; Kleenex, Xerox, (the) Pope, Hitler (Adolf sure ruined that family name, didn't he). Notice 'Coke' and 'Madonna' didn't make the list since there are 2 of each.
Today's editors rely on the previous work of other editors. Once the legend was conjured up, and someone put it in print everyone after that keeps quoting the same old incorrect sources. (I think it was Wells in 1946 in his 'Hail to the Jeep' book, but I would have to go dig out my copy to be sure).
The reference I quote (and show a scanned photograph) is from a very rare Ford document. It was not published for the public. It was not published for ‘internal use’ by everyone at the Ford Company. It was from an instruction manual for training army instructors, specifically, the Motor Pool, Driving, and Parts Dept. servicemen. By the way, jeep procurement was the responsibility of the Quartermaster Corps 1940-1942 and then the Ordnance Department 1943-1945. There were very few service instructors needed. The Army trained thousands of men to be pilots and infantrymen... but very few how to fly a blimp, or to instruct others on Ford jeeps. A lot more infantrymen and pilots needed replacing (due to death & injury) than jeep instructors. The manual is titled "Service School for US Army Instructors on Ford US Army Vehicles (1941)". This copy belongs to Ray Cowdery, author of 2 books on the WWII jeeps. Ray Cowdery has been restoring WWII jeeps for many decades. When I first met him in the early 80's, he had already attained jeep guru status.
Well we just saw that GP stands for Government 80 inch Wheelbase Reconnaissance Car.
GPW is Government 80 inch Wheelbase Reconnaissance Car Willys (design).
See very early Ford GPW Jeep cutaway diagram. (How do I know it is very early? By the slatgrill style air cleaner).
1/2 of the Army jeeps produced for the war were Ford GP's & GPW's.
Right on the dashboard - right in the face of the driver & passenger are the Data Plates.
And on that data plate in bold letters is "Make and Model - Ford GP".
Later the GPW's were issued, and they came with glove boxes, again right in the face of driver & passenger and again clearly marked "Model - Ford GPW"
Close up of 1942 Ford GPW Glove Box Data Plates. (Early QMC 3 Data Plates set).
Photograph of 1945 WWII Ford GPW Jeep Dashboard. (Late ORD 4 Data Plate set).
Photograph of WWII GPW Jeep Dash Data Plates from distance.
Every Jeep was issued with manuals.
In 1941, 1942, 1943 there were 2 manuals issued.
The Parts List and the Maintenance Manual. They were published by the respective vehicle manufacturer.
These were stored in a zippered pocket of the lower drivers seat cushion in 1941, and into early 1942. After that they were stored in the glove box (which Ford invented). In big bold letters on the cover of both manuals would be "Part List" or "Maintenance Manual" followed by "Truck, 1/4ton 4x4. Model FORD GPW"
In 1944 & 1945 the Government took over issuing the manuals.
They issued 6 manuals for the WWII jeep.
3 repair manuals tackled different repairs (Engine, Power Train, Body & General Maintenance).
3 parts manuals were also issued. The Ordnance Dept.'s G503 Standard Nomenclature List (SNL G-503 Ord 7, Ord 8, Ord 9).
The Ord 7 Parts List was short and carried with the jeep - it only listed things that would be replaced by a driver i.e. gas cap, light bulb, headlights, wiper blades, etc.
The Ord 8 was issued to motor pools at front line areas. It listed items (read assy's) that could be repaired at the front line units with basic automotive repair tools. For example water pumps and starter motor, but it would not list windings, impeller shafts, etc. as at the front, if the motor went bad, they would drop in a whole new motor rather than try to rebuild it in the weeds.
The last was the Ord 9, it was the Master Parts list that the rear echelon units used (who would rebuild water pumps, engines etc.).
All 6 of the manuals issued (3x Ord parts & the 3 repair maintenance) would again be issued with "Model GPW" (also Willys MB) boldly written on the cover and inside pages.
GI's were issued military drivers licenses, (and you had to be qualified or ‘rated’ to drive each type or weight class of vehicle), after studying and completing drivers training course. (I have these manuals as well). In class, vehicles were referred to by their official terminology, CCKW's, DUKW's, WC's, GPW's, etc.
Drivers licenses were issued in types, depending on what types of vehicles you were qualified to operate. The ratings were; A= Amphibious, M= Motorcycle, T= Tracked vehicle, and W = Wheeled vehicle. Photograph of World War Two Amphibious, Motorcycle, Tracked vehicle, and Wheeled Vehicle (Jeep and other) Driver qualification badges.
Please take a look at my website’s guest book and message boards. Many vets have written there that during W.W.II, there existed a definite bias on coveting GPW's over MB's. The perceived notion was based on the belief that Ford GPW's were built better than the Willys GPW. (I own both, I don't care for one over the other - I love them both). So it seems the most requested jeep at checkout time from the motor pool was the GPW- they requested it by name!!
So, in a nutshell, before you got behind the wheel of one, you had to be taught to refer to it in army school jargon ~ a Ford GP.
Based on the scuttlebutt on durability, you asked for the stronger "GP" by name when checking one out from the motor pool.
Then as you drove it around, the "GP" on the data plate on the dashboard stared you in the face for every foot of the miles you drove the Ford GP.
When there was a mechanical problem, you had to go into the glove box for the manuals, where you were again presented its model name "GP" in bold face type.
Upon returning it to the motor pool or bivouac area, you had to fill out the paperwork explaining why the GP was missing it’s side view mirror, or gas cap etc.
Guess who had to fill out the paperwork requisitioning a replacement? Not the Sgt., he's got more stripes than you do. You got to fill out the form, and you had to look up the part # in your GP's Ord 7 or TM, and there you would find that the rear view mirror you broke when you hit that tree branch was listed as part# "GP-17723-A at a cost of .65 cents" Reference ‘TM-10-1348 Change #1 April 10 1942 Ford Parts List’
Yes, early prototypes were called the quad, the pygmy, the peep, but when the production Ford GP's were released with GP stamped right in your face, they soon stopped calling the 1/2 ton dodges 'jeeps'. And the rest is history. The Ford built amphibious jeeps or GPA's were called "Seeps" by the way (see below for more info on them).
When the vehicle is called in writing a GP, and you’re taught that name in class getting your driver’s license, and there, stamped on the ID Nameplate on the vehicle itself, is the name, and when you say it’s name, GP, out loud in a normal cadence, it's a "jeepy".
Yes, Eugene the jeep from Popeye is a cute character, and both he and the vehicle can do just about everything, well WWII Jeeps can do almost anything (WW2 USMC special "Front Line Ambulance" Jeep buried in mud), but if you dig any deeper than the folklore, it's pretty obvious how the 1/4ton War Baby got it’s name.
How the other things prior to 1940 got to be called jeep I do not know.
Help
Posted 12 August 2008 - 08:56 PM
Good post guys. Nice read.
