Butler celebrates Bantam’s 85th birthday
Local leaders and residents cut a slice from an 85th birthday cake Friday, Sept. 19, as they celebrated a staple of Butler’s history.
Butler Downtown and the Butler AM Rotary Club commemorated the 85th anniversary of the Bantam Jeep’s creation at the sculpture of the vehicle located at the corner of Main and East Locust streets in Butler.
“It’s important for our history and there aren’t many places to go and see that. This was an idea to have it so that even people just passing through can be able to see it, take pictures, learn a little more from the sign we put up and how it relates to our history,” said Audrianna Bly, president of Butler Downtown and a Rotarian.
The Bantam Jeep, celebrated around Butler with the annual Jeep Heritage Festival, served an important role transporting military personnel during World War II.
The American Bantam Car Company was founded in Butler in 1935. After winning its bid to produce the Bantam Reconnaissance Car for the military, the vehicle was assembled and test-driven before making its way to Europe.
Eighty-five years later, local leaders see the Jeep’s history and its ties to Butler as something that should be celebrated for its impact.
“I’m always surprised how many people in Butler don’t know the story about the Jeep, and realize what a place we have in history right here,” Brent Thomas of the Rotary club said. “This is the celebration of 85 years. It rolled out of the plant on Sept. 21, 1940.”
Thomas said, while there is a plaque on Hansen Avenue, he would love to see the brick building on Bantam Avenue near Pullman Square, where the Jeep was designed and assembled and where administrative offices were located, further preserved.
“I think everybody is surprised by it when they find out, because sometimes we can take for granted our town. And to think something so important originated here, it surprises a lot of people,” Bly said.
The local leaders took pride in the fact a small part of the efforts that helped the U.S. military win World War II originated from a Butler factory and the city’s own workers.
“My wife and I were in California this summer. Her friend took us to the Rosie the Riveter museum. It’s dedicated to World War II. Men and women giving their lives to win this war,” Clint Champagen, a member of the AM Rotary club, said. “I’m very proud of the Bantam Jeep company being here. They were the first one, as I understand, to meet the specs for this Jeep. It was important during the fighting. Proud of the heritage of our Jeep. It’s a story of triumph.”
