Station wagons were so named because the wooden-bodied vehicles were used to take travelers and their baggage back and forth from hotels to train stations in the early twentieth century. This is one piece of information I learned from an article I read at thebeachsideresident.com about a man who restores the old “woodies.” Erik Johnson of Cocoa Beach, Florida, is passionate about the restoration work he does on woodies, or automobiles with wood bodies.
Erik Johnson is a New England native who now resides in Florida and works as a woodworker. He is a baby boomer who first encountered woodies as a surfer during his New England youth. After serving in Vietnam, Johnson settled in Cocoa Beach in 1974 because of its climate’s similarity to Southeast Asia. He worked as a woodworker and heard of some woodies that needed salvaging. He purchased and restored them and has been a fervent woodie restorer and maker ever since, becoming very successful with thousands of woodies across the country to his credit.
The woodie first appeared in 1910, used as the aforementioned station wagon. At that time they were built more for their practicality and economy than their aesthetic appeal. In the 1920s they became more refined, built with rare woods like bird’s-eye maple and often being used to chauffeur the rich. In subsequent decades they served as the nation’s first Sport Utility Vehicles, being built with cheaper woods like common maple, mahogany, birch, and ash. They began to decline in the 1950s and ‘60s when car manufacturers favored the cheaper and less labor-intensive pure steel bodies. Many owners also found the woodies labor intensive and abandoned them. However, around the same time as their general decline, they became a favorite of surfers, who liked their spaciousness for carting people and boards back and forth to the beach. They are now becoming popular among baby boomers, nostalgic for their youth.
Johnson currently does woodie restoration and custom construction as well as other woodwork projects. His shop is one of only a few in the country that does that type of work. His woodwork on the cars involves planing, sanding, shaping, and varnishing the wood into doors, window moldings, tailgates, and roofs. He also does other work such as wiring and engine repairs to the cars. Other woodwork projects that he busies himself with include custom furniture, cabinets, and boat interiors. He says that he refuses to participate in the recession by keeping himself busy.
Woodies are a true passion of Erik Johnson. These cars that were originally built for their economy are now appreciated for their beauty.
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