Ambulance collection only one of it's kind in USA (?) - The Columbia County News-Times

History on wheels 073111 - The Columbia County News-Times:

"The ambulance collection appears to be the only one if its kind in the country. There is a similar collection in Toronto, Canada, but that one is organized by the Professional Care Society and each car is separately owned, Pounds said.

Included in the collection is a replica of an 1880's horse-drawn carriage with wood interior, kerosene lanterns and bell siren.

'Nobody had one, so I got the drawings from the Smithsonian and had the Amish people build it 25 years ago,' Pounds said.

The carriage is the only ambulance in the collection that was not used as an actual life-saving vehicle.

The collection houses a 1921 Ford Model T, which includes the box of a horse-drawn carriage mounted to the chassis. The 1929 Model A Pounds owns can be seen in such films as Fried Green Tomatoes , Rambling Rose and The Bobby Jones Story .

A 1937 LaSalle ambulance currently is being refurbished.

"We've been hunting for that one for a long time," Pounds said. "We've been looking for that one since there was one in The Godfather ."

Gold Cross Chief Financial Officer Frank Lindley, who joined the crew more than a decade ago, shares Pounds' love of antique vehicles, history and the history of pre-hospital medical care. He encouraged Pounds to refurbish the few vehicles he already had at the time and continue collecting.

"Bo has put together the quintessential ambulance collection," Lindley said. "He has managed to collect horse-drawn and the entire motorized fleet from every decade.