Have you ever driven a Henry J? Ever heard of one?

     The Henry J was one of several short-lived, post-World War II automotive start-ups during the heady years of the 1940s and 1950s. It was the "baby" of Henry J. Kaiser, chairman of Kaiser-Fraser-another largely forgotten make-born as the result of that company's refinancing after a disastrous sales year in 1949.

     In today's world, an inexpensive, compact car that any American could afford seems like sound judgment. After all, it worked for Mr. Ford. Unfortunately, in the heyday of the "Hot Rod Lincoln" and Buick Roadmonster-that is, Roadmaster-a la Jay Leno, it was an idea ahead of (or behind) it's time. Especially when it was also only a couple of hundred bucks less that a full-size Chevy. The Henry J died in 1954...only a year ahead of Kaiser-Fraser.

     It was a novelty, though, and in 1952 and 1953, specially "spec'd" models were sold in the Sears, Roebuck Catalog under the nameplate of—what else?—Allstate. Less than 2,400 of these Sears specials were ever built and are now quite a collector's item.