By comparison, a 50th anniversary isn't anything new in the legacy of Henry Ford's empire. The little known Deuce in the Ford family, aside from the now infamous Model B, was Henry II. It was under his watch, after Edsel and Henry Sr. had passed away, that the '48 F-1s rolled off the line and helped bolster the company a few years later for the introduction of the '56 F-100 models, as Ford stood strongly in the number two spot in the industry, second only to GM after bumping Chrysler down a notch mid-century.
Also in 1956 Ford Motor Company common stock went on sale to the public in the midst of the anticipation of the new body styles for 1957 that included the addition of the Ranchero and the retractable hardtop passenger cars. Amongst all of this commotion in Dearborn, the '56 F-100 slipped out the factory with little fanfare. After all, it was pretty much a last-year rehash with the addition of a few new styling points like standard wrap-around front windshields and optional matching backglass, which surprisingly in the booming post-war economy wasn't a popular pick.
We know all of this is old news, 50 years old in fact, but for whatever reason this half-century old workhorse landed into the title of what many believe to be "The" classic truck, period. Like it or not even if you're on the other side of the tailgate, the '56 F-100 is here to stay. We'd be hard pressed to think of another truck that has been restored to infinitum and reincarnated into so many diverse forms, not to mention the sums of money put forth along the way.
Looking back over the last 10 years of CLASSIC TRUCKS and all of the tin that's been featured, we highlighted one Effie from each year over the past decade to put together a "Best Of" pictorial of the one truck that will most likely reach heights we never thought possible as it defends its crown.
 May 1996 Jerry Anderson El...  May 1996 Jerry Anderson El Dorado, California |  June 1997Bob Dochnahl La Verne,...  June 1997Bob Dochnahl La Verne, California |  |
 September 1998Jim "Bones"...  September 1998Jim "Bones" Noteboom Hemet, California |  | |