1937 was an eventful year. Lyndon
Johnson was elected to his first term in the House of Representatives, Joe
DiMaggio was helping the New York Yankees win yet another world series, San
Francisco was opening the Golden Gate Bridge and the canned miracle of Spam hit
the market.
On the home front, W.T. (Hooker) Vandergriff opened his
Chevrolet dealership on the corner of Division and Center Street here in
Arlington. This was the humble beginning of the Vandergriff chain of auto
dealerships. Well, times have changed. Automobiles have come a long way from the
full-framed, heavy metal bodies they once had.
Today we have
unibody construction with no frames and high strength steel (HSS) body panels.
We also see space age polymers being used as body panels as well as flexible
bumpers. Today we have very sophisticated two and three stage paint
applications.
Vandergriff has kept up with these ever changing vehicle
designs with the latest in repair techniques and equipment. Today the
Vandergriff name is on five dealerships and two collision facilities.
Vandergriff forms a major part of the Arlington economy. Our name has always
represented honesty and integrity in serving the public. Vandergriff is truly an
"Arlington tradition, since 1937"