Wallace Gordon Naisbitt - Fleet Sales Manager
Biography written by the Naisbitt family
Wallace (Wally) Gordon Naisbitt was born in Burlington,
Ontario on September 15th, 1922. Living with his parents, Blanche
and Milfred Naisbitt, and his sister, Lorraine, Wally proved to be a keen athlete in his early years. He earned the title of Junior Field Day
Champion at Burlington High in 1936 and 1937. His teenage years were spent pumping gas, changing oil and greasing cars at Ike Lynn’s
Service Centre where he developed an interest in automobiles. His first car was a Model T Ford Touring Sedan, co-purchased with a
friend for $15.00.
Wally enlisted with the 6th Canadian Anti-Tank Regiment in Petawawa and served overseas in Northwest Europe from 1942 to 1946.
During these years he served as a Gunner, drove a Bren Gun Carrier, also a Harley Davidson, and studied automobile mechanics. Returning
home to Canada, Wally went back to working for Ike Lynn at Lynn Hurst Motors which was now the Studebaker dealership in Burlington.
He fondly recalls that this was where he met his future wife, Velma Robson, when she pulled up and asked for twenty-five cents worth of gas
for her 1936 Dodge. Wally and Velma married in 1948 and would go on to have four children: Scott, Jane, Randy, and Norman.
Wally on a Harley Davidson Model WLC
Wally worked for Ike Lynn until a position opened up for him at the Studebaker Company in Hamilton, Ontario. He described his
early years at Studebaker in a presentation he made to the Ontario Chapter of the Studebaker Club after retiring. In his own words:
“I met Mr. T. M. (Tait) Hawkins who at the time was driving a 1942 Studebaker Commander which I was servicing. Tait was the A.G.
Prom Manager at Studebaker in Hamilton. Wanting to better my occupation, I spoke to Tait on several occasions about the possibility
of a job at Studebaker who I had heard was setting up to build cars at the Otis Elevator plant on Ferry Street in Hamilton under the
direction of President D.C. Gaskin. Tait spoke to the Studebaker Parts Manager, Tom Pryde, and set up an interview with him. I was hired
to work in the Parts Department in the Hamilton plant in 1946.
Under the supervision of Jim Muddle, my job in the stock room was to fill Studebaker part orders from the Canadian dealers from
Halifax to Vancouver. Parts came to Hamilton at the time by rail box cars. Parts had to be checked in and placed in the stock room for
the order pickers. The job was interesting to a beginner as you got to see the part numbers and physically see the parts. Another job there
was to receive all the latest blueprints and file them numerical sequence in filing cabinets – the number and latest date marked on the outside
of the blueprints. A very tedious job.
In 1948 I had a serious operation which took some 13 weeks to recover from. On my return to Studebaker, Mr. Pryde felt I should
do an office job for rest and recuperation. I was then put under the supervision of Mr. Bob Bowman who came to Studebaker from the
Toronto, Ontario dealer of D. Donnell Mackie Ltd. Bob Bowman taught me how to read parts books to locate chassis and body parts
requested by the dealers. No one knew parts better than Bob Bowman. As time went by on this job, I learned many things in the Service
and Parts Division. The company needed a parts representative on the road and in the early 50s sent me out to do the job. In this I set up
dealers with their parts in Bins, the location system, so they could be located for their service repair shops. On occasions, I had to teach
parts managers how to read and locate parts in the chassis and body books. Studebaker, at that time, was broken into districts which could
have dealers assemble at one location for sales, service and instruction meetings. I was often asked to speak to the dealers as a parts representative.
It was a busy time for me, visiting the districts from coast to coast, to cover what Studebaker required. During this time, I had some great
teachers…including Mr. Claude Farnham, Business Management Manager, Mr. Gordon Grundy, President after Mr. Gaskin, Mr. Bob Orr,
Director of Marketing, Mr. Harry Bullock, Claims Manager, Mr. Bob Johnson, Parts Manager, and Mr. Hudson. While at Studebaker in Hamilton,
we had an employee recreation club of which I was President. Also a Masons Club.”
Wally and a Professional Model at a Studebaker Driveaway
In 1954 the Studebaker Company merged with the Packard Motor Car Company. Wally described his role in this merger in his presentation:
“Mr. Grundy, President at the time, asked me to go to Windsor and move the Packard parts from the warehouse and showroom to the
Hamilton Parts Division. I was given 13 transport trucks from Overland Co. and was sent to Windsor to make the move. As the only Studebaker
employee at the Packard at that time, I was not too well received. Parts packing for the move had started – tail pipes, floor mats, mufflers,
etc. were standing in 4x4x4 crates to be loaded for shipment. There was no way they could be stacked on trucks for the move. I arranged for
the crates to be repacked to stack on the trucks. The Packard Sales Manager objected saying the crates were too heavy to move. Mr. Grundy
gave me permission to contact Mr. Art Eggert, our Studebaker Windsor Customs Manager, to locate a tow motor and get it to the Packard
warehouse. This was done and it arrived the next day and the trucks were loaded. It was necessary to keep track of the parts bins and boxes
being loaded on trucks as we continued to supply the Packard dealers with parts during the move. I was able to advise Bob Bowman in
Hamilton where the parts were in transit. The whole move only used 8 transport trucks and took only 7 days to complete and close the
warehouse in Windsor. This was a delight to Mr. Grundy as he could then place the building up for sale.”
Wally eventually became District Sales Manager for Hamilton and the Niagara Peninsula. In 1964 he was appointed Assistant Fleet Sales
Manager and then Fleet Sales Manager for Canada. He was instrumental in closing the police cruiser fleet deal with the Hamilton Police in
1966. Wally remained with the Studebaker Company until several months after the shutdown of the Hamilton plant in 1966. His days with
Studebaker were over but he never forgot the part numbers! The Naisbitt family then moved to Ingersoll, Ontario, where Wally worked for
a short time at Corral Motors, the Studebaker dealership in London. In the fall of 1966, along with a business partner, he opened a new Ford
franchise, Keeler Ford Sales, in Ingersoll. In 1968 he moved on to the Morrow Screw and Nut Company, Ingersoll, where he was Office
Administrator and then Sales Representative for the automotive accounts with General Motors, Ford, American Motors, and Chrysler in
both Canada and the U.S.A. He retired from the Morrow Company, now called Ingersoll Fasteners in 1986.
During his retirement, Wally was actively involved with the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 119 (Ingersoll), serving as Poppy Chairman
for 12 years. He had the honour of receiving the J.C. Herbert Citizen of the year award in 2003. His passion for all things automotive,
especially Studebakers, was passed onto his son, Randy, and his grandson, Michael, both who own and restore Studebaker vehicles.
Wally passed away peacefully in Ingersoll on October 17, 2019 at the age of 97.
In 2024 Wally was added to the Studebaker Made in Canada Honouree Plaque located at the Studebaker National Museum in South Bend,
Indiana for his hard work, devotion and ability to get the job done to very high standard while working for Studebaker of Canada from 1946-1966.
Studebaker Made in Canada