Jace Allen’s 1951 Super Deluxe Catalina Pt 1

My name is Jace Allen, and when I was just 19 years old, living in Michigan, I stumbled into a project that would change the course of my life. What started as childhood curiosity about an old, abandoned car hidden away in a barn slowly grew into a passion — and eventually, a full restoration journey.

Growing up, my dad and I would ride our bikes down the road we lived on. We would ride past an old, collapsing barn that was a half mile down our road. Every now and then, we’d sneak a peek inside the collapsing barn where an old car sat covered in dents, broken glass, and farm dust. Neither of us knew what kind of car it was, or even how old it might be. All we knew was that it was abandoned, mysterious, and captivating.

As the years went on, I never forgot that car. At 19, I finally decided it was time to uncover its story.

In this blog, I’ll share the full story of my 1951 Pontiac Super Deluxe Catalina — from its fascinating history and the life of its original owner, to the challenges of pulling it out of a collapsing barn, to the long road of restoring it piece by piece. Along the way, I’ll also talk about what I’ve learned, the surprises I’ve uncovered, and the future I envision for the car once it’s complete.

How It Started for Me

In 2019, I finally decided to dig deeper and try to find out who the car had belonged to. After some searching, I found a phone number for a woman named Rosanne, the wife of the original owner, Dominic.

When I called, she didn’t answer. Instead, a man picked up. I explained why I was calling and he told me he’d pass the message along. Honestly, I didn’t think I’d ever hear back. Months went by — eight of them — and I figured that was the end of it.

Then one day, out of the blue, Rosanne called me back.

Dominic’s wife explained that he had parked the car back in 1968 when they were moving from Michigan to California. The plan was to come back for it later — Dominic hoped to keep it as a classic, something to enjoy in his later years.

But that never happened.

Sometime in the 1970s or 80s, kids broke into the barn. They broke windows, dented panels, stole parts, and left the car in rough shape. What was once a family car full of memories slowly became just another forgotten project.

For Dominic’s wife, it was disappointing to see. It was the first car she had ever learned to drive, and finding it vandalized took away the joy of going back to it. After that, she simply let it sit, year after year, untouched.

A Second Chance

After sharing the history, Dominic’s wife gave me the chance I had been hoping for. She told me, “You can have it, as long as you do something good with it.”

It wasn’t just permission — it felt like a responsibility. I wasn’t just pulling an old car out of a barn, I was taking on the job of giving it a new life. From that moment on, I knew this project had to be more than just a restoration. It was about honoring the story, the history, and the people tied to it.

Bringing the story up to this point feels like the true beginning of my journey with the Pontiac. What started as a childhood curiosity had now turned into a real responsibility, and I finally had the chance to do something meaningful with the car. In the next post, I’ll share how I cut a path to the barn, opened it up for the first time since 1968 — after 52 long years — and saw the Pontiac exactly as it had been left. That moment marked the real start of the restoration and the adventure ahead.