[Ads-l] Further Slight Antedating of "Jeep"

Wed Sep 2 14:03:29 UTC 2026

AI guides me to the following facts:

The first U.S. Army wheeled vehicles to be widely called "jeeps" were
the 1/2-ton Dodge VC-1 and VC-2 command and reconnaissance cars,
introduced in 1940. These were followed in 1941 by the Dodge WC-1
series of light trucks.

These larger vehicles as well as the Willys jeep had a similar boxy
shape. Presumably the Willys jeep simply inherited its name.

Though a prototype existed in 1940, the Willys jeep was not deployed
until after Pearl Harbor. So earlier cites will mostly refer to one of
the larger Dodge cars.

It seems, however, that Canadian Army reconnaissance cars in 1938 were
likely to be generic "light Ford or Chevrolet trucks" or even modified
passenger cars.

JL

On Wed, Sep 2, 2026 at 6:56 AM Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Startling that the first "reconnaissance cars" to be called "jeeps"
> were Canadian.
>
> JL
>
> On Wed, Sep 2, 2026 at 6:43 AM dave at wilton.net <dave at wilton.net> wrote:
> >
> >
> > Very nice finds! But not all that surprising. There were all sorts of vehicles (land and air) nicknamed "jeep" in the late 1930s, just as there were a variety of "reconnaissance cars." The Bantam/Ford/Willys jeeps were relative latecomers to the name.
> >
> > But these are certainly early instances of "jeep" being applied to this particular class of vehicle, if not the iconic brand and model.
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: "Jonathan Lighter" <00001aad181a2549-dmarc-request at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Sent: Tuesday, September 1, 2026 8:56pm
> > To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> > Subject: Re: [ADS-L] Further Slight Antedating of "Jeep"
> >
> >
> >
> > Interesting. This cannot be the Bantam/ Ford/ Willys jeep, which did
> > not exist before September, 1940 (acc. to Wikipedia). That vehicle
> > was also referred to as a "reconnaissance car."
> >
> >  1940 _Sun _ (Baltimore) (Aug. 16) 6 [N.] The One Hundred and Fourth
> > Quartermaster Regiment is made up of 70 cargo trucks, 15
> > reconnaissance cars, 15 motorcycles, 29 brand-new light sedans hired
> > from civilian sources, and a command car familiarly known to the
> > soldiers as the "Jeeps" [sic].
> >
> >
> > Positively startling:
> >
> > 1938 _Winnipeg Tribune_ (Aug. 11) 5 [N.]: Troopers "mounted" on the
> > front bumper and hood of roaring reconnaissance cars, or "jeeps," were
> > speeded around the course.
> >
> >
> > JL
> >
> > On Tue, Apr 22, 2025 at 8:01 PM dave at wilton.net <dave at wilton.net> wrote:
> > >
> > >
> > > I've got a bunch of early uses of "jeep" to refer to various vehicles and aircraft on my site, although none for the 1/4-ton truck as early as these.
> > >
> > > [ https://www.wordorigins.org/big-list-entries/jeep ]( https://www.wordorigins.org/big-list-entries/jeep )
> > >
> > >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: "Jonathan Lighter" <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
> > > Sent: Tuesday, April 22, 2025 7:20pm
> > > To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> > > Subject: Re: [ADS-L] Further Slight Antedating of "Jeep"
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > OED: Aug. 13, 1940.
> > >
> > > All from Newspapers.com.
> > >
> > > Aug. 10 may or may not refer to the 1/4-ton "jeep." The Canadian ex. is
> > > surprising.
> > >
> > > 1940 _Saskatoon Star-Phoenix_ (July 26) 3: Troops in "Jeeps" Make
> > > Impression..riding eight to a "jeep," or military truck.
> > >
> > > 1940 _Courier-Journal_ (Louisville, Ky.) (July 28) 56: Motorized since
> > > 1936, the battery recently got new trucks and this [large] command car,
> > > "The Jeep," for the staff.
> > >
> > > 1940 _Herald-News (Passaic, N.J.) (Aug. 10) 11: Other things new in the
> > > 44th [Infantry Division] M.P. unit [at Fort Dix] are...what the boys call
> > > affectionately the "jeep," a reconnaissance command car.
> > >
> > > JL
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On Wed, Aug 27, 2014 at 8:03 AM Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu> wrote:
> > >
> > > > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > > > -----------------------
> > > > Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > > > Poster: "Shapiro, Fred" <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU>
> > > > Subject: Further Slight Antedating of "Jeep"
> > > >
> > > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > > >
> > > > jeep (OED 1941, HDAS Feb. 20, 1941)
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > 1941 _Corsicana Semi-Weekly Light_ (Corsicana, Tex.) 4 Feb. 2
> > > > (Newspapers.c=
> > > > om) All Navarro county units are now receiving ... a number of smaller
> > > > tru=
> > > > cks (now called "jeeps" or "puddle-jumpers").
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Fred Shapiro
> > > >
> > > > Editor
> > > >
> > > > YALE BOOK OF QUOTATIONS (Yale University Press)
> > > >
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