Meet the Ford F-150 that Helped Change America
Sam Walton could have driven anything he wanted. Instead, he kept his old Ford F-150 until the day he died.
The Ford F-150 is, in and of itself, an iconic symbol of America. These are the trucks that have, quite literally, helped build this country. Whether you’re talking about the Rogue assembly plant worker who feeds his family by building them or the construction worker who hauls brick in one. So it should come as no surprise that legendary retailer and American businessman Sam Walton, of Walmart fame, drove a 1979 Ford F-150. And nothing else.
Walton purchased his pickup brand new in 1979 and drove it until he passed in 1992. Even as his wealth reached the point where he could have driven anything and lived anywhere. Instead, the famously humble Walton kept his old truck, drove it to store visits, and even took it hunting. And when asked why, his answer perfectly summed up his unique personality.
“I just don’t believe a big showy lifestyle is appropriate. Why do I drive a pickup truck? What am I supposed to haul my dogs around in, a Rolls Royce?”
Today that very Ford F-150 resides inside the Walmart Heritage Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas. A lasting tribute to a man whose main mission in life was to help reduce the cost of living for every American. Each year, thousands of people visit Walton’s original Five and Dime location to see this iconic truck and learn about the admirable man who drove it.
Urban legend has it that if you touch the door handle, you’ll receive the gift of frugality. And even though we aren’t exactly the superstitious types, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to learn a little something from one of the most successful businessmen to ever live. Nor to get a closer look at the Ford F-150 that properly symbolized everything he stood for!
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