{"id":426,"date":"2021-09-13T18:12:43","date_gmt":"2021-09-13T18:12:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/scua\/?p=426"},"modified":"2021-09-13T18:12:45","modified_gmt":"2021-09-13T18:12:45","slug":"cougars-capris-fiats-oh-my-automotive-history-in-the-george-conoly-phillips-papers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/scua\/2021\/09\/13\/cougars-capris-fiats-oh-my-automotive-history-in-the-george-conoly-phillips-papers\/","title":{"rendered":"Cougars, Capris, Fiats, oh my! Automotive History in the George Conoly Phillips Papers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Mel Frizzell, Special Collections Assistant<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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One of the most memorable collections I\u2019ve worked on since I\u2019ve worked in ODU Special Collections has to be the George Conoly Phillips Papers<\/a>.\u00a0 It was one of my early collections and may have even been the very first archival collection I ever organized.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conoly Phillips was extremely active in politics, religion, and civic organizations in Norfolk, the Tidewater region, and Virginia, but in my opinion, those aren\u2019t the most interesting parts of his collection.   To me the most interesting parts of his collection relate to Conoly Phillips\u2019 car dealership. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1956, Conoly and his brother Tench opened the Phillips Brothers Automoville used car dealership in Norfolk.\u00a0 The following year they entered into an agreement with Ford Motor Company to sell imported Ford vehicles. \u00a0By 1960, the brothers had also acquired a franchise with Rambler and formed \u201cPhillips Brothers Rambler.\u201d \u00a0After much business success, Tench negotiated with the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors to open an Oldsmobile franchise in Norfolk.\u00a0 The franchise was awarded under the condition that Tench divest of his interests in Phillips Brothers Rambler, and his separate Oldsmobile franchise was begun in early 1965. \u00a0\u00a0For his part, Conoly moved on from the Rambler business and became an authorized dealer for Ford Lincoln\u2019s and Mercury\u2019s in 1967.\u00a0 The dealership initially held the name \u201cTench Brother\u2019s Lincoln-Mercury.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 By the 1970s, the business became known as \u201cConoly Phillips Lincoln-Mercury.\u201d\u00a0 Conoly retired from the daily management of the business in 1999.\u00a0 At that time, his company merged with Freedom Automotive, and Conoly Phillips remained a partner in the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The materials in Conoly Phillips papers relating to the car dealership include contracts, financial statements, correspondence, board minutes, policy and procedure manuals, and a host of other business materials.  They also contain advertising and marketing materials, artifacts, and scrapbooks from the dealership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among the marketing and advertising materials are newspaper advertisements; yellow pages ads; press releases; and scripts for radio and television commercials.  Phillips also took part in promotional events such as the 1972 Mid-Atlantic Auto Show at the Norfolk Scope.  The collection contains information on several models of cars including the Rambler, Capri, Cougar, Fiat, Daimler, Lincoln, and Mercury. There\u2019s even a children\u2019s coloring book with pictures of 1969 Ford car models to color in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Artifacts include Phillips Brothers emblems and stickers, some promotional pens for the business, an auto show emblem, aerial photos of the Lincoln-Mercury dealership, a license plate, and a set of Phillips-Lincoln Mercury keys. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scrapbooks feature newspaper clippings about the dealership, advertisements, an overview of the business for the 1964 Rambler Retailer of the Year contest, and a plan for a Women\u2019s Automotive Resource Center.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Conoly Phillips graduated Maury High School in Norfolk with honors in 1949 and received his bachelor\u2019s degree in Business Administration from the University of Georgia in 1953.  He also served for two years as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force.  Later, Phillips earned his MBA from Old Dominion University in 1976.  Conoly married Charlotte Baird Ferebee and the two had three children together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conoly was involved in a number of civic and community organizations for business, personal, religious, and philanthropic reasons.  These included the Better Business Bureau, Norfolk Chamber of Commerce, the Norfolk Symphony, the Norfolk Rotary Club, the United Community Fund, the Union Mission, the United Drug Abuse Council, and many others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Phillips was a religious person belonging to First Presbyterian Churches in Norfolk.\u00a0 Phillips served on the Norfolk City Council from 1976 to 1980 and was reelected to the Norfolk City Council in 1986.\u00a0 In 1978, he ran unsuccessfully for a U.S. Senate seat.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

George Conoly Phillips passed away, April 22, 2020, at the age of 88.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Collection Guide for the George Conoly Phillips Papers: <\/strong>https:\/\/archivesguides.lib.odu.edu\/repositories\/5\/resources\/307. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photo Captions:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n