Toy car located after being ‘garaged’ under rock for 70 years

About 70 years after Roosevelt Ware tucked away his beloved toy 1936 Pontiac car for safekeeping, he returned to pull it from its small rock garage in the Dickert community near Wadley.

His mother died when he was two months old, and his father, John, a former slave, raised the three children. He would give each child a $1 bill for Christmas, Ware said.

Roosevelt took his money to the 10-cent store in downtown Roanoke and bought the car for 15 cents.

He would garage the toy car like the owner of the property, Roy Benefield, did with his real car. The Wares rented a house from Benefield.

He loved his little car and put rocks on either side, behind it and on top to protect it. But, they moved away to Bob Black’s property, and he didn’t think about his car until later. No one would ever take him back to get it.

He would think about it now and then but hadn’t for a long time.

Last Wednesday Roosevelt took a lady to Wadley, and they talked about how Christmases used to be and how they didn’t get much.

It popped into his mind about his little car, he said. He was of two minds driving back. One mind said of course it would not be there after 70 years. The other mind said it might be.

He thought about the car with the sideboards, the hood that opened, and the fender skirts, and drove by the place he used to live.

It took 30 minutes to find the spot, but a delighted Roosevelt found it right where he had left it 70 years ago, covered by a rock. He hesitated before sticking his hand in, thinking about snakes, but reached in and pulled out his toy car.

It’s one remaining wheel still rolls and the chrome has turned purplish, but he couldn’t be any happier than if it was new.

His father was in his late 60s when Roosevelt was born and lived to 105 years of age.

“He was 78 when I got this car,” Roosevelt said. “Not many folks are living today that lived then,” he said.

He thinks the family moved in February of 1936, and he found his old car March 1, 2006.

“Sometimes your mind tells you right,” he said with a huge smile lighting his face.