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Tour in Style with This 1-of-500 National Park Tour Bus
Between 1935 and 1939, the White Motor Company of Cleveland, Ohio, delivered 500 copies of its venerable Model 706 tour bus for service in some of America’s most beloved national parks. Many of these buses served well into the 1960s, before being phased out in favor of more modern and powerful replacements. After years of faithful service, this 1937 model was completely restored by the Historic Flight Foundation and then given a bit of a touch-up by Glenn Vaughn Car Restorations, before being placed on the docket for Mecum’s 2025 Glendale sale that kicks off in March.
While the color schemes of the buses would vary depending on the park, this one is finished in Ripe Mountain Ash Berry and black, as it would have been during service at Glacier National Park in Montana. These White 706 tour buses also served in Bryce Canyon, Mount Rainier, Rocky Mountain, Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Zion National Parks. The buses for Yellowstone, were, you guessed it, painted yellow.
We got to drive a beautifully restored example a few years ago, and the experience of rowing the gears in the non-synchro, four-speed manual transmission will not be forgotten. The White 706 buses are powered by a 318-cubic-inch inline-six and do a decent job of getting up to touring speed. Don’t expect them to enjoy sprinting up to highway speed, however, especially when fully loaded with tourists and their gear. If we recall correctly, these big brutes are happiest around 40 mph. This engine has been updated a bit with a new carb and accessories, although it still looks the part of a 1930s hauler. Likewise, the wood body structure and brightwork look new thanks to the restoration. Inside, restored seat frames and new upholstery look ready to handle a new generation of sightseers wherever it ends up. It also has a fresh canvas top, ready to be peeled back for open-air sightseeing.
As our national parks shift away from personal cars and more toward buses for transportation within their borders, we wouldn’t mind if they took some inspiration from their mechanical grandparents. On the other hand, we would appreciate some air conditioning. This heavy-duty hauler is a fine piece of Americana and a rare opportunity to own a piece of our national history. If you’ve got a big-enough spot in your collection and need a people-mover or something rather unique for parade duty, few vehicles can compare.
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Truly a wonderful piece!
Just needs seat belts fpr today’s highways.
Saw these at Glacier NP in 2019 and was amazed……
There are a fleet of these in use at Glacier National Park.
However the fleet went thru a very expensive ”restromod” by Ford Motor Company.
No more stick shift or drum brakes !
Still no AC but enough mechanical upgrades to last awhile in their limited service.
One of the highlights of our trip to Glacier National Park in July 2024, was the open-roof tour in one of these beautiful rigs.
It’s just a beautiful vehicle. I love the look and style of this thing.
We rode the buses for two trips when we stayed at glacier in 19. Wonderful vehicle and with the top open. Only way to see the park and be safe as the roads are so busy. Wonderful driver. He did Glacier in season and same at disney world in winter. Often thought about him when covid closed him down.
A few years back Waterton still has a White 706 in service.
https://www.alluringworld.com/prince-of-wales-hotel/
This is not a Glacier bus, it’s a former Yellowstone bus that someone questionably painted as a Glacier bus, there are a couple of them painted like this. It has a baggage compartment like the Yellowstone editions. A look at the serial number will confirm this. Glacier kept all of their 35 buses, one Glacier bus was wrecked over the years, and one was saved in original condition for their museum. The remaining 33 were completely re-done in 2002.
Yes, I agree. They should be more open about that. It says in the fine print on the auction site “mimicking the appearance of the stock buses in service in Glacier National Park, Montana”. The auction site also mentions it was owned by Skeeter Carlson. It was a very good, unrestored, all original and great running bus back then and it was Yellow.
The “500 built between 1936 and 1939” is an error that is passed on from article to article. White Motors built 98 Model 706-D buses for Yellowstone, 35 for Glacier, 1 for Sequoia, and a handful for several other National Parks such as Mt. Rainier, Utah Parks, Grand Canyon, and Crater Lake. The total produced is nowhere near that 500 number. All except a couple of the small orders had bodies made by Bender in Cleveland. A large number of the Yellowstone buses have survived, and most of them have been accounted for.