The Lindsey family has been involved with trucking since the turn of the 20th Century. Four generations of Lindsey men have become truckers, and more are still sure to come. This month’s cover truck is owned by Dave Lindsey, who just happens to find himself smack-dab in the middle of this chain. It started with his grandfather, then on to his father, then he himself and later his two sons (who now have sons that are talking about becoming truckers). And just to add a little confusion to this story, three of these four Lindsey’s were (or are) named Dave. So, we’ll do our best not to confuse you by relating everything to the Dave who owns the beautiful orange Pete with tanker doubles on our cover. We’ll just call him Dave. Everyone else will be referred to as either “Dave’s father” or “Dave’s son” and so on.
Tracing the family’s history and their involvement in trucking takes you all the way back to the beginning of the 20th Century. Dave’s grandfather Ray was a “driver” for a lumber company in L.A. at the turn of the century. But he didn’t drive at all - he operated a wagon pulled by a team of horses. Grandpa Ray drove one of the first motor trucks when they came on the scene. In 1915, he bought a brand new GMC truck and became an independent trucker. He hauled lumber mostly, working for an outfit called EK Wood Lumber Company. Ray died in 1947 but he left behind four sons who all became truckers. One of them was Dave’s dad, Dave Sr.
Dave Sr. (seen in this old photo on the left) like his father, hauled lumber for many years. But in 1948 he signed on with Richfield and began hauling fuel. His standard run, for many years, was from Richfield’s terminal in South Gate to Salome, Arizona. At that point, he ran out of hours so a driver from Salome would take over. The driver would leave Dave’s dad behind to rest and catch up his hours, then he’d go finish the delivery. Afterward, he returned to the motel to drop off the empty tanker. By then, Dave’s dad was ready to go again, so he’d jump in the truck and do the 10-hour drive back to LA. He did this three times a week for many years - the poor truck never got a rest! The photo (above) of Dave’s dad and his 1947 KW was taken in 1948, shortly after he began doing the LA to AZ run.
In 1956, Richfield opened a new terminal in Colton and Dave Sr. became its manager. A few years later they moved him to Los Angeles where he did a little of everything. Dave Sr. drove a truck well into his 70’s, until his eyes finally gave out. He passed away a few years ago at the age of 81, but he, like his father, left behind a son to carry on the family tradition.
Dave Lindsey Jr. (pictured below) of Lindsey Transportation is the proud owner of this month’s cover truck. His trucking career began in 1954 when he was 18 years old. Like his grandfather and father, Dave Jr. hauled lumber for many years. In the mid 1980’s, Dave took a driving “break” and became a dispatcher for Beneto. While there, he learned a great deal about the tanker side of the trucking industry. In 1996, Dave was given the opportunity to buy a tanker rig. After a ten-year hiatus, Lindsey Transportation was back in business - only this time hauling gasoline and diesel instead of lumber. Dave enjoyed his time at Beneto but dispatching just wasn’t his cup of tea. Today, just a few short years later, Dave now has six trucks hauling fuel all over Southern California.
All of the Lindsey trucks look the same, but the one on our cover this month is rather unique. Dave had the Weld-It company build him a semi and pull trailer. To his knowledge, it is the only set of tanker doubles working in Southern California. He did it this way for two reasons - versatility and practicality. Doubles are easier to
maneuver in tight spots (such as small gas stations) and, if his tanker business slows down or other work becomes available, he can drop the tanks and hook-up to a flatbed or other type of trailer.
The truck is a 2002 Pete 379 with a 475 Cat 3406E, a 10-speed transmission, and air-ride all around (even on the trailers). The truck’s American Classic interior has been upgraded with a nice mahogany steering wheel and many extras on the dash. Each of the trailers feature two compartments and double bulk heads. The semi trailer can hold up to 4,000 gallons and the pull trailer tops off at 4,800 gallons. Both of the trailers have an orange frame, painted to match the tractor, and just about everything else is polished to perfection. All of the rig’s lettering and the tractor’s stripes were done by GP Graphics in Santa Fe Springs. GP does all the vinyl work for the Lindsey fleet and Vic Caliva does all the washing and polishing.
Last year, about the same time this truck was purchased, after almost 50 years of hard work, Dave turned 65 and semi-retired. Now he spends much of his time with his wife of 41 years and their ten grandchildren. He also enjoys going to Sprint Car races as often as possible - sometimes travelling all the way to Bakersfield or Phoenix to attend an event. Lindsey Transportation, for the most part, is ran by Dave’s son (you guessed it) Dave III. In fact, Dave’s son is the one who gets to drive this brand new beauty every day. He also handles the dispatching and daily duties of running the company. Dave’s other son Pat also works at the company, running one of their other units. Dave and his wife also have two daughters, Glenda and Kathy, who live locally in the Southern California area. Dave’s job now is to take care of some of the company’s paperwork and keep in contact with their customers.
Offering the best service possible and being known as a man of his word are two very important issues for Dave. He’s never had to solicit business (its always came to him), and he never “bids” for a job (his price is his price). He’s not always the cheapest guy in town, but if you want a straight answer and you want the job done right, call Lindsey Transportation - that is what they’re all about.
So now what? Well, you probably guessed it again. Dave’s son Dave has a son named Dave, who is 12 years old and talking about following in the Lindsey family footsteps. If this youngster becomes a trucker, he’ll be the fifth generation of Lindsey men to drive trucks. Now that’s a trucking family! Dave is confident that his sons (and possibly some of his grandsons) will take good care of the company when he is gone. With plans to order another new tractor and set of doubles, Lindsey Transportation is on the grow.
After four generations and 100 years of changes to trucks and trucking, it still comes down to a man and his machine, out on the open road, doing what he loves. Hopefully, that never changes.
