One of our Heritage members reporting at a meeting last year being recently introduced to Fred Bauer's granddaughter. For those of you who may not know the Fred Bauer Story let's take a step back in time. In December 1953 Fred Bauer Sr. took over the Chevrolet dealership in St. Johns which Raymond F. Fisher had opened in 1922. Fred Bauer had been in the automobile business for several years at this point having incorporated with the state of Oregon on 10/30/47. Fred had owned Fred Bauer Motors, a Nash dealership, from 1950 to 1953. He had taken that dealership over from Propst-Doellefeld which operated it from 1946 to 1949. Nash Motors merged into American Motors Corporation in 1954
Fred Bauer Chevrolet began life with a tiny one-car showroom near the intersection of Jersey and Lombard streets. The dealership opened with a staff of 12.
Remodeled in 1967, the showroom could now display up to 12 cars. The service area was expanded and
modernized. Exhaust gases were now vented outdoors at each service bay.
Fred Bauer Chevrolet became Cyd Dorn Chevrolet in early 1987. Brother's Fred Bauer Jr.
and Tommy Bauer took over the Fred Bauer dealership with the passing of their father. As
the business entered it's 34th year of operation they felt it was time to let it go. In the end
Fred Bauer Chevrolet employed 41 employees and had annual sales of about 400 cars
and trucks.
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