Founded in 1907 in Pontiac, Michigan, by Edward Murphy, a manufacturer of horse-drawn carriages, Pontiac was an American automobile brand owned, manufactured, and commercialized by General Motors. Introduced as a companion make for GM’s more expensive line of Oakland automobiles, Pontiac overtook Oakland in popularity and supplanted its parent brand entirely by 1933.
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| People with their Pontiac automobiles |
Sold in the United States, Canada, and Mexico by GM, in the hierarchy of GM’s five divisions, it was slotted above Chevrolet, but below Oldsmobile, Buick, and Cadillac. Starting with the 1959 models, marketing was focused on selling the lifestyle that the car’s ownership promised rather than the car itself. By emphasizing its “Wide Track” design, it billed itself as the “performance” division of General Motors, which “built excitement.”
Facing financial problems and restructuring efforts, GM announced in 2008 that it would follow the same path with Pontiac as it had with Oldsmobile in 2004. It would discontinue manufacturing and marketing vehicles under the Pontiac brand by the end of 2010. The last Pontiac-badged cars were built in December 2009, with one final vehicle assembled in January 2010. Franchise agreements for Pontiac dealers expired on October 31, 2010, leaving GM to focus on its four remaining North American brands: Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac, and GMC.
Here below is a set of family photos from
Vintage Cars & People that shows people posing with their Pontiac automobiles from between the 1920s and 1950s.
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| A cheerful young lady posing in the passenger seat of a 1928 Pontiac Landau Coupe in a suburban street. A sign reading "Tulsa Okla – The Magic City" can be seen attached to the car's tie bar, circa 1928 |
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| A stylish couple embracing in front of a 1929 Pontiac on a rural driveway in wintertime, circa 1929 |
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| A young mother and her daughter posing with a 1929 Pontiac in winter sunshine. The car is equipped with a radiator grille cover for winter driving and registered in the city of Berlin, circa 1930 |
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| Two young ladies, possibly sisters, posing with a 1928 Pontiac in a suburban street. The palm trees in the background suggest that the location could be somewhere in Southern California, circa 1930 |
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| An elegant lady wearing a dark female suit, opera gloves and a white jabot-style collar posing with a shiny 1934 Pontiac Economy Eight Sedan in front of a row of timber houses, circa 1934 |
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| A family of three enjoying a picnic in the countryside. A 1933 Pontiac Eight Coupe can be seen in the background. The words "Ein Autoausflug, 1935" (a car trip, 1935) are handwritten on reverse, 1935 |
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| A middle-aged lady and her German shepherd posing with a 1934 Pontiac Economy Eight Sedan in the countryside. The words "Canada, 6. September 35" are handwritten on reverse, September 6, 1935 |
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| A cheerful lady posing with a 1936 Pontiac Coupe in the countryside, circa 1936 |
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| A dapper fellow dressed in a white shirt and white slacks posing with a 1934 Pontiac Convertible in an exotic location. The car is registered in the Territory of Hawaii, circa 1936 |
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| A stylish lady posing in the driver's seat of a 1936 Pontiac Deluxe Six in the drive of a private home. In the background, a single-story house with a striped awning can be seen, circa 1936 |
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| An elegant lady posing with a 1936 Pontiac in dramatic contre-jour lighting. The shiny automobile is equipped with whitewall tires, circa 1936 |
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| Three ladies, probably a mother and her daughters, posing with a 1936 Pontiac Business Coupe on a snow-covered road on a sunny winter's day, circa 1936 |
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| A blonde lady posing on the bumper of a 1938 Pontiac Six on the side of a country road in summertime. The car is registered in the state of Texas, circa 1938 |
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| A middle-aged lady proudly posing with a 1936 Pontiac De Luxe 6 on a cobbled road in the countryside. The words "Bouillon, Juillet 38" are handwritten on reverse. The American sedan is registered with Belgian number plates, July 1938 |
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| A young lady with a bunch of flowers in her hands posing with a 1938 Pontiac. The words "As ever Mary Ellen" are handwritten on the bottom of the print, circa 1938 |
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| Two ladies posing with a 1935 Pontiac Convertible, circa 1938 |
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| An adolescent girl in a striped dress posing on the running board of a 1939 Pontiac Sedan. The lettering on the brick building in the background reads "Central Hotel", circa 1939 |
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| Two bespectacled ladies posing with a 1937 Pontiac on a dirt road in rural America. The car is equipped with a radiator grille cover and registered in the state of Pennsylvania, March 23, 1939 |
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| A fellow changing a tyre on a 1940 Pontiac Four-Door Sedan, while his wife (and the photographer) are looking on. The location is a dirt road somewhere in rural America on a sunny day in early spring, circa 1940 |
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| A young lady posing with a 1940 Pontiac Torpedo Eight Sport Coupe in a residential street, circa 1940 |
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| An adolescent girl dressed in the fashion of the late thirties seductively posing with a Pontiac in wintertime, circa 1940 |
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| Three stylish ladies posing with a 1940 Pontiac on a sunny winter's day, circa 1940 |
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| Two cheerful ladies posing inside a 1940 Pontiac on a country road under bleak winter skies. The Pontiac is registered in the state of Illinois with 1941 license plates, 1941 |
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| Two ladies, probably mother and daughter, posing with a 1941 Pontiac Streamliner Torpedo Eight in front of a middle class home, circa 1941 |
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| A cheerful young lady in a floral dress posing on the fender of a 1942 Pontiac Streamliner Sedan Coupe. The location looks like a farmyard, somewhere in rural America, circa 1942 |
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| Two cheerful young ladies posing with a light-colored 1937 Pontiac in a suburban street, 1942 |
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| A young lady in a checkered dress with flowers in her hair posing on the bonnet of a 1941 Pontiac Custom Torpedo Six Coupe. The car is registered in the state of Illinois, circa 1945 |
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| A man in a double-breasted suit and a lady with a fancy hat posing with a 1941 Pontiac Business Coupe. The location seems to be a small town in the American West. The car is registered in the state of California, circa 1946 |
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| A middle-aged lady in a floral dress posing with a 1946 Pontiac Streamliner Sedan on a sunny day in the countryside, circa 1948 |
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| A young blonde lady posing on the fender of a 1946 Pontiac Torpedo Convertible, circa 1948 |
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| A dark-haired girl wearing white moccasins and a knee-length skirt posing with a 1940 Pontiac Special Six in a residential street. The car is registered in the state of California with 1949 license plates, 1949 |
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| Two ladies, probably mother and daughter, posing with a 1948 Pontiac Torpedo Deluxe Convertible on a gravel road in the countryside. They are dressed in female suits in the fashion of the forties, circa 1949 |
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| A brunette lady posing on the bumper of a 1949 Pontiac on the side of a mountain road. She's wearing a dark-colored woolen coat with a brooch on the collar, circa 1950 |
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| A fellow in a white shirt and a lady in a summer dress posing with a 1949 Pontiac Chieftain Eight Convertible. A sign reading "Hospital Quiet" can be seen in the background, circa 1950 |
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| An elegant lady posing with a 1949 Pontiac Sedan in the drive of a suburban home. She is wearing a 3/4-length dress, a fur stole, nylon stockings, and heeled sandals, circa 1950 |
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| Three ladies, possibly grandmother, mother, and daughter, posing with a 1950 Pontiac Chieftain on a gravel road in a forest. The car is registered in the state of California, 1950 |
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| Two fashionable ladies posing with a 1950 Pontiac Chieftain Sedan in summertime. They are both holding wooden tennis rackets in their hands. The car is registered in the state of California, circa 1950 |
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| A stylish lady posing with a 1951 Pontiac in the backyard of a private home. The car is registered with Belgian license plates, circa 1951 |
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| A fellow wearing a Basque-style beret and a raincoat posing with a 1952 Pontiac Chieftain Convertible on an Alpine road. The location is Fuscher Törl on Grossglockner High Alpine Road, September 1952 |
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| A middle-aged lady in a fur coat posing at the passenger side door of a 1950 Pontiac Chieftain Sedan on a bleak winter's day, circa 1952 |
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| A young lady posing with a shiny Pontiac in a suburban street. She is wearing an A-line dress and a white hat with matching handbag, gloves and shoes, 1955 |
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| Two young Latinas posing on the hood of a 1950 Pontiac Chieftain Convertible. The face of a third girl can be seen through the windscreen in the background. The car has California license plates, March 1955 |
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| A girl posing on the hood of a 1955 Pontiac Chieftain in wintertime. The words "Daryl's Car" are handwritten on the print, the car has New York license plates, circa 1958 |
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