- Top of the Country Cruiser station wagon lineup
- Wears largely original black paint, accented with simulated woodgrain
- Massive nine-passenger capacity with folding rear seat
- Features power windows, locks, steering, and brakes
- Accompanied by documentation and period-correct accessories
Mercury touted its 1959 Country Cruisers as the “Newest of All Station Wagons," and this well-preserved Colony Park stood at the top of the line as the sum total of mid-century American splendor. At just over 18 feet long, the newest wagon bristled with features and Jet Age style, from its quad headlamps to afterburner-inspired finned tail lights.
Mercury was celebrating the 20th anniversary of its creation by Edsel Ford as the middle ground between Ford and Lincoln, and it restyled the 1959 wagon lineup in an effort to pull customers away from Rambler, Buick, and Oldsmobile showrooms. Sculpted lines gave the pillarless hardtop body a sleeker appearance than its squared-off predecessors, and Colony Park models wore simulated woodgrain trim as a nod to their handcrafted wood-bodied elders.
According to the accompanying documentation and build sheets, this Colony Park powered out of the Wayne, Michigan Assembly Plant with a 383-cubic-inch V-8 factory-rated at 322 horsepower and a Merc-O-Matic three-speed automatic transmission. Optional power steering and power brakes made for near-effortless road handling, and wide whitewall tires with turbine-style full wheel covers signed the long-term contract with the road ahead.
A tinted Panoramic Skylight Windshield wraps over the roofline and around the sides, illuminating a two-tone interior loaded with sporting durability and living room comfort that Mercury called “practical luxury.” A jet-styled instrument cluster and optional push-button AM radio join power windows and locks and a power-retracting tailgate window for modern entertainment and convenience. An optional third-row Stow-Away folding seat gives this wagon a nine-passenger capacity, and a roof-mount luggage rack augments over 90 cubic feet of interior cargo space with below-deck hideaway compartments.
The Colony Park enjoyed thoughtful caretakers over the years, spending time in a museum before recently returning to the road. Considerate stewardship and replacement of wear items from seat upholstery and floor mats to tie rods and suspension bushings has left the wagon in largely original condition, including exterior paint (a previous owner is understood to have repainted a section of the tailgate).
The sale includes documentation of its over six-decade journey, and the Colony Park also comes with a vintage Car-Snac picnic kit with twin Thermos bottles, a portable AM radio, and an instant film camera for authentic outings.
