How Bantam Jeeps, designed in Butler County, became "America's greatest contribution" to World War II

Often called "the vehicle that won the war," the Bantam Jeep was designed in Butler County and credited with helping the Allies win World War II.

These days, it's not uncommon to see a Jeep on, or off, the road. They're loved by millions, but the story of how the Jeep found its way into America's driveways and into automotive history begins in 1940, as war loomed overseas. The U.S. Army was searching for a lightweight reconnaissance vehicle that could basically take the place of the horse.

Enter the American Bantam Car Company in Butler, and not a moment too soon.

"The Bantam Car Company in Butler was about to declare bankruptcy. They'd even purchased the padlocks for the factory doors," said Andrew Masich, the president and CEO of the Heinz History Center.

Masich says that had it not been for a U.S. Army request for proposals seeking a new off-road military vehicle, Bantam might have faded into history. Instead, the company shifted into high gear and rose to the challenge.

"Those engineers stay up all night at a diner in Butler and literally on a napkin sketched the concept for the Jeep," said Masich. "They build a prototype in 48 days and 20 hours. They drove to Camp Holabird, Maryland, because they needed to break in the engine, and they were the only ones to show up with a prototype."

After testing, Army officials were impressed. The vehicle could go almost anywhere and do nearly everything they wanted from a general-purpose reconnaissance vehicle. Bantam had created exactly what the Army was looking for.

But once the United States entered World War II, demand quickly outpaced what the small Butler company could produce. Bantam's design was shared with Willys-Overland and eventually Ford, and by the end of the war, more than 635,000 Jeeps had been built in the United States.

"That little car changed the world," said Masich. "It changed the battlefield. Dwight Eisenhower and the senior generals said this was one of the most important battle implements ever devised and America's greatest contribution to the war effort."

Jeeps continued serving both the military and civilian drivers long after the war ended. And while Bantam itself eventually closed its doors, its legacy is still driving around today.

But if you want to see one of the originals, you'll either have to visit a museum like the Heinz History Center or head to Butler and meet John Pro. His chapter of the Antique Automobile Club of America maintains and operates one of the few surviving Bantam Jeeps from the 1940s.

"There's about 53 here in the states and about 73 throughout the world of the Bantam Jeeps," said Pro.

And like many surviving Bantam Jeeps, this one has a story to tell.

"This Jeep was found by a truck driver in the Nevada desert, buried in the sand in the area where they set off the first A-bomb," Pro said. "And they set little towns up, they exploded the bomb, and we felt that, that's what buried it in the sand."

After several restoration projects by various groups, Pro says the vehicle was eventually brought back to life. Today, it serves as both a rolling piece of history and a source of hometown pride.

"This is such a big piece for this town," said Pro. "We've got groups fighting over it to get it out. Everybody wants to see one. Nobody knew what it was, you know? But they know where it is now."

More than 85 years after it first rolled out of Butler, the Bantam Jeep is still turning heads. Not bad for a vehicle that started as a last-ditch effort to save a struggling company.

What began as a simple replacement for the horse became a machine that helped win a war and sparked an automotive icon that's still going strong today.