1956 Benroy Teardrop Trailer

Auto Trader magazines are a dangerous thing. You just never know what you're going to find in one that you just HAVE to have.

In 2000 we purchased a 1958 Nash Metropolitan. What a fun little car!  Being geeks, we set about accessorizing with little do-dads. One day while looking through an Auto Trader we came across the ultimate accessory for the Met - a teardrop trailer. For sale in a community not far from ours, we called and set an appointment to see it in person. Well, it was love at first sight.

The Benroy was all original except for the exterior paint that had been redone to match the previous owner's streetrod. He also had a custom mattress made for the interior - very comfortable! We couldn't say no, bought it and brought it home. Now, we have to use it, right? Right!

We promptly joined Tin Can Tourists. We joined right before a Fall Gathering. Since it's held rather close to our home, we decided to drive out and check the event out during their Saturday Open House. Oh my gosh, we belong here! We met some great people (including Christine and Cullen Tate who also owned a Benroy at that time and who have since become dear friends.) and vowed we'd return with our trailer.

The next Annual Gathering came and we attended, taking the Benroy and our Metropolitan. We were blessed with the largest, loudest, horrible thunderstorm we'd ever been through. Trees were knocked down, lightning strikes, power outages and we're in a tiny teardrop. Wow. It was a night I'll never forget!



Our open house set-up.  Not fancy, but it was our first time.  : )



One morning around 8:00 am (EST) my husband answered a call. We had privacy manager at the time and he heard the name Bennet Petersen being announced.    Now, Mr. Petersen lived in California.   It was EARLY there. He spoke to us for almost an hour about our trailer, the history of the company and invited us to visit and camp at his place. What a nice man! He said our trailer appeared to be the nicest original survivor he had seen and was shocked to learn we even still had the original galvanized water holding tank.

One day while researching Benroy on the internet I found an article written by Lisa Whipp, Tales and Trails - The Teardrop Times issue #5 spring/summer 1995. I contacted them and asked if there was a way to get ahold of Mr. Bennet Petersen, the "Ben" of Benroy. I was given an address and promptly wrote a letter, enclosing pictures of our trailer and asking questions.

We had our Benroy for several years, and had some great adventures. We cooked in the kitchen (in the back), slept in it and travelled through several states. I loved the little Benroy, but being so small did have its limitations as we also had 2 kids and a dog. We started to talk about selling it and getting a larger trailer.

I had joined an online forum Teardrops and Tiny Travel Trailers at some point and had posted photos of our trailer. Another gentleman on the site had just sold his Benroy to Mr. Petersen's nephew Dennis and mentioned that ours might be for sale too.

So, contact was made. After some back and forth we made arrangements for our little trailer to return to California where it was made, and to go back to Bennet's family. Dennis mentioned that it would probably end up with a grandson, as the family had none of the trailers that Bennet had made except for the one he had just purchased prior to ours.  I agreed to let it go on one condition, that he send us pictures of Bennet with our trailer.  Being a man of his word, some time later Dennis sent us a group of photos of Bennet with the trailer. 


What a perfect way to end our chapter of the trailer's life.  I often miss having a teardrop due to their character and how easy they are to use.  I look at pictures of the Benroy and remember how much fun we had with it.  But, then I look at the pictures of Bennet with the trailer he had built 50 years earlier, and I know we did the right thing.  Thanks, Bennet, for loaning us your trailer.  I'm glad it sent home.

Note:  I wrote this article quite a few years ago for a Tin Can Tourists newsletter.  I have since learned that Bennet passed away in 2010.  Rest in Peace Bennet and thank you for the wonderful trailers.