LaPlace man buys property, uncovers 1953 MG Midget in old shed
Published 12:05 am Saturday, October 19, 2019
- Ruben Keating of LaPlace stands near the aged shed found in the woods on his newly purchased Old Highway 51 property.
LAPLACE — Ruben Keating of LaPlace has the heart of a collector and an eye for detail. Over the years, he’s accumulated numerous chess sets, reconditioned barber chairs, vintage bicycles and a bronze statue created in Moscow, Russia.
His newest collector’s project is one that ties the past of St. John the Baptist Parish to the present.
The two lots Keating recently purchased as investment property on Old Highway 51 came with a little something extra. Lodged underneath an aged, overgrown shed, Keating found a classic car — a 1953 MG Midget, to be exact.
Time has rusted its paint exterior and a fallen tree has crushed the shed that houses it. Yet, the car is intact, and Keating is hopeful his 25 years’ experience working in metal and steel fabrication can get the vehicle running once again.
The 1953 MG Midget Ruben Keating of LaPlace discovered on is Old Highway 51 property is currently trapped inside a fallen shed. It will soon be removed, and Keating has plans to get it back on the road again with some restoration work.
The first step is to have it pulled from the shed, which sits on a wooded area of the property, inches away from encroaching swamp waters.
“Once we get it out, I want to see if the engine’s not frozen and if it still turns over, if basically it can be reconditioned with a budget in mind,” Keating said.
If it can’t be reconditioned, Keating plans to add a new engine in its place.
This is what the old and rusted 1953 MG Midget on Ruben Keating’s property could look like if restored.
“It may not be the original, but it’s the outward appearance of the car that gets people excited,” Keating said. “It would be nice to see it rolling again. Put it on the road. Put life back into some things that have died.”
Keating looked into purchasing property on Old 51 after hearing the West Shore Levee Risk Reduction Project is only a few years from completion.
Keating became aware of the 1953 MG Midget after Bruce Cashio of LaPlace visited his sister’s antique/thrift store on W. Fifth Street.
Years ago, Cashio worked for Jerry Boswell, a carpenter who constructed many houses in St. John the Baptist Parish. Boswell rented the property that Keating recently purchased.
“He was renting a spot, and we built a little garage that’s still there,” Cashio said. “I went walk through the woods over there about 40, 50 years ago. I came to this little building, and in the building I saw there was a little car in there. It was in good condition at the time.”
Cashio learned the car belonged to the brother of one of his high school classmates. He tried to buy the car, but it wasn’t for sale.
“A couple of years back, I took a ride back there because I wanted to see if it was still there,” Cashio said. “There was the car, still sitting in that little barn. People that grew up around here remember the cars and bikes people had.”
Larry Martin Sr. remembers seeing the same 1953 MG Midget in the 1950s and 60s. According to Martin, a man named Burgess Hymel owned it at the time. He recalls it as a recognizable car that looked different from other vehicles on the road.
“I remembered it to be a green car,” Martin said. “That lot is where he used to keep it in a little garage on side of his house. That was his personal car. It wasn’t just a collector’s item. He used to drive it around and go to work with it.”
Keating is just thankful the tree that crushed the shed did not damage the car. He said it all feels meant to be.
“My sister and my family are into collecting things too, but they are a little more meticulous than I am,” Keating said. “They’ll do their research on a glass figurine to see what it’s value is before they get it. Me, I look and see how detailed it is and how much work somebody put into it.”
