The Jeep’s place in military history and its use in many civilian sectors will be on display during the upcoming Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival, Friday through Sunday.

The “Jeeps through the Decades” display in the Jeep History Exhibit will feature Jeep vehicles used by the military and Jeeps that were modified for civilian work, including one that astute Pittsburgh Penguins fans might recall.

The Penguins are bringing the first Zamboni purchased to smooth the ice in the Civic Arena when it opened in 1961 to the festival because it was built on a Jeep CJ-5 chassis.

“The Pittsburgh Penguins are binging up a Jeep-base Zamboni,” said Rod Murray, the Penguins’ senior director of production and game presentation. “This is the original Zamboni that was purchased in 1961 for the brand new, at the time, Civic Arena, the ‘Igloo.’”

The team found the old Zamboni Jeep in “deep storage” while conducting research for its 50th anniversary in 2017, Murray said.

Research revealed that Zamboni used the CJ-5 as the platform for its ice grooming machines from the early to mid 1950s to around 1964, he said.

“They chose it because they recognized the need for four-wheel drive for traction purposes and sturdy construction,” Murray said.

The Penguins’ Zamboni was used at the arena until 1995, but spent its last few years as a backup to newer Zamboni models, Murray said.

After 1995, it was stored at the team’s former practice facility at Southpointe in Washington County, which the team used until 2015. It was eventually placed in storage.

Officials at the California-based Zamboni “were over the moon” when the team told them about the find, he said.

Zamboni helped the Penguins establish the provenance of the vehicle, he added.

Murray said the team employed local mechanics to get the Zamboni Jeep’s “Iron Duke” four-cylinder engine running, but the body remains in rough condition. In addition to the engine, the Jeep’s three-speed manual transmission remains in place, he said.

Through the faded yellow paint, images of advertising from team sponsors including Stroh’s, Budweiser and Iron City Light beers remain visible, he said.

The Zamboni Jeep will be delivered on a truck to the festival at Cooper's Lake Campground in Worth Township the day before the event.

A Penguins representative is attending the festival, but no players are expected to attend, Murray said.

Bob Hartle of Butler Township is also bringing a CJ-5 to the “Jeeps through the Decades” display.

His is a 1964 model that he purchased three years ago and finished restoring and upgrading last winter.

“It purrs like a kitten,” Hartle said.

He said bought the Jeep from a man in Clarion County who had owned it for 30 years.

Hartle stripped the Jeep down to its frame and rebuilt it using larger tires and shock absorbers than the stock sizes. He said he added aftermarket seatbelts and a roll bar to add some safety features because the Jeep wasn’t made with doors or a roof.

He left the manual brakes and steering in place.

“No frills, but it’s fun to drive,” Hartle said.

He painted the body spruce tip green, which was one of the original color options, and painted the windshield black, the original color.

“It took me close to two years to finish it,” Hartle said.

He said he drove his Jeep in the Memorial Day parade in Butler.

Baxter Sheakley of Oakland Township is bringing his 1948 JC2A, the first Jeep sold in the civilian model.

“I’ve owned mine 10 years, but I’ve been associated with it for over 40 years,” Sheakley said.

He first encountered the Jeep in Ohio at a snow plow manufacturer while he was working for Walsh Equipment. The plow manufacturer bought the Jeep when it was new and used it to clear its parking lot, he said.

“I bugged them for 36 years to sell it to me. When they finally did, it was in pretty bad shape and it hadn’t run in 16 years,” Sheakley said.

He said he got the Jeep’s flathead four-cylinder engine running before rebuilding the vehicle and replacing the body with a new one. He also changed the color from the original Luzon red to a plain red.

“It’s pretty much stock except for slightly bigger brakes. I drive it couple times a month in the summer. I doubt that I put even a thousand miles on since I redid it,” Sheakley said.

He said he is volunteering to work at the history exhibit and drive a courtesy vehicle during the festival.

Sheakley’s Jeep, Hartle’s Jeep and the Zamboni Jeep will be among a display of 16 Jeeps, including two built by Butler’s American Bantam Car Company, said Bill Ringeisen, who organizes the Jeep History Exhibit.

One of the Bantam Jeeps is a service truck that never left the factory and was never put into service, and the other is a BRC40 Jeep.

A JPW Jeep built by Ford for the British military will be included in the display, Ringeisen said. The JPW is painted a tan color for use in desert warfare, he said.

A convertible 1949 VJ Jeepster and a DJ-3A Surrey are also among the Jeeps that will be on display.