Corvette Returns Home After Going Missing for 44 Years
Ohio State Police recovered 1969 ‘Vette in 2018, was stolen from Indiana couple just months after they married in 1973.
The absolute worst thing that could happen to any Corvette owner is to suddenly lose their pride and joy via theft. Hours, day, weeks, months can go by, with the result being either that the car is found whole, found in pieces, or settling up with the insurance company because it was never found at all.
Sometimes, though, miracles can happen. Such was the case for Rex and Kay Hatton of Camby, Indiana. Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR-TV has the story of the couple’s reunion with their long-lost black 1969 Stingray.
“It feels like I am a young kid again,” Rex said. “For five minutes till I start getting out then I won’t be young anymore.”
A few months into their marriage in 1973, someone had stolen their Corvette. The search for the car took months, but after several police reports filed and a few attempts to find the car themselves, the Hattons ultimately settled with their insurance company, resigning themselves to never seeing the ‘Vette again.
“I always said he had that done on purpose to keep me from driving it,” said Kay.
Fast-forward to 2018, the couple now in their 60s. The Ohio State Police rings them up to let them know the Corvette had been recovered. It was found wearing midnight blue and looking a bit rough, but otherwise intact. There was just one snag into finally bringing the car home: proof of ownership.
The Hattons didn’t keep the title to the stolen Corvette, so it took some finagling with the insurance company and a single photograph Kay found of her and Rex posing next to the long-lost ‘Vette to bring it home to Indiana. Now, it’ll undergo a long restoration.
“It will be a slow process because we don’t have a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow,” Kay said, “but if we find one we will do it in parts.”
The goal is to have the returned ‘Vette up and running by the couple’s 50th anniversary.
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