A carpenter by trade, William Donahue worked nights for the Schaeffer brothers body shop using his skills on the mostly wooden bodies of the cars from that era. As the story goes Ebbe and Charlie Schaeffer quarreled often; one day they turned to Bill and asked if he was interested in buying the business and property. It was the year of the depression and Bill had little money but did not want to pass up this opportunity. He ran home to his landlady, "the neighborhood bookmaker", and as they say "the rest is history". It's over 80 years later and Elizabeth Auto Wrecking is still in business. Along with it's Auto Glass division, Elizabeth Auto Wrecking and the Donahue family have been servicing Elizabeth and it's surrounding communities with the same "Old Fashioned" model of doing business that Bill used, based on honesty, solid relationships and hard work.

The Donahue family were very active in Elizabeth, socially and as a business. William's son Tom arrived on the scene in the 1950's and officially took over in 1967. Affectionately known around town as "DOC", it was his sense of humor and generous spirit that attracted customers and helped grow the business. In fact Doc's dear friend Don Gray, borrowed his name and opened a popular restaurant in town called Doc Donahue's.

William passed away in 1986 and Doc in 1999, but Doc's son Tom is now running the business. Like his father and grandfather, Tom loves it and has continued to be a part of the Elizabeth landscape. Tom has a degree in Political Science and a Masters in Liberal Studies, and has proudly continued that "Old Fashioned" business model as a third generation business owner.

450 Route 1 North (at 635 Garden Street) Elizabeth, NJ 07202

http://www.elizabethautoglass.com/