Wally’s Auto was started in 1938 by Wally Zick and has been family-owned for three generations. The following is an excerpt from the book “Unforgettable Orr– A colorful first century in a remote timber town” by Tom Klein and Marshall Helmberger.

Wally Zick’s skills as a mechanic were in such demand that Orr residents tried to keep the military from drafting him during World War II.
Their appeals failed and Zick was given three weeks to find someone to replace him or sell his business.
He never needed to make the choice. After the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima and forced Japan’s surrender, the military did not require Zick to serve.
Wally’s Auto Service has reminded a fixture on the Orr business scene for 69 years [now 81 years]. Zick and his wife Katherine ran the service for 40 years before turning over the business to son-in-law Leonard Mankus and his wife Evie [Zick]. Leonard and Evie later transferred the business to their son Mark and his wife, Gina.
Zick got his start in the auto business in 1935 when he joined Ellsworth Madden, who ran a gas station and was seeking a mechanic for his shop.
“We were the only place in town that had hot water,” Zick recalled. “A bunch of guys used to hang around in the winter time to keep warm.”
Zick had a steady stream of cars to repair. As soon as he would finish fixing one in the cramped, two-stall garage, another would be ready to take its place.
After a year at that site, Zick decided the place was too small for an auto repair business. A local businessman offered to construct a new building for Zick. While the businessman scouted a location for the building, Zick went to work fixing machinery for the Civilian Conservation Corps.
Zick started business in his own shop in 1938 in a new building located where Pelican Bay IGA is now. He remained there until 1947 when a fire destroyed the building.
Zick moved the auto dealership to its present location along Hwy. 53 following the fire. The building constructed at that site is still in use today.
Zick was renowned for his service. When logging trucks experience mechanical problems, Zick would drive to the camps to repair the trucks on site. In winter, when temperatures dipped below zero, Zick would have fires built on each side of the truck to keep warm while he worked on it.
Although he worked solo when he first opened his own shop, Zick added employees over the years. One of those Alden Lindgren went on to land a top position with the Ford Motor Co.
In the early 1940s, Zick expanded his business into auto sales after being offered a Chrysler dealership. The dealer promised Zick a car for $50 down and $50 a month.
Zick kept few cars on his lot in those days. Usually there was just a demonstrator model on site. When a customer ordered a car, Zick would take the train to Minneapolis and then drive back in the vehicle. It seemed only fitting that Zick sold his first car to the train depot agent.