Ain't no engineer either but it's a take off of the 60's and 70's ford it's like the design the old Banjo cup cars used. The 2 rods are strut rods to control front to rear movement of the lower A frames and the other is a anti roll(sway) bar.
Nice job on the 56,love it! I spent many hours behind the wheel of a 56 150 series business coupe driving to and from Eglin AFB Florida to Asheville NC when I was in the Air Force. Wish I still had it!