Tom,
You really had me scratching my head trying to imagine where the pitman arm had bushings. I think you mean the idler arm don't you. The idler arm supports the center link, drag link, or whatever you want to call it on the passenger side of the car. The idler arm does have bushings that when worn, can result is sloppy steering and/or shimmy. It is probably the weakest link in steering systems of that era.
Back in the dark ages, they used to sell bearing kits to replace the bushings in the idler arm. It made steering a lot easier and they lasted a lot longer. I know they are still available for my '55 Chevy, but I haven't seen them for Ford products for a long time.
I hope an idler arm repair will take care of the play in the steering. I sort of doubt it is the whole problem but it is the cheapest place to start. Piecemeal repairs to the steering system can end up costing a lot of wasted dollars because a front end alignment is frequently in order.
If you don't have a shop manual; get one so you can get good info to help you evaluate the scope of the problem. My worst fear is a steering box rebuild may be in order. These guys are notorious for wear at the neutral or "straight ahead" position of the worm gears.
Here's Hoping, Tom
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