Welcome to CHR! Too bad about the PO trashing the 352 you'd built. Jeff's given you some ideas on building up your 289, and I agree that a "thumper" cam is not the right way to go - they're ground for sound as opposed to performance. Mike's given you some ideas on watching for a different engine, which I like. Making the '65 period correct with a big ol' 428/429/460 would be very cool, and a drop in. You might check out Barry over at Survival Motorsports - http://www.survivalmotorsports.com/index.html if you really want to get into the FE big time.

Once you get a few posts we'd love to see some pictures.