after climbing around my stash of "stuff", and getting "so close, but so far away.......", a 78 imperial tilt/telescope column "very roughly" measures "about" 36-38" from the edge of the wheel to the floor mounting plate, with the wheel being in the collapsed [shortest] position.
it also has approximately one foot of the shaft protruding from the base, where it then would connect to the box.
if that may even be remotely close to anything that might work for you, i can do more "gymnastics" to get the column down from the rack, and get precise measurements and a couple of pictures.
[that ought to be a hoot, watching an old man climb around and get "stuck" in a place he won't be found for days to come. ]