![A Thunderbird Club Gathering Outside the Museum](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/A_Thunderbird_Club_Gathering_Outside_the_Museum.jpg)
California Automobile Museum is an
automobile
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with Wheel, wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, pe ...
museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...
located in
Sacramento, California
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...
. It has a collection of over 150
classic car
A classic car is an older car, typically 25 years or older, though definitions vary.While other languages, such as German and Dutch, may refer to classic cars as "oldtimers", this usage is unknown in English, where "old-timer" refers to an elder ...
s,
race car
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organi ...
s,
muscle car
Muscle car is a description according to ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'' that came to use in 1966 for "a group of American-made two-door sports coupes with powerful engines designed for high-performance driving." The '' Britannica Dictionary'' ...
s and
early models displayed throughout of museum space. The mission of the California Automobile Museum is to preserve, exhibit, and teach the story of the automobile and its influence on our lives.
History
The California Automobile Museum was the first automobile museum in the west to be established in perpetuity. Founded in 1983 as the California Vehicle Foundation, the museum opened to the public in 1987 as the Towe Ford Museum, displaying the largest collection of Fords in the world, courtesy of Edward Towe, a Montana banker. David Flatt is the executive director of the museum.
The first car to be donated to the California Automobile Museum was a restored 1938 Buick sedan, a gift from John Joyce, president of the Golden One Credit Union, which is still on display at the museum. In 1997, the museum was renamed The Towe Auto Museum, as they began displaying vehicles of all makes and models. In 2009, the Board of Directors officially changed the name of the museum to the California Automobile Museum, reflecting the expanded mission it has grown into over the last 25 years.
Exhibits and attractions
Approximately 40% of the 150 vehicles are owned by the California Vehicle Foundation, while the remainder are on loan from private exhibitors. The cars on display represent a cross-section of cars driven in California over the last 120 years and are arranged in chronological order.
In addition to the static displays, the museum also has "rolling exhibits" which change frequently and display specific types of automobiles like Japanese or micro cars. While the museum can be experienced alone, docents are available to offer personalized tours free of charge.
The museum also offers
Sunday Drives, an opportunity to receive a ride in a museum car free with admission every third Sunday of the month.
Some of the notable cars on display include:
* One of the 40 surviving
1997 General Motors EV1
* A 1982
Porsche 911 SC Targa formerly owned by singer
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is a retired American singer who performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three American ...
* A
1978 Kawasaki KZ1000C CHP used in the “
CHiPs
''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The serie ...
” TV series
* A 1974
Plymouth Satellite
The Plymouth Satellite is a mid-size automobile introduced in the 1965 model year as the top trim model in Plymouth's "B" platform Belvedere line. Available initially in two-door hardtop and convertible models, the Satellite remained the top-of- ...
formerly owned by
Gov. Jerry Brown
* A 1966
Shelby Cobra
The AC Cobra, sold in the United States as the Shelby Cobra and AC Shelby Cobra, is a sports car manufactured by British company AC Cars, with a Ford V8 engine. It was produced intermittently in both the United Kingdom and later the United ...
427 formerly owned by
Road & Track
''Road & Track'' (stylized as ''R&T'') is an American automotive enthusiast magazine. It is owned by Hearst Magazines and is published 6 times per year. The editorial offices are located in New York, New York.
History
''Road & Track'' (often ab ...
editor Tony Hogg
* The 1963
Shelby Cobra
The AC Cobra, sold in the United States as the Shelby Cobra and AC Shelby Cobra, is a sports car manufactured by British company AC Cars, with a Ford V8 engine. It was produced intermittently in both the United Kingdom and later the United ...
Replica used in the movie
Ford v Ferrari
''Ford v Ferrari'' (titled ''Le Mans '66'' in some European countries) is a 2019 American sports drama film directed by James Mangold and written by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, and Jason Keller. It stars Matt Damon and Christian B ...
* A 1956
Cadillac Eldorado
The Cadillac Eldorado is a luxury car manufactured and marketed by Cadillac from 1952 until 2002 over twelve generations.
The Eldorado was at or near the top of the Cadillac line. The original 1953 Eldorado convertible and the Eldorado Brougham ...
formerly owned by actress
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth (born Margarita Carmen Cansino; October 17, 1918May 14, 1987) was an American actress, dancer and producer. She achieved fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars, appearing in 61 films over 37 years. The press coined th ...
* A 1951
Nash Rambler Convertible used by
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...
to promote her movie "
Monkey Business"
* A 1940
Lincoln Town Car
The Lincoln Town Car is a model line of full-size luxury sedans that was marketed by the Lincoln division of the American automaker Ford Motor Company. Deriving its name from a limousine body style, Lincoln marketed the Town Car from 1981 to ...
formerly owned by
Henry Ford
Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production. By creating the first automobile that mi ...
's wife Clara Ford
* A 1933
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
KB formerly owned by
Bank of America
The Bank of America Corporation (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The bank w ...
founder
A.P. Giannini
* An 1896
Ford Quadricycle
The Ford Quadricycle was the first vehicle developed by Henry Ford. Ford's first car was a simple frame with a gas-powered engine and four bicycle wheels mounted on it.
The earliest cars were hand built, one by one, and very expensive. The pecu ...
Replica
* An 1886
Benz Patent-Motorwagen
The Benz Patent-Motorwagen ("patent motorcar"), built in 1885 by the German Carl Benz, is widely regarded as the world's first practical modern automobile and was the first car put into series production. It was patented and unveiled in 1886. T ...
Replica
External links
Official Website
References
{{authority control
Automobile museums in California
Museums in Sacramento, California