America’s love affair with the automobile has been reflected in many ways. None more passionately than the dozens of car museums stretching coast to coast. Whether it’s a visit to New York’s Museum of Transportation, the National Automobile Museum in Reno, Nevada or The Henry Ford in our backyard in Dearborn, all have paid homage to the auto industry in their own way.

It’s safe to say, however, that you won’t find a more diverse, expansive or just plain interesting auto collection than the Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, Michigan. Classic car enthusiast Donald Gilmore founded the museum, located between Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo and Battle Creek, which includes eight artifact-heavy historic barns, a re-created 1930s service station, a small town train station, as well as an authentic 1940s-era diner.

The museum houses almost 200 cars, from an 1899 Locomobile to vintage Packards, Duesenbergs, and a rare 1948 Tucker. What’s more, the museum is home to 24 rare “muscle cars” built during the 1960s and 1970s, all stored in barns nestled within the rolling countryside of southwestern Michigan.

The Gilmore Car Museum

While Donald Gilmore, a chairman with the Upjohn Pharmaceuticals company, is given credit for the establishment of the attraction that bears his name, a big assist goes to his wife, Genevieve. Genevieve got her husband hooked on collecting antique cars in 1963 when she gave him a 1920 Pierce-Arrow “project car” for his birthday. Two years later, his classic car collection had reached 31 and Gilmore was scouting out property to store them. Genevieve, as the story goes, suggested turning Donald’s hobby into a museum that became the Gilmore Car Museum three years later.

The site for Gilmore’s brainchild became a reality when, in 1965, he purchased 90 acres of pristine farmland in Hickory Corners that eventually became the site for this unusual museum. After a number of fits and starts, the museum opened to the public for the first time on Sunday, July 31, 1966. Today, more than 40,000 visit the Gilmore annually.

While the focal points of the museum are the eight bright red barns rising from the picturesque countryside, the Gilmore Car Museum has a number of other attractions that pay homage to the era of the classic car in America.

One of those is a fully-refurbished circa 1930 Shell gas station that stands at the entrance to the Gilmore.  At the station, constructed in 1998 using the original 1929 blueprints, visitors can purchase admission tickets, browse an extensive collection of automobile literature as well as purchase auto-related collectibles and clothing. In addition, you will find a vast display of Shell memorabilia - gas pumps, and gas pump globes as well as classic signage.
The porcelain signs that adorn the building hold special significance to the museum. They were originally part of Hickory Corners’ own Shell Station, which was once located only three miles from the Museum. In 1998, a memorabilia collector discovered a number of original Shell signs in a nearby storage barn and donated them to the gas station exhibit where are on display today.

Another throwback to an era gone by, and one of the Gilmore’s more recent additions to the museum, is the Blue Moon Diner built in 1941 and moved all the way from Meridan, Connecticut. The Diner, obtained in 2004 and brought in to provide an extra measure of nostalgia to the Gilmore, was officially opened for business in 2005 and features 1940s bar stools, booths and, of course, the authentic server uniforms of the day. Lunch featuring burgers and fries is served daily from 11am-4pm.

Another recent addition to the Gilmore is its miniatures exhibit sponsored by The National Miniatures Trust Museum. Opened in 2007, the display includes a number of miniature toys, stick ponies, music boxes and, the centerpiece of the showing, a tiny Shirley Temple doll complete with her trunk.

But it’s the massive, bright red barn showrooms that make the Gilmore Car Museum a one-of-a-kind experience.

The largest barn on the museum grounds is known as the “S Barn,” a name derived from the early steam-era vehicles displayed here. This structure was actually built on site in 1966 as a copy of a foaling barn that had been located near Bangor, Michigan.

Donald Gilmore discovered the S Barn during a trip to the countryside and was immediately taken by this unusually large and ornate edifice and wanted to see it preserved. When the owner of the barn refused to sell, Gilmore gained permission to have photographs and measurements taken of the structure and hired an architect to draw every nuance of the building.

Today, the S Barn stands as a faithfully-constructed reproduction of the original building, right down to the complicated beam and support system. Recent S Barn exhibits have included a show on the various types of power used to propel cars in America, an exhibition spotlighting the city of Kalamazoo and its contribution to the auto industry and a showcase of 24 of the most popular “muscle cars” of the 1960s and early 1970s.

Perhaps the most imposing structure at the Gilmore is known as the Campania Barn. Campania, the recipient of Barn of the Year by the Michigan Barn Preservation Network in 2004, is an architectural marvel. Built in 1897 by the A.M. Todd Company, a mint farm entity, the barn stands nearly five stories tall and was originally located near Fennville, Michigan.

Eventually, A.M. Todd sold off the barn and it went through several owners before ending up in the hands of the state of Michigan. In 1965, Campania caught the attention of Donald Gilmore, who acquired the barn from the state with the purpose of moving it to the Hickory Corners property…destined to be the site for his car museum.

The operation of moving the Campania barn to Hickory Corners was a monumental endeavor. To get the job done, Gilmore hired highly-skilled construction workers who were given the task of carefully dismantling the barn board by board, numbering each piece and reassembling it at the museum site. The Campania barn, restored to its former condition but now 45 minutes away from its original location, serves as the center of the vast Gilmore barn complex.

The Carriage House, designed as a barn to fit in with its lush surroundings, was the first building erected with the purpose displaying cars at the Gilmore. Constructed using a system of trusses and visible beams, this new breed of barn was designed to blend in with its natural surroundings and features a spectacular high ceiling. Originally, Genevieve and Donald used the silo area as a private sitting room complete with custom-made circular furnishings and a contemporary kitchen carefully laid out to allow for a space for entertaining guests. Today, the barn is home to the "American Luxury" exhibit featuring some of the most extraordinary vehicles produced in the so-called “classic era” of American auto building, such as the Duesenberg, Auburn, Packard, Cadillac, and Lincoln.

One of the Gilmore’s most popular attractions is the 6,400 square-foot Pierce-Arrow Museum, dedicated in 2004. Within the museum’s current collection are two very rare Piece-Arrow models which served as one-of-a-kind prototypes developed following World War I. One of those is a 1920 Pierce-Arrow Waldon model built by former Packard executive Sidney Waldon that features a unique four-cylinder engine with a shaft-driven overhead camshaft.

The other truly unique Pierce-Arrow being showcased at the Gilmore is the only known survivor of the 11 experimental cars originally built by the Aluminum Company of America (ALCOA) in 1925 as an attempt to convince the auto industry to utilize more aluminum in the production of cars. This unrestored original is powered by a six-cylinder aluminum engine, has an aluminum body and a cast aluminum frame and front axle. The wheels, brake system, steering apparatus and transmission are also fabricated almost entirely of aluminum.

In addition to the permanent displays, the Gilmore plays host to a number of car-related special events during the summer. Included in this year’s lineup is a vintage motorcycle show, a muscle car show and swap meet and an antique tractor, engine and machinery show. The venue even has a day for “The King” in August when the museum hosts the “Elvis Memorial Car Show and Tribute Concert.”

Even though Donald Gilmore passed away in 1979, and wife Genevieve in 1990, the legacy they began continues to grow as the Gilmore Car Museum is constantly looking for the most rare and innovative automobiles to feature within the lovely setting of Hickory Corners.

For the past 28 years, the Gilmore Car Museum has been the home of the Red Barns Spectacular - west Michigan's "Grand Daddy" of antique, classic and special interest car shows, swap meets and car corral. This year’s event takes place on Saturday, August 2, 2008 and will feature hundreds of cars displayed and for sale, great family fun with food, vendors, antiques, swap meet, antique car rides and more. For more information about the Spectacular, other exhibits, or general museum information go to: www.gilmorecarmuseum.org.

For mor information on other automotive museums in Michigan, go to www.motorcities.org.