Pre-war museums & collections

Founded in 1948 in Southampton by collector and writer Henry Austin Clark Jr.; historically held the Thomas Flyer that won the 1908 Paris-New York Race.

Housed at historic Fire Station No. 27 in Hollywood; free museum with 30+ pieces of motorized firefighting apparatus plus horse-drawn equipment dating to the 1880s.

Located within Marathon Village, a restored early-1900s factory complex in Nashville that manufactured the Marathon automobile from 1909-1914, this small museum displays several of the roughly nine known surviving Marathon cars.

Housed on the grounds of the 1897 Auburn Heights mansion in Yorklyn, Delaware, this museum displays the collection built by T. Clarence Marshall beginning in 1947, anchored by the world's largest operating collection of Stanley steam cars.

Privately founded non-profit displaying a broad multi-marque collection of 170+ vehicles including classics, hot rods, customs and imports, plus one of the largest displays of auto memorabilia, antique gas pumps and signage.

Privately owned non-profit automobile museum in Glendale housing over 170-200 vehicles spanning more than 100 years of automotive history, plus an extensive collection of automobilia, antique gas pumps, and neon signage.

A small antique museum adjacent to the McLeod Farms roadside market and peach farm in McBee, displaying over 20 antique cars alongside vintage farm equipment.

Private steam/gas tractor collection near Great Falls/Belt started in the late 1940s by Walter Mehmke; includes antique automobiles alongside roughly 20 steam tractors and 12 gas tractors.

Opened July 24, 1948 by singer/collector James Melton on Route 7 in Norwalk, a 20,000 sq ft museum with 55+ antique cars, bicycles, and music boxes.

Museum in Inola with 19 well-preserved vehicles (1917-1953) plus an extensive collection of gas station memorabilia (145 gas pump globes, 8 pumps, signage, oil cans).

A nonprofit, co-op style 'living' museum inside the Old Clarkesville Mill, averaging 125+ full-size vehicles plus 5,000+ model cars, memorabilia, signage and art. Community-owned displays change frequently.

A 501(c)(3) educational foundation dedicated to preserving Model A Fords. Its actual Model A Ford Museum is located on the Gilmore Car Museum campus in Hickory Corners, Michigan (opened 2013).

Gilmore partner museum and the largest public museum dedicated to the Model A Ford, run by the Model A Ford Foundation Inc.

Official museum of the Model T Ford Club of America, in two buildings in Richmond's Historic Depot District with 40+ Model Ts plus a working machine shop and vintage garage.

General automobile collection of 150-200+ vehicles (1890s-1980s) housed within the Old Montana Prison Museum complex; one admission covers all five museums.

Volunteer-run nonprofit museum in rural Campo (San Diego County backcountry) with 200+ vintage trucks, buses, RVs, and cars in varying restoration states; founded 1986 by collector Carl Calvert.

A free family-founded non-profit displaying 25+ historic automobiles from the 1910s-1960s integrated with antique agricultural equipment reflecting the valley's farming heritage.

By-appointment Oxnard museum focused on French Art Deco-era automobiles and coachbuilding (Bugatti, Delahaye, Talbot-Lago), founded by collector Peter Mullin; occupied the former Otis Chandler museum building.

Historic non-profit museum atop Petit Jean Mountain, opened 1964 by future Arkansas Governor Winthrop Rockefeller. Displays ~50 vehicles from 1904-1981 including several of Rockefeller's personal cars.

A nonprofit celebrating the pre-1916 Brass Era automobile, displaying early cars in the Steam Barn on the Gilmore campus and telling the story of the birth of the auto industry.

A museum built around the collection of casino magnate William F. Harrah, displaying 200+ historic cars across four themed galleries with period street-scene settings, from Brass Era through postwar classics.

Large private museum near Dubois with one of the world's largest private display collections of U.S. military vehicles, in a 160,000-sq-ft facility.

Located in Warren, OH (Packard's birthplace), presenting rotating displays of Packard automobiles with documents, engines, tools and artifacts, plus an annual motorcycle exhibit.

Museum complex in Elk City including the National Route 66 Museum, a National Transportation Museum, Old Town Museum, Farm & Ranch Museum, and Blacksmith Museum, with outdoor vehicle displays.

Renowned Sylmar collection of 250+ American and European automobiles (1898-1997), including many Pebble Beach Concours winners, split between a free Museum building and an appointment-only Collection Hall with guided tours.

Private collector's early-automobile collection housed in a former bowling alley in Grand Island, centered on the rare Nebraska-built Viele automobile marque.

State history museum in Bismarck operated by the State Historical Society of North Dakota, which periodically exhibits vintage vehicles from the state collection, such as a 1900 Holland Special and a 1929 Erskine.

A non-profit museum across five connected buildings, best known for the world's largest collection of Franklin automobiles (Syracuse-built, 1902-1934), plus an extensive New York-built car exhibit.

Operated by the Oklahoma Historical Society in Clinton, this museum traces Route 66's history decade by decade with period vehicles and roadside artifacts.

A 32+ acre outdoor "junkyard museum" in White, GA billed as the world's largest classic car junkyard, with thousands of vintage vehicles overgrown by forest, plus folk art and antiques; popular with photographers.

A private, eclectic collection of over 70 vintage vehicles and automobilia in Galax, Virginia, on the Blue Ridge Parkway, paired with an ice cream shop and RV campground.

Private museum holding the world's largest private Hudson automobile collection, plus Maxwell, Essex, Terraplane, Plymouth, and Chrysler vehicles, across two historic former dealership buildings.

A transportation-history museum focused on operational pre-1940 aircraft, automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles and engines. ~150 vehicles including 24 aircraft and 54 cars (1898-1968), most kept running.

County historical museum in Murphy with 35+ historic wagons/stagecoaches plus a working 1915 Model T used for visitor rides.

A preserved historic site (the 1927 Packard vehicle testing facility with Albert Kahn-designed buildings) offering tours, historic Packard automobiles and artifacts of Packard's automotive, marine and aviation work.

A large regional history museum on the West Texas A&M campus with a permanent transportation exhibit spanning 19th-century bicycles to 1960s automobiles.

Private museum on Paul Hemp's farm west of Rochester displaying about 40 antique cars and 8 horse-drawn carriages, some loaned by Dr. C.W. Mayo, for about 30 years.

County historical society complex of 11 buildings in Cavalier including restored antique cars, tractors, machinery, and a fire truck alongside a homestead, church, depot, and blacksmith shop.

Colorado Springs museum (El Pomar Foundation) housing the official Pikes Peak International Hill Climb race car/memorabilia collection plus the Penrose family's antique carriage collection.

Gilmore partner museum with about two dozen Pierce-Arrow vehicles (cars, bicycles, motorcycles, travel trailers) from 1903-1938, run by the Pierce-Arrow Foundation.

A single-marque museum dedicated to the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company, displaying restored cars, bicycles, motorcycles and travel trailers spanning the full 1903-1938 production range.

Sprawling 40+ building complex in Murdo started in 1954 by A.J. "Dick" Geisler, now run by his son Dave, with hundreds of cars, trucks, tractors, and motorcycles from a turn-of-the-century Oldsmobile to a 1980s Fiero.

Quirky Woodland museum recreating a vintage gas station/diner/general-store scene with antique gas pumps and automotive memorabilia; founded 2000 by Mark Reiff.

A research-oriented automotive museum and archive in Naples, FL housing the Miles Collier Collections of over 100 significant automobiles built 1896-1995, called by the New York Times the finest sports car collection in America.

Nonprofit museum in Wallsburg (est. 1999) housing a large private collection of roughly 200 antique/classic cars, 150+ antique motorcycles (including Utah's largest Harley-Davidson collection), and around 200 antique tractors and farm implements.

A long-running family collection of roughly 32 vintage 1920s-1930s cars (Cadillac, Packard, Hupmobile, Nash, Essex and others) in Hood, Virginia, first opened by collector John Dudley in 1967.

Colorado Springs museum (est. 1992) preserving antique/classic motorcycles from the early 1900s-1970s, including a motorcycle hall of fame.

A nonprofit preserving Rolls-Royce and Bentley heritage. Its ~5,000-sq-ft facility displays ~29 Rolls-Royce and Bentley motorcars (1929 Springfield Phantom I to 1989 Silver Spirit), plus a research library and technical garage.

Small museum of vintage and antique automobiles and automotive collectibles in Larned.

A "tactile" classic car museum in rural Butler County where guests may touch and sit in vehicles.

A 17,000-sq-ft museum in Balboa Park displaying 75+ cars and motorcycles through a permanent collection plus rotating themed exhibits, from brass-era and classic cars to a strong motorcycle collection.

Formerly one of the oldest continuously operating car museums in the US (founded 1953), displaying 90+ classic, muscle and exotic cars including Ringling Rolls-Royces and celebrity-owned cars.

The second-oldest continuously operating antique car museum in the US (founded 1953 as Horns' Cars of Yesterday, later Bellm's Cars and Music of Yesterday, then Sarasota Classic Car Museum), which displayed 100-150+ vintage cars and motorcycles including several once owned by the Ringling family.

A 65,000-sq-ft museum on ~37 acres (opened Dec 2021) with five galleries showing ~100 cars, from a 1903 Oldsmobile Curved Dash Runabout through ~12 rotating exhibits annually, some featuring automotive art.

A 60+-year private collection in Willmar with hundreds of cars, trucks, tractors, gas engines, and signage totaling 400+ units.

A collection specializing in Brass Era automobiles and motorcycles (~1895-1917) presented in the context of early American motoring, from an 1899 De Dion-Bouton to a 1924 Mercer.

Assembled over 50+ years by Dr. Frederick Simeone, one of the world's foremost collections of racing sports cars - 75+ significant vehicles (1909-mid-1970s) grouped by famous racing venues.

Free antique car museum on Put-in-Bay island, dedicated to Charles "Skip" Duggan, founder of the island's Sunday Car Parade tradition.

The Smithsonian's flagship history museum on the National Mall in Washington, DC holds a significant automobile collection as part of its 'America on the Move' exhibition and broader Smithsonian Automobile Collection, examining transportation's role in American life from 1876 to the present.

A 'living museum' (founded 2002) displaying the Snook collection of 1930s-1970s cars in period scenes such as a 1950s diner, a recreated 1940s Texaco station and a Sebring pit lane, plus extensive automobilia.

A museum dedicated to Packard automobiles and heritage.

Combined zoo and Americana museum complex containing an auto museum wing with over 50 antique cars and motorcycles alongside carriages, sleighs, firearms, and dolls.

The Automobile Gallery within the Wood Museum of Springfield History showcases cars tied to Springfield's pioneering role in the US auto industry, including Duryea, Knox, Stevens-Duryea and Springfield-built Rolls-Royce cars.

Commemorates Springfield's role as an automotive-industry birthplace, including the Duryea brothers' 1893 gasoline car and the only US Rolls-Royce factory (Rolls-Royce of America, 1921-1931); also features an Indian Motorcycles exhibit.

Nonprofit collection founded by Ted and Mary Stahl, at its current location since 2011, with 220+ cars (about 90-100 on rotating display) plus automated musical instruments and neon signage.

A nonprofit collection displaying 100+ cars across the Brass, Depression, pre/post-war and modern eras, with emphasis on Art Deco and Great Depression-era vehicles, plus automobilia and mechanical music instruments.

Museum dedicated to inventors Francis and Freelan Stanley, born in Kingfield, and their Stanley Steamer automobiles, with family history exhibits.

A museum chronicling the Studebaker Corporation's wagons, carriages, cars, trucks and military vehicles with 70+ vehicles. Holds the world's largest collection of US presidential carriages.

Large open-air pioneer history complex in Grand Island (107 buildings, 208 acres) whose Farm Machinery Building displays 150+ antique tractors, automobiles, and farm implements, including steam-powered equipment.

A free-admission museum owned by the Swope dealership family, displaying ~60 museum-quality vehicles from the early 1900s to the 1960s in original and restored condition.

A large private museum displaying 160+ rare and historic automobiles from an 1894 Duryea to a modern Camaro, plus extensive non-automotive collections (pedal cars, cash registers, pianos, sports memorabilia).

A 19,000 sq ft museum in Pinellas Park, FL featuring vintage and classic cars from the US, France, Great Britain, Japan, and elsewhere.

A large science museum in Cartersville, GA whose "Science in Motion" gallery traces transportation history from early automobiles through aviation and spaceflight, including replicas of pioneering vehicles.

Family-run antique car museum begun in the 1970s by Feltz Terrill, with restored vehicles from 1901-1941.

All-volunteer museum (founded 1964) with a heritage railroad, model train layouts, and antique automobiles/road vehicles from 1899 to present.

A collection of 130+ vintage-to-modern automobiles in a roughly 50,000 sq ft space attached to the Kearney Cabela's building, rebranded after a 2020 closure/reopening under new ownership.

Non-profit museum (founded 2002) known for ~130 antique/classic cars (1886-2000) that visitors could ride in during Sunday car rides.

A non-profit gallery in a former Cadillac dealership in downtown Green Bay, presenting fully restored, running cars spanning over a century - from an early 1910s Cadillac to a 2020 Ford GT.

A private museum (founded 1993) showcasing ~80 Ford vehicles from roughly 1928-1932 (44 running), including a '32 open-cab pickup, '31 ambulance and a period hot rod, plus a 25,000-piece Ford literature library.

Open-air pavilion/courtyard of antique trucks and equipment assembled by collector Erving Bickford, with hands-on exhibits for children.

A 35,000 sq ft museum in Jacksonville, FL preserving the history of Brumos Racing and Porsche in North America, alongside other significant makes such as Peugeot, Miller, and Bugatti.

A nonprofit automotive-history museum housing the Feldman collection, focused on the Brass Era (1896-1915) with antique cars dating 1886-1952. The 5-acre site also features antique field power and a 1/8-scale railway.

Museum maintained by the Thomas H. Hubbard/H.H. Franklin Foundation in Tucson, exclusively dedicated to the Franklin Automobile Company, a pioneering air-cooled-engine maker (1902-1934). Holds roughly 26-30 vehicles.

A major indoor-outdoor American history museum complex whose 'Driving America' exhibit presents a comprehensive history of the US automobile from the 1860s, alongside presidential vehicles and broad Americana.

Free gallery/museum in downtown Yuma displaying "orphan" cars from defunct automakers such as Nash, AMC, Studebaker, Willys-Overland, American Bantam, and Messerschmitt.

County historical museum in Aurora covering settler life from 1860-1950, including antique vehicles among its broader collection.

A research institute and museum housing the Miles Collier Collections of 100+ historically significant automobiles and race cars (1896-1995) across four galleries, plus a major automotive research library.

Small free museum in the historic Stutz Motor Car Company factory building in downtown Indianapolis, showing about 9 classic Stutz vehicles on loan from a private collector.

26,000-sq-ft facility housing 80+ rare and classic American and foreign automobiles, all of which run and drive, spanning pre-war classics to postwar coachbuilt cars.

Formerly one of the South's premier automobile museums, built around Frank and Jane Spain's personal collection of roughly 150-174 antique, classic, and celebrity-owned cars displayed chronologically to illustrate automotive design history.

A nonprofit collection on a large rural campus housing restored vintage cars and a substantial gas-pump/petroliana collection, with a specialty in 1933 Fords.

A volunteer-founded museum displaying vintage automobiles from around the world with a rotating lineup, alongside automotive artifacts such as photos, tools, signs and gas pumps. Free admission.

The only dedicated public car museum in New Jersey, founded in 2001 by members of the Vintage Automobile Club of Ocean County, displaying classic and collectible cars from the 1880s onward plus memorabilia.

The Commonwealth's official transportation museum in a century-old freight station, covering rail, road and air. Auto holdings include early GM electric-car tech, vintage Whippets, a 1913 Metz and a 1920 Buick.

Local history museum documenting Waltham's industrial past, including the Metz/Waltham Manufacturing Company's early automobile and motorcycle production from 1895 to 1931; holds a restored 1911 Metz Plan Car and hosts an annual "Metz Day" car show.

Primarily a WWII/military aviation museum in Nampa that also displays restored antique/classic automobiles and a WWII halftrack.

A three-building rural-life museum complex in Boonsboro, Maryland; its Early Roads Transportation Museum wing (opened 2013) displays cars, trucks, bicycles, carriages, and sleighs used on Washington County roads prior to 1940.

A large Hood River museum pairing still-flying antique aircraft with still-driving antique automobiles and motorcycles, one of the largest such combined collections in the country.

A volunteer-run museum (founded 1977) displaying ~47 antique/collector cars (1910s-1980s) alongside fire trucks, Caterpillar equipment, aircraft, tractors and a 1910 steam locomotive.

Opened 1957, preserving American automobile history with ~150 cars (30-35 rotated on display) plus carriages dating from 1896. The only museum where two Tuckers can be seen side by side.