The LeMay Family Collection of about 1,900 antique and vintage automobiles has been recognized as the world’s largest automobile collection. About 500 vehicles from this collection are on display at the Marymount Event Center (a former Catholic Military Academy) in Tacoma, Washington. Shown below are some of the vehicles which can be seen in the Green Building. Cars earlier than 1940 are shown in their own photo diaries.
1940 Ford Deluxe
This car had a new price of $850.
1941 Nash Ambassador Eight
In 1890, Charles Nash, a former farm hand and shepherd, went to work for William C. Durant at the Durant-Dort Carriage Company. He became intrigued with the potential of automobiles after driving an electric automobile in 1897. Together with David Buick and William Durant, he helped co-found the Buick Motor Company and in 1908 became president and general manager of the company.
In 1916, Nash bought the Jeffery Motor Company and changed its name to Nash Motors. In 1936, Charles Nash retired.
The Nash Ambassador Eight shown below had a new price of $1,051.
1947 Hudson Commodore 172
By 1909 it was obvious that the automobile was not just a passing fad, nor was it a toy for the wealthy. In Detroit, Michigan, a group of eight businessmen organized a new company to produce an automobile which would sell for less than $1,000 (that’s the equivalent to a bit more than $26,000 today). The new company was named the Hudson Motor Car Company after Joseph L. Hudson, an entrepreneur and founder of Hudson’s department store. Hudson provided the capital for the new company while Roy D. Chapin, Sr., provided the automotive experience. Chapin had worked with automotive pioneer Ransom E. Olds.
As with all American automobile manufacturers, Hudson ceased production from 1942 until 1945 in order to manufacture material for World War II. Following the war, Hudson resumed manufacturing cars.
The Hudson shown below had a new price $1,887.
1948 DeSoto Custom Suburban Sedan
In the late 1920s, Chrysler Corporation was facing stiff competition from General Motors, Studebaker, and Willys-Knight in the mid-class price segment of the automobile market. To fill this niche, Walter Chrysler established the DeSoto Division of Chrysler Corporation in 1928. The new automobile logo featured a stylized image of Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto.
This car had a new price of $2,631. The car shown below was used in the Happy Days TV show.
1948 Chrysler Town and Country
This car had a new price of $2,998.
1948 Packard Super Eight Convertible
One of the first American companies to manufacture and sell automobiles was the Winton Motor Carriage Company. By 1899, mechanical engineer James Packard was convinced that he could build a better car than the Winton. Packard had offered suggestions for improving the Winton to Alexander Winton, but these suggestions were ignored.
James Packard, together with his brother William Packard and George Lewis Wiess (a stockholder in the Winton company), built a factory in Warren, Ohio and produced the first Packard on November 6, 1899. In 1900, the Ohio Automobile Company was founded to produce Packard automobiles and in 1902 the name was changed to the Packard Motor Car Company with James Packard as president.
With regard to marketing, Packards were an automobile for the wealthy.
This car had a new price of $2,800 and only 7,763 were produced.
1949 Kaiser Deluxe4-Door Convertible
In 1945, Henry J. Kaiser, an industrialist, and Joseph W. Frazer, the president of the Graham-Paige Corporation, founded the Kaiser-Frazer Corporation which made automobiles under the brand names of Kaiser and Frazer. With Kaiser’s capital and experience in obtaining government contracts and Frazer’s contacts in the automobile industry, there was optimism regarding their success. The new company was headquartered at Willow Run, Michigan.
The business relationship between Henry Kaiser and Joseph Frazer was not always smooth and peaceful and in 1948 Frazer resigned as president of Kaiser-Frazer. He remained as a sales consultant and vice-chairman of the board. In 1949, Edgar Kaiser, Henry Kaiser’s oldest son, was made president of Kaiser-Frazer.
This car had a new price of $3,195.
1951 Frazer Vagabond Utility Sedan
This is a hatchback. It had a new price of $2,399 and only 3,000 Vagabonds were produced.
1951 Nash Statesman Super 6
This car had a new price of $1,841. It was called “Upside-Down Bathtub.”
1954 Mercury Sun Valley
This car had a new price of $2,562.
1959 Cadillac Series 62 Hardtop
This car had a new price of $4,892. This model has fins measuring 42” off ground and “jet-pod” tail lights.
1959 Ford Fairlane 500 Galaxie Skyliner
This is a retractable hard top convertible. It had a new price of $3,163. A total of 13,000 were produced in 1959.
1960 Valiant V-200
This car had a new price of $2,033. This car was built on a Dodge production line and sold by Plymouth dealers.
1964 Chevrolet Corvair Spyder Convertible
This car had a new price of $2,811. A total of 4,761 Spyders were produced.
In 1852, the brothers Henry and Clement Studebaker opened their blacksmith shop in South Bend, Indiana. Operating initially under the name H & C Studebaker, the business would eventually evolve into the Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing Company, the world’s largest manufacturer of wagons and buggies. Studebaker began making gasoline powered cars in 1904. At this time, the company offered both horse drawn and self-propelled vehicles. In 1911, the company became The Studebaker Corporation. Production of horse drawn carriages stopped in 1920. In 1954, Studebaker merged with the Packard Motor Car Company.
This car sold new for $2,600. It had a unique retracting roof over the cargo area. A total of 5,164 were built in 1964.
1968 Mercury Cougar
This was Mercury’s answer to the Ford Mustang. It sold new for $3,232.
1975 AMC Pacer
This car had a new price of $3,299.