California Automobile Museum

California Automobile Museum (2008-Present)
Former names Towe Ford Museum (1987-1997), Towe Auto Museum (1997-2008)[1]
General information
Status Operational
Type Museum
Architectural style Warehouse
Location Old Sacramento
Address 2200 Front Street
Town or city Sacramento, CA 95818-1106
Country United States of America
Coordinates 38°34′13″N 121°30′42″W / 38.5703872°N 121.5117473°W / 38.5703872; -121.5117473
Current tenants California Automobile Museum
Groundbreaking June 1986 [2]
Completed September 27, 1986 [3]
Opening May 1, 1987 [4]
Owner City of Sacramento[5]
Landlord City of Sacramento[6]
Technical details
Floor count 1
Floor area 72,000 square feet (6,700 m2)
Other information
Parking Free
Website
http://www.calautomuseum.org/

California Automobile Museum, formerly the Towe Auto Museum, is an automobile museum located in Sacramento, California. It has a collection of over 160 classic cars, race cars, muscle cars, hot rods and early models displayed throughout 72,000 square feet (6,700 m2) 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.[7]

The California Automobile Museum was the first automobile museum in the west to be established in perpetuity.[8] Founded in 1983 as the California Vehicle Foundation, the museum opened to the public in 1987 as the Towe Ford Museum, proudly displaying the largest collection of Fords in the world, courtesy of Edward Towe, a Montana banker. The first auto 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.[9] 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

Most of the 150 vehicles currently on display are on loan from private exhibitors. The cars on display represents a large spectrum of cars driven in California over the last 120 years.[10] Only approximately 25% of the vehicles are owned by the California Vehicle Foundation. Some of the cars are on loan for a month and some for five years, so the display is a constantly changing exhibit of rolling stock to better tell the story of the development of the automobile and its effect on our lives. The museum offers tours daily.[11]

External links

References

  1. ↑ "California Automobile Museum: History". Web Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  2. ↑ "California Automobile Museum: History". Web Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  3. ↑ "California Automobile Museum: History". Web Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  4. ↑ "California Automobile Museum: History". Web Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  5. ↑ "Building History". HTML Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  6. ↑ "Building History". HTML Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  7. ↑ "About Us". HTML Document. California Automobile Museum.
  8. ↑ "How the Museum Got Started". HTML Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  9. ↑ "First Donated Vehicle". HTML Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  10. ↑ "Permanent Collections: California Automobile Museum". California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  11. ↑ "Tours: California Automobile Museum". HTML Document. California Automobile Museum. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
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