The Eckhart Carriage Company was founded in 1874 and began making automobiles in the early 1900s, The company, renamed the Auburn Car Company, closed and was sold during WWI due to material shortages. It eventually ended up in the hands of Errett Lobban Cord, a very successful car salesman. The company expanded to make Auburns, Cords, and Duesenbergs with an emphasis on high end luxury cars but it did not survive the depression years of the 1930s and closed for good in 1937.
The museum is housed in the original service and experimental design buildings. In addition, the Eckhart Building where the carriages and early cars were assembled is opened to tour. Three tourist cottages and a historic gas station have been relocated to the grounds.
The museum is filled with antique cars, trucks, signs, and gas pumps. The collection includes some unique pieces including a restored Valentine Diner, a red DeLorean, a 1937 fire department rescue bus (for sale), and a 1953
Futurliner that traveled the US as a showcase for modern marvels such as microwaves and jet engines.
The museum is accessible. Visitors using wheelchairs may need assistance to access the Eckhart Building due to a rough ramp and high threshold. The cottages and gas station are not opened and can be viewed from the parking lot.
The parking lot is small so large RVs should be parked in the wedge shaped lot between Wayne Street and Van Buren Street. This is Harvest Hosts site and members may stay overnight but since the
Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum next door is also a Harvest Hosts site and has free electric hookups it’s a better place to stay.
Museum 41.35602, -85.05652
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