Automotive Heritage Collection
112 E. Cross St.
Next door to the Miller Motors Hudson Collection
Ypsilanti, MI 48198
(734) 482-5200
Mr. Jack Miller, Curator
*Hours Monday thru Friday, 1:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, 9:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, Noon - 5:00 p.m.
* Hours subject to change, please phone ahead.
Learn about the unusual role Ypsilanti and it's pioneers played in the history of the American automobile.
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See over Thirty vehicles of a bygone era which are connected to Ypsilanti's history.
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Study first hand the signs and records of early area auto dealers.
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Solve the mystery of the world's most notorious highway map.
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Gain a new perspective on the matchless significance the evolution and developments that the automobile has had on our society in the past 100 years
In its 37 years of operation, GM's Willow Run Assembly produced over 7,000,000
Alfred Langer was urged by Henry Ford to bring Golde Patent Company "folding top business" to Ypsilanti from New York in order to be closer to the auto capital.
The company became Motor State Products, manufacturers of convertible tops
for all autos!
In the 1969 model year, a whopping 283,00 Chevrolet Novas were manufactured at the Ypsilanti Willow Run plant!
Ypsilanti has a unique automotive history for a city of its size.
Apex Motors which produced the "ACE" car from 1920-1922 was located on South River Street and Preston Tucker whose family owned the Ypsilanti Machine and Tool Company developed and built the prototypes for his "Tucker Torpedo" and later acquired a World War ll assets plant first production of 51 units before the government shut him down.
Henry J. Kaiser and Joseph W. Frazer purchased the gigantic Willow Run B-24 bomber plant in 1945 from the government and began production in mid-year 1946 of Kaiser and Frazer models for 1947. 1953 saw the last Kaiser cars produced at Willow Run as production was moved to Toledo,Ohio as a result of the merger of Kaiser and Willys-Overland. GM's Powertrain Division (formerly known as the Hydramatic Division) bought the Kaiser Frazer plant and began production of the automatic transmissions in November of 1953
In 1956 Chevrolet began producing large special order trucks in the building
which formerly housed KF engineering and the spare parts facility for the B-24
Bomber Plant. Later this plant would be added on to several times, First the
manufacture of the Corvair from 1959 to 1969 and the for the Nova, Ventura,
Omega , Skylark series of GM cars and in 1980 the plant was converted to
production of the GM X-series front wheel drive cars. Finally the last
cars produced there were the second generation Chevrolet caprice sedans and
station wagon along with the Buick and Oldsmobile station wagons. The
plant was closed in 1993.
The
Museum includes both the current Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Collection housed
at 112 E. Cross Street as well as the existing Miller
Motors Hudson Collection at 110 E. Cross Street.