Day 20 (continued) - Let me take you out in my Surrey with a Fringe on top!
Well after all that cleaning we were hungry so we went back to the railcar diner (Little Richards) that we were in Fairbanks. It was just as good for supper as it was for brunch and lunch and again excellent service.
We headed in to Fairbanks and found the Antique Auto Museum. Oh, my! This is the most amazing museum. The way it is laid out, the quality of display and the most wonderfully restored vehicles. The displays tell the story early automobiles in Alaska. They had vintage clothing and photos displayed as well that told the complete story of the era. A lot of the displays had a number posted and you were given an audio player at the beginning. When you pressed the number displayed, a recording told you more about that vehicle, clothing, photo or era and about its significance to automobile history in the Yukon.
The museum was divided into 4 eras plus an area of Midget Racers. The Veteran Era had cars from the 1890's to 1904 which "spanned the fledgling years of the automobile when horseless carriages were seen as more of an expensive novelty that a useful transportation device." The highlight of this era for me was the 1898 Hay Motor Vehicle a beautiful specimen which is "the oldest four-cylinder, internal combustion American automobile known to exist."
The quotes throughout this blog about the Vintage Car Museum is from the book Earl bought there: Alaska's Fountainhead Collection ~ Vintage Treads and Threads" which has the history of the museum and photos and information about much of the displays there.
The next era displayed was called the Brass Era ~ "named for the widespread use of brass trim, lights and other accessories, was a time of tremendous growth and innovation for the American Automotive industry. These were very impressive looking, well-restored and beautifully displayed with fascinating information about steam powered cars and the automakers of the time - some who were successful and others who were not.
After the Brass Era were cars from 1913 to 1929 or the Nickel Era where the "open cars gave way to closed-body sedans and the spirit of the Roaring Twenties was personified by the increased demand for fast cars and custom-designed luxury models."Our favourite in this section was the Model T Snow Flyer! "In 1913, Virgil White of New Hampshire put wooden runners on the front of a Fort Model T and added tractor treads on tandem rear wheels. He patented his "Snowmobile" kit - the first recorded use of the term ~ in 1917 more than 35 years before the first modern day recreational snowmobile appeared."
The "Classic Era" of the 1930's was next "were the ultimate luxury cars designed for and by, wealthy patrons [and] were all about lines - elegant, flowing contours that visually streamlined the body, Sleek profiles, long hoods, stylish radiators and skirted fenders were matched by suptuously apointed interiors customized for the buy." One of the most impressive cars in this area was the 1936 Packard 7-passenger 1408 Dual Windshield - such a beautiful car!
The last area was the Midget Racers that Earl really likes. "in the grip of the Great Depression millions of Americans got caught up in a new brand of racing know as the Midgets. These small racecars typically wighed less that 900 lbs and enjoyed plenty of power from highly modified four-cylinder passenger-car engines." Earl had his eye on the 1935 Wetteroth-Offenhauser he thought he might like to drive! There was a plaque that said "During one competition in the late 1940's, the lone Offenhauser Midget was required to start half a lap behind the Ford and motorcycle powered cars - but still won!
This was a very nice way to spend our last evening in Fairbanks. We did not see and do everything there was available in Fairbanks so we might have to come back!
Tomorrow we pack up and head south towards Anchorage and the Kenai Peninsula!
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