Indiana--Avenue of the Classics
Date: 2004-11-16
A century ago, the Midwest United States brought Americans from an era
of horse and buggy to the age of the automobile. Like its northern neighbor,
Michigan, the state of Indiana spawned the development of several hundred
automobile nameplates during those early years. Many evolved along a corridor
that connected South Bend to Auburn, Indiana. Serving as the drive train
between the two cities is U.S. 20, a 62-mile stretch of cracked and weathered
two-lane referred to by Hoosiers as the "Avenue of the Classics."
South Bend is the western terminus of the "avenue," home to the car and carriage-making Studebaker Company. Original assembly plant buildings and proving grounds are still in use by other auto-related companies. Interestingly, aerial shots of the proving ground facility show a natural billboard created by an enormous grove of trees planted in such a way that they spell "Studebaker." On the south side of town, the Studebaker National Museum displays early carriages and motor vehicles produced by the South Bend-based company before it closed in 1963. Elkhart, 14 miles to the east, offers the Ray Miller Antique Car Collection, featuring an array of classic cars and the world's largest collection of radiator emblems and hood ornaments. Continue through Middlebury and Shipshewana, heartland of Indiana's sizable Amish population, where horse and buggies have never been replaced by the modern motorcar. At I-69, turn south for a 20-mile drive to Auburn, mecca for the Auburn and Cord automobiles, considered by most aficionados to be the finest, most innovative, and most gorgeous automobiles ever built in America. Industrialist Errett Cord designed and built the Auburn, Cord, and Duesenberg automobiles during the 1920s and 1930s.
Auburn cars and the front-wheel drive Cords were produced in Auburn, while the "Dusies" were built downstate in Indianapolis. The Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum, set in the beautifully restored art-deco style showroom of the original assembly plant at 1600 S. Wayne Street, displays some of the finest examples of Indiana-built automobiles anywhere in the world.
Starting Point:
South Bend / U.S. 20, IN
Distance of Drive:
84 miles
Must Eat:
Tippecanoe Place--housed in the old Studebaker Mansion
620 W. Washington Street, South Bend, IN 46601
Phone: 219-234-9077
Call ahead to confirm hours of operation.
Village Inn
104 S. Main Street, Middlebury, IN 46540
Phone: 219-825-2034
Call ahead to confirm hours of operation.
Good Stop For:Home-Made Pie
Best Time of Year for Drive:
Late summer and fall
Points of Interest on Drive:
Studebaker National Museum
Notre Dame University
Ray Miller Car Collection
RV Hall of Fame
Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum
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