This classic 1955 Chevy Bel Air is displayed at a car show held annually in Loudonville. (Credit: Ken Drenten)

By Ken Drenten

Summer weekends bring out top-down convertibles, customized cars and hot rods as people continue their love affair with classic automobiles.

In smaller towns and cities alike, you can find car shows, parades featuring dressed-up cars, poker runs for motorcyclists and cruise-ins at local drive-in restaurants. One of the biggest and best car shows in the nation, the Goodguys Summit Racing Nationals, is held each summer at the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus.

It’s kind of amazing that many of these cars are 60 or 70 years old, yet they still have the ability to make us feel young again.

My first car was a 1967 Chevelle Malibu, which I purchased in 1978 for the grand sum of $400 out of a barn (I’m not lying!). It wasn’t anything real special, but it did have a 283-cubic-inch V8 engine and a three-speed manual transmission with the shifter on the column, a “three-on-the-tree.” It was basic transportation but I sure wish I had it now.

Do I have a classic car now? No, at least not yet. I’ve looked at two ’67 Chevy II Novas, a ’67 Chevy Chevelle and a ’63 Mercury Comet and returned home empty. I’ve still got my eyes on a few but I recently decided to invest in a home bathroom remodel, which was probably a wiser choice anyway.

I do enjoy the YouTube show Vice Grip Garage starring a homespun guy named Derek Bieri. He has amazing mechanical skills and a great sense of humor. Using terms like “sparkalator” and “fuel-make-it-happener,” he repairs, revives and drives old cars back home from locations across the country.

But I digress. Lots of people are reliving their younger days by purchasing, restoring and driving old cars. And if they aren’t doing that, they look at old cars, which is easy to do at car shows and cruise-ins and at various museums in Ohio dedicated to the industry.

Ohio’s contributions to the automobile industry have been numerous, from Dayton native Charles Kettering’s invention of the electric starter, to Firestone and Goodyear in Akron, two companies that built fortunes on automobile tires.

Ohio was home to dozens of automobile manufacturers, with most of them going out of business prior to or during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Those nameplates included Overland, Packard, Sandusky, Pope-Toledo, White and Willys.

Packard is one notable automobile manufacturer with roots in Ohio that lasted past the Depression years; it folded in 1958 but left a legacy of two Ohio museums.

One of the museums featured in Dusty Tires is in Indiana — the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum — but I made an executive decision to include it, since it’s truly a world-class collection right next door to Ohio.

Ohio is also notable for its role in the motorcycle industry. For example, the Cleveland Motorcycle Company, founded in 1915, provided motorcycles to U.S. Army in World War I. The company went out of business after the Crash of 1929.

If you have a classic car and want to take a road trip, or even if you don’t have a classic car, here are a few places of interest to visit in and near Ohio. Learn more about automobile-related attractions in Ohio in Dusty Tires.

America’s Packard Museum – America’s Packard Museum consists of automotive artifacts and 50 automobiles, plus several vehicles on loan from private collections or other museums. Educational programs and special events are also offered. 420 S. Ludlow St., Dayton (937) 226-1710.

American Motorcycle Association Motorcycle Hall of Fame – The American Motorcycle Association Motorcycle Hall of Fame features two floors of historic exhibits and historic motorcycles and displays honoring the lives and careers of AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famers and others who have shaped motorcycling in America. 13515 Yarmouth Drive, Pickerington (614) 856-2222.

Canton Classic Car Museum – The Canton Classic Car Museum displays about 40 automobiles, and also displays classic toys, steam engines, vintage posters and much more. 123 Sixth St. SW, Canton (330) 455-3603.

National Packard Museum – The National Packard Museum, opened in 1999, is a 23,000-square-foot complex housing a rotating display of original and restored Packard automobiles as well as other artifacts that chronicle the history of the Packard family, the Packard Motor Car Company and the Packard Electric Company. 1899 Mahoning Ave., Warren (330) 394-1899.

Ken Drenten is creator and editor of Dusty-Tires.com, a travel blog for out-of-the-ordinary places in Ohio.

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