'Possibly America's ugliest car' and others still shine inside Canton Classic Car Museum

CANTON ‒ "We're truthful overmuch much than cars."

That's the promotional assertion of Canton Classic Car Museum. Those words don't dispute, however, that determination are galore absorbing centrifugal vehicles housed astatine the downtown Canton tourer attraction.

A 1937 Ahrens-Fox occurrence engine. A 1937 Packard hearse. A 1937 Studebaker President constabulary car. And, traveling backmost adjacent farther successful years, we find a 1922 Holmes Victoria Series, a car built successful the museum's hometown.

All are featured connected show astatine Canton Classic Car Museum, established successful 1978 and located astatine 123 Sixth St. SW, with the operation bordering Market Avenue S, crossed from WHBC vigor presumption and The Canton Repository.

Following the coronavirus hiatus, the depository has been reopened for a mates of years now, said General Manager Gary Hussar. A fewer changes person been made to heighten the nostalgic experience.

"We've got a batch of caller lights, LED lights, to marque it brighter," said Hussar. "And I moved the stanchions astir the cars, truthful present you tin get up adjacent and idiosyncratic with them."

But, we'll get backmost to the cars -- admittedly the highlights of a halt astatine the depository aft we instrumentality a look astatine the abundant memorabilia.

More: 200 THINGS THAT PLAY IN STARK COUNTY: Canton Classic Car Museum

Canton Classic Car Museum: Plates, posters and more

Other than the dozens of humanities vehicles, astir instantly noticeable to the eyes of a visitant to Canton Classic Car Museum is the memorabilia. There is an abundance dispersed retired connected the floor, hanging connected the walls and shelved successful show cases.

"The gorgeous vehicles are complemented by thousands of pieces of humanities memorabilia displayed passim the museum," the facility's website notes.

Hundreds of pieces of aged advertizing screen the walls down the centrifugal vehicles. Porcelain advertizing signs, and metallic merchandise cans travel them. Auto-related movie posters from the past day adjacent vehicles.

A representation of President Franklin D. Roosevelt made successful 1941 by inmates of Ohio Penitentiary who generated his features by tapping letters connected a typewriter is among the governmental items displayed.

Automobile-related collectibles besides see licence plates from years past. Photographs depicting car-related scenes are positioned passim the depository to instrumentality visitors backmost successful clip successful a idiosyncratic way. Tin signs for Stark County businesses ‒ Noaker's Ice Cream is among them ‒ punctual galore section visitors of establishments they haunted truthful galore years ago.

If you truly privation a consciousness nostalgia for the community, you'll to sojourn the museum's Canton Room. The abstraction remains beauteous overmuch arsenic it has for years, filled with memorabilia of the metropolis and its surroundings. An assortment of artifacts callback Canton-area icons specified arsenic Meyers Lake Amusement Park and President William McKinley.

The cars are the stars astatine the Canton Classic Car Museum

The Canton Room besides is the depository location of the 1937 Studebaker President bullet-proof constabulary car erstwhile utilized by Canton's instrumentality enforcement officers.

"You tin measurement close up and respect the bullet-resistant model solid that is implicit an inch thick," the online accusation suggests. "Each model features a closable Tommy weapon porthole."

With that forementioned car ‒ nicknamed the "Bandit Car" by Canton Police of its time ‒ arsenic an example, the much than 3 twelve centrifugal vehicles are what astir visitors travel to see.

A conveyance with akin ties to the city's archetypal responders is the 1937 Ahrens-Fox Quad occurrence engine, successful its archetypal unrestored information that it was successful erstwhile it was utilized by Canton's firefighters.

"They (Canton Fire Department) bought 3 of them new," said Hussar. "They inactive person 1 for parades. We person one. And the 3rd was utilized arsenic a donor car; they utilized pieces of it to reconstruct the different two."

Nearby is the 1922 Holmes Victoria Series vehicle, 1 of 7 centrifugal vehicles built successful Canton (it was manufactured from 1917 to 1922), substance accusation supplied by the depository notes to explicate the car's value to Canton's history.

The Holmes, advertised arsenic "America's Most Comfortable" car, was "the world's lone full-sized air-cooled car," its ads besides boasted. Looking astatine it decades aft it was built, visitors apt won't instrumentality discourtesy that this car erstwhile besides had the estimation for being "possibly America's ugliest car."

Motor vehicles for which comfortableness oregon benignant wasn't truly a origin are the paired 1937 Packard hearse -- powered by a V-12 motor -- and its companion 1937 Packard angiosperm car.

"The angiosperm car," according to online information, "looks overmuch similar a 1930s mentation of an El Camino."

Canton's past featured

Many of the automobiles connected show astatine Canton Classic Car Museum person chiseled stories surrounding them.

A 1932 Lincoln roadster "was the gait car for the 1932 Indianapolis 500" car race, explains Hussar.

"We besides person a 1904 Rambler," Hussar said. "It did the London to Brighton (Veteran Car) Run successful 1999."

A 1904 St. Louis auto, manufactured by the St. Louis Motor Carriage Co., is the archetypal palmy single-cylinder car. But, it's different "first" that ties the car to Stark County.

"That marque of car was the archetypal to usage Timken roller bearings," Hussar explained.

The depository utilized to show 2 of the fistful of cars that the precocious Cleveland tv property Neil Zurcher utilized connected his "One Tank Trips" segments: his 1959 Nash Metropolitan convertible and a 1957 BMW Isetta. A mates of years ago, the Nash went backmost to Zurcher, who reportedly passed it connected to 1 of his children. But, the Isetta remains connected show successful Canton arsenic a reminder to fans of the question reporter, who died earlier this year.

One of the cars is the prima of 2 section museums.

A Hupmobile -- the benignant of car connected which owners of nonrecreational shot teams sat connected the moving boards of successful Ralph Hay's showroom successful 1920 erstwhile they began to program what would go the National Football League -- splits its clip betwixt the Canton Classic Car Museum and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

"It goes backmost and distant from present to the Hall each six months to a year," Hussar said. "It's ever rotating, but close present it's here."

Reach Gary astatine [email protected].

On "X" (formerly Twitter): @gbrownREP

If you go

Canton Classic Car Museum

Where: Museum appears to look Market Avenue S but entranceway and parking batch are astir the country astatine 123 Sixth St. SW, Canton.

When: Open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday done Saturday; closed Sunday done Tuesday

Features: Displays of postulation of iconic automobiles, vintage toys, car ads and centrifugal conveyance memorabilia, with a acquisition shop

Cost: Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors 60 and older, $11 for students 11-18 with valid pupil ID, escaped for children 10 and younger; radical terms (10 oregon much successful party) is $6.

This nonfiction primitively appeared connected The Repository: Canton Classic Car Museum's winding way done Canton history