Garaj Mahal: The Smithsonian Institution's Automobile Collection
The Smithsonian has an auto collection?
That's the response -- my own and that of most people -- that led to this Garaj Mahal. Yes, the Smithsonian does have an automobile collection. Part of the National Museum of American History's (NMAH) broader transportation collection, it's comparatively small and relatively unknown. To understand why, and to get a rare in-person look at the collection, we visited the Smithsonian's Paul E. Garber storage facility in Silver Hill, Maryland.
Named for Paul Garber, the dynamic first director of the National Air and Space Museum (NASM), the facility was built in the early 1950s to house the Smithsonian's growing collection of aircraft. In the 1920s, Garber recognized the historical importance of aviation and became its champion within the Smithsonian's academic cloisters, single-handedly acquiring approximately half of the collection and advocating for a stand-alone museum for aviation. Thanks to his efforts, President Harry S. Truman created the Air and Space Museum in 1946.
Unfortunately, automobiles never had a champion at the Smithsonian. The museum's first automobile (an 1894 Balzer) was acquired in 1899. Despite more than a century of history since then, the collection numbers just 73 cars. A smattering of trucks, bus
http://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/enthusiasts/garaj-mahal-the-smithsonian-institutions-automobile-collection/ar-AA4VOAt#page=1
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Looked much like this one, except it was dark green.
Among other things
P.S. Sorry about picture quality, just using my phone.