Visit the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum, restored art-deco building, Studebaker National Museum, and mingle with the large Amish population.
A century past, the Midwest United States brought Americans from a period of horse and buggy to the modern age of the automobile. Like its northern neighbor, Michigan, the state of Indiana spawned the growth of several hundred automobile nameplates during those early years. Many evolved along a corridor that linked South Bend to Auburn, Indiana. Serving as the drive train between the two cities is U.S. 20, a 62-mile stretch of weathered and cracked 2-lane referred to by Hoosiers as the “Avenue of the Classics.”
South Bend is the western terminus of the “avenue,” home to the automobile and carriage-making Studebaker Company. Original proving grounds and assembly plant buildings are still in use by other auto-related companies. Interestingly, aerial shots of the proving ground facility display a natural billboard created by an enormous grove of trees planted in such a manner that they spell “Studebaker.” On the south side of town, the Studebaker National Museum shows early carriages and motor vehicles built by the South Bend-based company before it closed in 1963. Fourteen miles to the east, Elkhart offers the Ray Miller Antique Car Collection, featuring an array of classic cars and the world’s largest collection of radiator hood ornaments and emblems. Continue through Shipshewana and Middlebury, heartland of Indiana’s sizable Amish population, where horse and buggies have never been exchanged with the modern motorcar. At I-69, turn south for a 20-mile drive to Auburn, Mecca for the Cord and Auburn automobiles, considered by most aficionados to be the finest, most gorgeous, and most innovative automobiles ever built in America. Industrialist Errett Cord designed and built the Duesenberg, Auburn, and Cord automobiles during the 1920s and 1930s.
Auburn cars and the front-wheel drive Cords were built in Auburn, while the “Dusies” were built downstate in Indianapolis. The Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum, set in the beautifully restored art-deco style display room of the original assembly plant at 1600 S. Wayne Street, shows 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:
RV Hall of Fame
Studebaker National Museum
Ray Miller Car Collection
Notre Dame University
Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum
Tagged with: best time:summer and fall • Indiana • summer destinations
Filed under: Best Road Trips