Champlain Valley Transportation Museum facts for kids
| Established | 2000 |
|---|---|
| Location | 8 Museum Way, Plattsburgh, New York, USA |
The Champlain Valley Transportation Museum is a cool place in Plattsburgh, New York, United States. It opened in 2000. This museum shows off the history of how people have traveled in the Champlain Valley area. You can see all sorts of vehicles, from cars to boats! It especially focuses on travel on Lake Champlain and the St. Lawrence Seaway.
Discovering the Museum
The idea for the museum came from Anthony Vaccaro. He was a doctor in Plattsburgh. Dr. Vaccaro owned and fixed up a really old 1915 Lozier car. He wanted to create a museum about Lozier Motors. He thought this would help share Plattsburgh's rich history. Even though the museum now covers all kinds of transportation, the Lozier cars are still very important. The museum has a special Type 82 Lozier car. It is the only one of its kind known to exist!
Opening Its Doors
The museum officially opened in 2004. It is located on the site of the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base. Many helpful volunteers made this possible. The museum has a permanent collection of vehicles. This includes two original Lozier Automobiles.
What You Can See
The museum is home to many interesting vehicles. You can see the Bill Gates Diner. This is a cafe inside an old trolley car. There's also a 1924 REO Speed Wagon. This truck was used by Walter Church, who started Plattsburgh Motor Services. Other cool cars include a 1929 Model A Ford and a fancy 1967 Jaguar.
The museum also displays many other classic cars, such as:
- 1910 National Speedster
- 1911 Kissell Kar Speedster
- 1914 Lozier 5 Passenger Touring
- 1915 Lozier 7 Passenger Touring
- 1915 Ford Model T Roadster
- 1917 Ford Model T Race Car
- 1927 Pierce Arrow Sedan
- 1934 Dodge Fire Truck
- 1942 Willys Jeep
- 1957 Ford Skyliner
- 1960 BMW Isetta
- 1965 Ford Mustang Convertible
- 1967 Jaguar XK-E Roadster
- 1969 Pontiac Trans-Am
Helping the Museum Grow
The museum has received grants to help it improve. In 2006, a grant helped establish the museum. Then, in 2007, the museum received a large grant. This money came from the New York State Department of Transportation. It was given to help upgrade the museum's buildings and facilities. To get this grant, the museum needed to raise some money itself. They started a special fundraising effort in 2008 to reach this goal.
