Museum of the Horseless Carriage

What Museum of the Horseless Carriage does

The Museum of the Horseless Carriage is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2020 and based in Hickory Corners, Michigan, dedicated to preserving, exhibiting, and educating the public about Brass Era automobiles (pre-1916). It currently operates temporary exhibits in the Steam Barn on the 90-acre campus of the Gilmore Car Museum, where it holds a 50-year land-use agreement and benefits from access to 130,000+ annual visitors and seven partner museums. The museum is actively raising a $5 million Capital Campaign (with over $1 million raised from 250+ donors) to construct a permanent 10,000 square foot facility on the Gilmore campus, with groundbreaking planned for 2026.

The organization's core products include themed exhibits spanning the Primitive Age (1478-1886) through the Modern Age (1912-1916), the annual Celebration of Brass signature event (up to 100 Brass Era vehicles plus the HCCA National Tour), and a four-tier membership program (Individual $40, Family $120, Student $20, Veteran). Revenue mechanics combine recurring membership dues, one-time and major-gift donations, capital campaign contributions (with recognition tiers at $10,000, $25,000, and $250,000+), corporate sponsorships, and vehicle/artifact donations. Distribution is anchored at a single physical site on the Gilmore campus, supplemented by community-driven marketing through the website, Facebook, and quarterly newsletters, with no disclosed paid headcount.

The museum serves two primary customer segments: Brass Era vehicle enthusiasts (collectors, hobbyists, mechanics, drivers) who are the primary donor and event base, and general public visitors exploring automotive history through the broader Gilmore campus experience. Strategic alliances with the Horseless Carriage Club of America (HCCA), the Horseless Carriage Educational Institute, and the National Association of Automobile Museums (NAAM) anchor the organization within the niche pre-1916 automotive community.

Name

Museum of the Horseless Carriage

Legal name

The Museum of the Horseless Carriage

Website

https://museumofthehorselesscarriage.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The Museum of the Horseless Carriage is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2020 that preserves and exhibits pre-1916 Brass Era automobiles from the Steam Barn on the Gilmore Car Museum campus in Hickory Corners, Michigan. It serves collectors, hobbyists, and the general public through themed exhibits, the annual Celebration of Brass event, and a four-tier membership program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Automotive Heritage Museum

NAICS

Museums (71211), Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

akta.pro primary industry

Specialty Museums (e.g., Maritime, Aviation, Sports, Music, Film) (THAJADAF)

Keywords

• Automotive heritage preservation
• Brass era automobiles
• Automobile museum exhibits
• Nonprofit educational programming
• Historic vehicle conservation

Headquarters

HQ city

Hickory Corners

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership dues provide operating funds and include benefits such as event notifications, newsletter subscriptions, and unlimited Gilmore Car Museum access for one year.
2. Donations and Capital Campaign: The museum is conducting a $5 million Capital Campaign to build a permanent museum facility, with over $1 million already raised from more than 250 donors. Donation tiers include naming opportunities ($250,000+), brass plaque recognition ($25,000+), and donor wall recognition ($10,000+).
3. Vehicle and Artifact Donations: Accepts donations of Brass Era vehicles and artifacts to add to the permanent collection or to be sold with appropriate recognition.
4. Sponsorships: Corporate and individual sponsorships for events and special projects provide visibility and association with the museum's mission.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Museum of the Horseless Carriage operates a dedicated museum of pre-1916 Brass Era automobiles currently housed in the Steam Barn on the Gilmore Car Museum campus in Hickory Corners, Michigan. It sells annual memberships, runs the annual Celebration of Brass signature event and HCCA National Tour, and is conducting a $5 million Capital Campaign to construct a permanent 10,000 square foot museum building. Its core offering is preservation, exhibition, and education centered on Brass Era automotive heritage.

Product overview

The Museum of the Horseless Carriage is a nonprofit organization offering a unified portfolio of offerings centered on preserving and celebrating Brass Era automobiles (pre-1916). Its core products include museum exhibits housed in the Steam Barn at Gilmore Car Museum (with themed displays covering eras from 1478-1916), the annual Celebration of Brass signature event, and membership programs at Individual, Family, Student, and Veteran tiers. The organization is conducting a $5 million Capital Campaign to construct a permanent 10,000 square foot museum building. Additional offerings include vehicle/artifact donations, donor recognition programs (Naming Opportunities, Brass Plaque Recognition, Museum Donor Wall), and sponsorship opportunities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Brass Era Museum Exhibits Curated museum exhibits of pre-1916 Brass Era automobiles, currently housed in the Steam Barn at Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, Michigan. Includes themed displays covering eras from 1478 to 1916 (Primitive Land Vehicle, Experimental Age, Brighton Era, Strength in Numbers, Modern Age). Open to walk-in visitors as part of Gilmore Car Museum admission.
• Celebration of Brass (Annual Event and HCCA National Tour) The museum's signature annual event featuring pre-1916 Brass Era vehicle shows, a Pre-WWII Swap Meet, and the HCCA National Tour. Includes a Thursday participants Welcome Party and a two-day Car Show open to spectators and registered entrants.
• Museum Membership Program Annual membership program with Individual ($40/year), Family ($120/year for up to four people), Student ($20/year for college students), and Veteran tiers. Benefits include event notifications, quarterly e-newsletter, and unlimited Gilmore Car Museum access for one year including MHC exhibits and seven partner museums.
• Donor Recognition Programs
• Vehicle and Artifact Donation Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $1 million raised toward $5 million museum building goal
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Gilmore Car MuseumflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020The Museum of the Horseless Carriage has partner status with Gilmore Car Museum, the largest automotive museum in the United States. Gilmore has provided a plot of land on its 90-acre campus for the MHC to build a permanent museum, and temporary use of the Steam Barn for exhibits while the Capital Campaign progresses. The partnership provides MHC access to Gilmore's 130,000+ annual visitors and central U.S. location.
• Horseless Carriage Club of America (HCCA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHCCA is a key organizational partner, with the Horseless Carriage Educational Institute providing an early gift to help establish MHC as a 501(c)(3). HCCA recognizes the Brighton Era (pre-1905) and HCCA members are primary supporters of the museum and Celebration of Brass events.
• National Association of Automobile Museums (NAAM)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMHC is a member of NAAM, connecting it with other automobile museums for best practices and industry collaboration.
• Classic Car Club of America MuseumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner museum located on Gilmore Car Museum campus, creating a collaborative automotive heritage destination.
• Pierce-Arrow MuseumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner museum located on Gilmore Car Museum campus, part of the automotive museum ecosystem accessible to MHC members.
• H.H. Franklin CollectionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner museum/collection located on Gilmore Car Museum campus, part of the automotive heritage destination ecosystem.
• Model A MuseumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner museum located on Gilmore Car Museum campus, one of several specialized automotive museums on the 90-acre campus.
• Cadillac-LaSalle Club MuseumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner museum located on Gilmore Car Museum campus, part of the collaborative automotive heritage destination.
• The Lincoln Motor Car MuseumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner museum located on Gilmore Car Museum campus, contributing to the comprehensive automotive museum ecosystem.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Gilmore Car Museum: Host campus and flagship partner. Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, MI is the largest automotive museum in the U.S. on a 90-acre campus with 130,000+ annual visitors, and MHC physically operates within it via the Steam Barn while building its permanent home. Same automotive-heritage subject matter and overlapping audience.
• National Automobile Museum (The Harrah Collection): Reno, NV's broad nonprofit automotive museum with vintage and historically significant vehicles spanning from the Brass Era forward. Comparable nonprofit specialty museum of comparable scale, sharing MHC's donor/membership/event economics.
• Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum: Philadelphia-based specialty automotive museum operated as a nonprofit with a focused collection of historic racing and pre-war automobiles. Comparable scale and model: specialty collector-car museum using events and donor support to sustain operations.
• AACA Museum (Antique Automobile Club of America): Hershey, PA museum operated by the Antique Automobile Club of America dedicated to antique automobiles. Closest category peer — a single-marque-or-era automotive heritage museum run as a nonprofit with membership, events, and donor-supported operations analogous to MHC's model.
• Studebaker National Museum: South Bend, IN brand-focused specialty automotive museum preserving a marque's history. Parallels MHC's strategy of telling a defined automotive story (Brass Era) rather than comprehensive coverage, with the same fundraising/event/community model.
• Blackhawk Automotive Museum: Danville, CA specialty automotive museum adjacent to Blackhawk Cars exhibits vintage automobiles across eras. Mid-scale nonprofit automotive museum comparable in scope and operating model to MHC.
• Larz Anderson Auto Museum: Brookline, MA nonprofit housed in a historic carriage house with collections spanning brass-era through classics. Closely comparable to MHC in subject overlap (Brass Era vehicles), museum scale, and nonprofit-with-events membership/donation model.
• Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum: Auburn, IN museum housed in a restored 1930s-era dealership, dedicated to American classic automobiles overlapping with the Brass Era period. Similar nonprofit specialty automotive museum model with annual events, members, and donor funding.

Broad incumbents

• The Henry Ford Museum: Dearborn, MI's large-scale American innovation and automotive history museum and Greenfield Village. Major incumbent that includes Brass Era vehicles and early-automobile content within a much broader cultural-heritage portfolio; competing for the same educational/outreach donors and visitors.
• Petersen Automotive Museum: Los Angeles-based broad automotive museum with deep collections spanning early automobiles through modern. As a much larger, well-funded incumbent in automotive heritage, it is a comparable institution competing for donor attention, though its scope is far wider than MHC's Brass Era focus.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/HCCAMuseum

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Museum of the Horseless Carriage