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           Dwight Eisenhower was president, the Yankees were world champs, and “I Love Lucy†was the top show on television. Gasoline cost 20 cents a gallon; a new Ford could be had for $1,537. And a small group of antique car enthusiasts gathered in downtown Evansville to form a new club. The year was 1953.
Sixty-five years later, The Olde Tyme Auto Club (TOTAC) is celebrating its 65th anniversary with a party and car display for the public. The event will be held on Sunday, Sept. 16, from 2 to 5 p.m. at Burdette Park’s Bishea Building near the park’s entrance.
A display of rare antique and classic cars by members of TOTAC and other clubs will include (weather permitting) a 1902 Curved Dash Oldsmobile, a 1915 Packard once owned by iconic Gen. “Black Jack†Pershing, a 1939 Rolls Royce and a 1921 Packard. A 1974 Cadillac Eldorado convertible that was among the last in the “big cars†era also will be in the display of about 20 vehicles.
Larry Wahnsiedler and the Grandview Junction Band will perform from 2 to 3 p.m. Visitors will be treated to cake and refreshments.
Organization of The Olde Tyme Auto Club was spurred by the Chamber of Commerce late in 1953 after a caravan of 28 antique cars had journeyed from Evansville to Mount Carmel, Ill., for a parade. Thousands lined the highway to New Harmony to get a look at the old cars.
Charter membership in the new club totaled 176. Only one, Lowell Walker, who joined when he was a teen, is a member today. He owns the 1902 Oldsmobile as well as more than two dozen other antique or classic cars.
Over the years, TOTAC members have driven their old cars on jaunts as far away as Mississippi – two couples drove to California and back – and to parades, mall shows, festivals and any place the vintage autos would attract interest. The club has donated funds to several local charities, the latest an annual grant for auto mechanic students at Ivy Tech college.
