Listing Through Life

“Auto Attractions” doesn’t begin to describe this museum. The guy who created this collection bought everything he could find that had anything to do with anybody you’ve ever heard of — from Abraham Lincoln to Laural and Hardy to John Dillinger. It’s housed in a prefabricated warehouse in an industrial park in the small town of Rockton, just a short distance from the Wisconsin border.

Here are photos of just some of the items, to give you an idea of the eclectic insanity of the place.

Many of the items were displayed with documents to prove their authenticity, and my feeling is that they were likely genuine. If you pay attention, you will notice that, for some items, it doesn’t actually say there is a direct connection with a celebrity, like Khrushchev’s limousine for example. There’s a 1950 Russian Zim limousine, no doubt genuine, and there’s a photo of Khrushchev, and you know it’s likely that he rode in a Zim limousine, but it never quite says he rode in this very limousine. Things like that lead me to believe that the items with specific claims really are what they are claim to be.

I took my time and saw it all — or most of it anyway. I wasn’t much interested in the two rooms of race cars and my senses were overloaded by the time I got to the final couple rooms. And there’s no way I could have read all the signs or looked at all the autographed photos or studied all the trinkets. Here’s a video, but even this doesn’t fully capture the awesomeness of this collection.

There were a handful of other visitors, but most of the time I had the place to myself. The young woman who took my money was the only employee I saw, and she didn’t seem too worried about security or anything else. After finishing my tour, I asked if I could go back through with the red chair and she gave me permission without hesitation.

Cadillac made from parts dating from 1949 to 1973, used in the music video for Johnny Cash’s song “One Piece at a Time.”

1925 Ford Model T Roadster Pickup used in the Laurel and Hardy movie Big Business.

The Wagon Queen Family Truckster used in National Lampoon’s Vacation.

I’ve lived in McHenry County for 16 years and have been intending to visit this museum for about that long. I didn’t expect it to be thrilling, but it is my adopted county …

Like all historical society museums, it was filled with random items that have no connection to each other, donated by local residents. Some of the items were pretty cool, but that didn’t diminish their randomness. Here’s a selection, with just a few comments.

The small sign in the middle is the only reference to Cary I spotted in the entire museum.

The sign from the fictional Tip Top Diner in Groundhog Day, filmed in Woodstock.

Chester Gould, the guy who created and drew the Dick Tracy comic strip, lived in McHenry County. There used to be a Dick Tracy museum in Woodstock. I stuck my head in once, but didn’t go in. And then it closed.

There was an old school and log cabin outside. The woman who took my money said she’d give me a tour if I wanted it, but I’ve been in enough old schools and log cabins to satisfy me for life.

After I finished touring the museum and was walking out, I noticed a small sign on the back of a display out in the middle of the museum that said “No photography without special permission from the staff.” Oops. Anyway, now I’ve seen it and can check it off my list of things to do in McHenry County.

On Tuesday, I set forth in search of adventure. My first stop was this small museum in an old airplane hangar on a small airport in rural Boone County. I was the only visitor.

The museum is lodged in a hangar, built in 1937 by the Works Progress Administration for the Waukesha County Airport in Wisconsin.

I was greeted at the door by three dogs. I could see a woman in a back room, so I called “Hello,” and she came out to greet me and take my money. She busied herself most of the time I was there, but periodically came out to give me a guided tour of some exhibit or other.

The museum is rather odd. It was ostensibly about the impact that automobiles and airplanes had on life in America, but this made for a very eclectic collection. There were three cars and three planes, and an exhibit on Boone County and another on the Wright Brothers’ bicycle shop and another on Smokey the Bear and another on Henry Ford’s attempt to grow rubber in South America and another on Captain Elray Jeppesen who developed the first navigational charts for pilots. All of it was well done and interesting — just a bit oddly mixed together.

1928 Ford Model A Roadster

1931 American Eaglet — built during the Depression to be inexpensive ($1,395). It could carry two (small) people and fly 280 miles on a tank of gas. The car in the background is a 1940 Ford Deluxe.

A 1931 Corben Baby Ace. It cost $995 when new.

A 1924 Chevrolet truck with a box built from a piano crate. It was the first vehicle sold by a Belvidere car dealership that went out of business in 2013.

A 1941 Culver Cadet that cost $2,395 and could fly 500 miles on a tankful of gas.

There were all sorts of small displays scattered about, including one of models of early aircraft.

Jeppesen chart book. The company is still in the same business today. It was started by Elrey Jeppesen, a mail pilot who got tired of navigating by  following rivers and the dangers of avoiding power lines

A statue of Jeppesen stands in front of the hangar.

The museum has several acres on the airport property and doesn’t just collect small artifacts. It also collects buildings and bridges and so forth.

A “T” hangar from Hamilton Airport in Milwaukee, built in the mid-1920s. The shape accommodated an airplane that was backed into the space.

An early airport beacon light stands in front of a 1938 hangar from Commercial Airport in Springfield, Illinois.

A Sunoco gas station, built in 1924 in Dayton, Ohio.

Slim’s Garage, built in the 1920s in Green Lake, Wisconsin.

It’s set up inside like a working garage and — I found this amazing — I was able to wander around at will all by myself. This by itself made the visit worth my while.

The car is a 1936 Pontiac Silver Streak Sedan.