 These
three cars all have participated in Texas
Tours and represent the kinds of vehicles
that may be seen at this one.
In order, a 1924 Ford Model T touring
car, a 1935 Auburn 851 phaeton, a 1955
Cadillac convertible.
Relive the golden age of the automobile with antique-car
buffs as they bring their treasures to
Galveston Island May 12-15 for the 52nd
Annual Texas Tour.
The state’s oldest and largest
gathering of these handsome vehicles will be
headquartered at the Victorian Condo Hotel.
As
many as 150 cars and trucks – and maybe
some motorcycles and a military vehicle or
two – will participate in the four-day
meet. Typically,
the oldest will be around 100 years old.
The youngest will be just 25 years
old, which is the cutoff date to classify a
vehicle as an antique.
Most have been lovingly restored by
their owners to like-new condition, while
others remain original, burnished by the
patina of the years.
Frequently
seen on this tour is a fully restored 1904
Curved Dash Oldsmobile, a motorized buggy
with a tiller instead of a steering wheel.
Others to watch for include
Thunderbirds, Chevys, Studebakers and
Oldsmobiles from the 1950s, Packards,
Cadillacs and flathead Ford V-8s from the
1940s and 1930s, and – as always – many
pristine examples of Ford Model Ts and Model
As from the 1920s and before.
If
you live on the Island, or if you are
fortunate enough to be visiting here on
Friday, May 13, 2005, consider it your lucky
day. That
morning the golden oldies will be judged in
competition for trophies at the Victorian,
and the public is welcome to observe.
The antiques may also be seen
throughout the weekend as conventioneers
drive to the Island’s attractions.
“Usually,
Texas Tours are characterized by drives over
rolling hills along secluded back roads in
Central and East Texas,” said James
Bartlett, tour co-chairman with his wife
Eileen. “We decided to come to Galveston to do a little less
driving and a lot more touring of local
historic sites, museums, the seaport and
Strand.
As a coastal city that offers us a
glimpse of the seafaring life – both past
and present – Galveston represents a
refreshing change of pace.
In fact, the Texas Tour has not
visited Galveston in 50 years, so it was
high time we returned,” Bartlett said.
The
first Texas Tour was held in Waco in 1953.
Subsequent tours, hosted by a
different old car club each year, have been
located in various cities around the state,
but this is the first one in Galveston since
1954.
This
year the host club is the Gulf Coast Region
of the Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA),
which welcomes antique vehicles of all
makes.
Gulf Coast Region, which holds
monthly meetings in Bellaire, draws its
membership from an area that stretches from
Galveston to Nacogdoches to New Braunfels to
Victoria.
Year ‘round activities include swap
meets and one- to three-day driving tours.
“People
in other parts of Texas are really
enthusiastic about seeing Galveston,”
Bartlett concluded.
“They’ve heard about the many new
attractions and I think they all realize
that if you haven’t seen Galveston lately,
you’re missing out on a unique experience.
The interests of antique car
enthusiasts extend beyond their gorgeous
automobiles to all things evocative of the
past – museums, restored homes, historic
landmarks, and so on.
It’s all part of a curiosity about
the days gone by, and how our predecessors
lived, worked and played.
Where better to satisfy that
curiosity than in perhaps the most
historically significant city in Texas?”
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