c News and Events – Tallahassee Automobile Museum

News and Events

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How Daring are You?

If you watched the 3-hour, “Evel Live” Special, on the History Channel (July 8, 2018) you may have seen one of the Tallahassee Automobile Museum’s historic exhibits in action.

The program showcased present day Motorcycle Daredevil Travis Pastrana replicating three of Evel Knievel’s legendary motorcycle jumps from the late 1960’s & 70’s.  The main feature for Pastrana and the “Evel Live” program was the devastating jump with subsequent near death crash of Evel’s jump over the Caesar’s Palace fountains in Las Vegas, NV, (1967).  The motorcycle Evel used for that jump and during 1967 & 1968 stunts was a 1967 Triumph Bonneville T120 TT, 650 cc, Twin.

The Tallahassee Automobile Museum bought the pictured 1967 Triumph at auction in 2000 identifying it as having been registered to Evel Knievel Enterprises in 1968.  All though this is not the motorcycle that did the near fatal jump with Evel Knievel, that motorcycle was destroyed in the subsequent fire from the crash, it appears to be one that was owned by Evel Knievel during his Triumph motorcycle years.  Evel Knievel was known to have at least three motorcycles for his performances at that time.  Usually two motorcycles set up for jumping and one set up for the “wheelies” and other non-jumping stunts.

TAM Welcomes Another One-of-a-Kind Steinway Piano!

The “Concours” is a one-of-a-kind concept piano inspired by show cars from the Concours d’Elegance. This piano was unveiled on March 27, 2015 at the Steinway & Sons Dealer Meeting held at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. The traditional case of the piano has been expertly restyled to round out body corners and conceal the keybed. Legs were redesigned to give the appearance of an elegant car’s fluid continuity. A boldly -styled line was added to the treble side of the piano, lending dimension to a normally flat shape. You won’t find it ANYWHERE else but at the Tallahassee Automobile Museum!

New: 1932 Ford Coupe “XS CASH” Show Car

The newest addition to the Tallahassee Automobile Museum arrived this week. This prestigious award-winning one of a kind show car took 6 1/2 years to complete. It has won top honors in both the United States and Canada. We have specially mounted it on a motorized turntable so you won’t miss an angle or detail on this meticulously designed vehicle. Words don’t do it justice you have to come and see it!

Tallahassee Automobile Museum Firsts – Black History Month at TAM

Here at the Tallahassee Automobile Museum, we are celebrating black history month by recognizing two historic “firsts” of their kind.

October 14, 1920

The first college radio station began broadcasting from Union College, Schenectady, New York under the personal call letters of Wendell King, an African-American student at the school.

William B. Johnson

William B. Johnson was both the first African American Harley-Davidson dealer and the first African American licensed to compete in national motorcycle racing events. Johnson signed on with Harley-Davidson sometime in the 1920s, managing during nearly 60 years Johnson’s Harley-Davidson out of a converted blacksmith shop.

Because African Americans were not allowed into the American Motorcyclist Association, the organization that hosted the events, it is said that Johnson was only allowed to join and enter the competitions after he and die-hard fans declared that he was an American Indian.

The C.R. Patterson & Sons Company

The C.R. Patterson & Sons Company was a carriage building firm (1873-1915), and the first African American-owned automobile manufacturer. The company was founded by Charles Richard Patterson, who was born into slavery in April 1833 on a plantation in Virginia. Patterson escaped from slavery in 1861, heading west and settling in Greenfield, Ohio around 1862. C.R. Patterson was a blacksmith by trade and worked as such until going into business as a carriage builder in 1873.

Charles Patterson died in 1910, leaving the successful carriage business to his son Frederick who in turn initiated the conversion of the company from a carriage business into an automobile manufacturer. The first Patterson-Greenfield car debuted in 1915 and was sold for $850. With a four-cylinder Continental engine, the car was comparable to the contemporary Ford Model T. Approximately 30-50 cars were made over the next four years.

None are known to still exist today.

Tallahassee Automobile Museum’s Firsts

First-Of-Their-Kind Items at the Museum!