Studebaker Motor Company

Studebaker National Museum

The Studebaker National Museum has its roots in the Studebaker Corporation's private collection, which originated in the 1890's. Studebaker operated its own museum for many years, and by 1920, their collection included Lafayette's and President Lincoln's carriages: the company's last farm wagon the first automobile built entirely in South Bend, Indiana; and a large collection of World War I military vehicles.

The collection continued to grow until Studebaker ceased production in 1966. By that time, the collection numbered 37 vehicles, including the last automobiles produced in South Bend and Canada.

Studebaker donated its collection to the City of South Bend in late 1966. The collection was housed at a number of locations thereafter, including Studebaker's former Administration Building, the Waterworks Maintenance Shop, and the former Drewery's building on South Bend's northwest side.

The City of South Bend began displaying the collection at Century Center's Discovery Hall Museum in 1977. The museum gained additional space when it obtained the former Freeman-Spicer Studebaker dealership building in 1982.

The museum's Archive Center houses an extensive collection of artifacts, manuscripts, and records from the Studebaker Corporation, Packard Motor Car Company, and local South Bend industries. The records of the Studebaker Corporation were initially donated to Syracuse University in 1966. Syracuse returned the 70 tons of material to the Museum in the late 1970s
With the acquisition of the Freeman-Spicer building in 1982, a portion of the vehicle collection and archives were moved to that site. The Studebaker National Museum, Incorporated was formed in 1985, and in 1992 consolidated all exhibits and displays at the Freeman-Spicer Building. The archives were moved to a separate location on South Bend's south side.

The Studebaker National Museum's new home opened in October of 2005 at the corner of Thomas and Chapin Streets, adjacent to the Northern Indiana Center for History. The Museum operates as a 501 (c) 3 non-profit corporation.