Henry Ford Museum gets an update
In this photo released by The Henry Ford, visitors use a touch screen at The Henry Ford in Dearborn, Mich. The suburban Detroit museum founded by auto pioneer Henry Ford is revamping its automotive displays, offering a fresh look at its rich collection and showcasing the enormous influence of the automobile on culture and daily life in the United States. "Driving America" opens to the public Jan. 29 following a year of construction at the museum. It features some of the most significant cars ever built, from early production vehicles to modern rides, and examines how automobiles shape the nation. (Nov. 9, 2011) Credit: AP Photo/The Henry Ford
The suburban Detroit museum founded by auto pioneer Henry Ford is revamping its automotive displays, offering a fresh look at its rich collection and showcasing the influence of the automobile on culture and daily life in the United States.
"Driving America" opens to the public Jan. 29, after a year of construction at Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Mich. It features some of the most significant cars ever built and examines how automobiles shape the nation.
WHAT YOU'LL SEE
The 80,000-square-foot permanent exhibit includes 130 vehicles and more than 60 cases of artifacts. Touch-screen displays will offer access to images, videos and oral histories, as well as allow visitors to explore parts of the museum's collection that aren't on display.
People will be able to create a custom collection that can be accessed later via a smartphone or computer.
"Driving America," which replaces the museum's "Automobile in American Life," is between the collection of trains and the "Heroes of the Sky" exhibit, which documents aviation's early years.
Walking through the "Driving America" displays, visitors will see muscle cars, race cars, trucks, sport utility vehicles and luxury cars. Sections look at auto repair, design, safety and marketing, as well as auto-related offshoots such as the road trip.
Museum admission, $15 ($11 ages 5-12, thehenryford.org), includes the exhibit.
WHILE YOU'RE THERE
Head to Lamy's, a 1946 diner, then The Henry Ford, a history attraction that includes Greenfield Village. In the works is "Racing in America," focusing on innovation in American auto racing and the behind-the-scenes culture of the sport.
