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An amazing Hudson collection, hidden in plain sight

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1946 Hudson Super Six convertible

1946 Hudson Super Six Brougham convertible. Photos by Frank Comstock unless otherwise noted.

Editor’s note: This piece comes to us from Hemmings reader Frank Comstock, who recently visited Hostetler’s Hudson Auto Museum, in  Shipshewana, Indiana, as part of a Midwest auto museum tour.

Imagine a scriptwriter pitching ideas to a television or movie producer in Los Angeles. He’s tried a number of story ideas without any interest from the producer. Frustrated, he decides to go for broke with his last idea. Scene 1: a young boy growing up on an Amish farm in Indiana in the 1920s and 1930s. Scene 2: Having found a mechanical bent, the boy grows into manhood and earns almost one hundred patents. Scene 3: At the urging of his second wife, he uses some of his excess energy to collect special and unusual Hudson cars and trucks. Scene 4: In his eighties, he donates most of his collection to a local town as the centerpiece of the town’s event center.

More than likely, the writer would be shown the producer’s door sooner rather than later. As Mark Twain famously said “Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because fiction is obligated to stick to possibilities; truth isn’t.”

Eldon Hostetler

Eldon Hostetler. Photo courtesy Eldon Hostetler, Jr.

This Twainism rings true, though, with the story of Eldon Hostetler who spent his youth as an Amish farm boy near Shipshewana, Indiana in the 1920s and 1930s. Yes, an Amish farm boy, helping his father and grandfather work the fields with horse and mule power, as well as some mechanical power for his grandfather who specialized in harvesting and threshing. As an adult, Eldon became an expert in raising chickens and actually does hold almost one hundred patents, mostly for poultry feeding and watering systems.

1937 Terraplane Pick Up Express

1937 Terraplane Pick Up Express.

Eldon became fascinated with Hudson cars at the age of 14 in 1936, when a young Amish neighbor returned to Indiana with a four-door Hudson Terraplane equipped with the then relatively new “electric hand” or semi-automatic shifter. Eldon learned to drive that Hudson and his path in life appeared to be set—Hudsons were definitely in his future. A Hudson of his own had to wait, though, since the driving age in Indiana was 18 at the time. With a loan from his grandfather, Eldon bought his first Hudson in 1940, a used 1938 model. From that point on, he drove nothing but Hudsons until 1956, when he needed a station wagon and it was obvious the end was near for Hudson.

1956 Hudson Hornet sedan

1956 Hudson Hornet sedan.

Fast forward to 1983 when Eldon began buying restored and unrestored Hudsons at the suggestion of Esta, his second and still current wife. Esta thought Eldon needed a hobby and since both had driven Hudsons in earlier years, collecting old Hudsons seemed a natural fit. That first acquisition was a 1952 Hudson Club Coupe followed a few years later by a 1937 Hudson Terraplane. Things picked up after that and it wasn’t long before there were more than fifty vehicles in the collection. Not just any Hudson, though, could make it into the Hostetler collection. Eldon’s choices show his interest in collecting unusual cars, those with low production numbers, those with custom bodies, as well as those tied to important people.

1928 Hudson four-door town car

1928 Hudson four-door town car.

Looking for a place to display the cars and trucks, Eldon Hostetler arranged to donate land and most of his collection to the tiny town of Shipshewana (population less than 700 people). The town worked with Eldon to take the collection and build a multi-purpose event center to house the cars and provide meeting and convention space. The agreements and various tax laws mean that Eldon cannot take an active role in the collection, although he does act as one of three directors who meet with town leaders annually. Day-to-day museum operations are managed by Eldon’s youngest son, Eldon Hostetler, Jr., known to one and all as “JR” (pronounced Jay-R).

1930 hudson four-door sedan broughm

 1930 Hudson four-door sedan brougham

Much of the collection rests today in an area of the Shipshewana Event Center specifically built for the cars. Entering the museum presents you with the largest collection of Hudsons in one place in the world, as well as a cacophony of surprisingly bright colors, designs, and many models you are not likely to see elsewhere. More than a few of the cars and trucks are believed to be the only ones in existence.

1917 Hudson Shaw Special

1917 Hudson Shaw Special.

With the cars arranged roughly by year, visitors can walk right up to, and around, each model. Photography is encouraged while touching is, of course, frowned upon. There are no ropes or barriers to keep you from the cars and if JR is tooling around, he’s happy to answer questions, open or close hoods, open doors, and generally show off the special features of these cars and trucks.

1928 Hudson Victoria coach

1928 Hudson Victoria coach.

More than forty-five vehicles comprise the collection, with models from almost every year of Hudson production. The bright colors of many of the cars are surprising to those not familiar with Hudson. In a video available for purchase, Eldon Hostetler talks about each car in the collection and points out that Hudson had over 130 colors available in some years.

1911 Hudson Model 33 Speedster

1911 Hudson Model 33 Speedster.

Most of the cars wear their original factory livery, to include a surprisingly vibrant two-tone green 1909 Hudson Model 20 and a eye-catching 1911 Model 33 Speedster in yellow. Black is the least common color in the collection with yellow showing again on a 1936 Hudson convertible coupe. Orange and yellow combine on a striking 1929 dual cowl sport phaeton. An attractive 1929 Victoria coupe is done up in pale blue with a painted wicker insert below the window line on the doors. Hudson’s Lipstick Red shows on several coupes and convertibles from the early 1950s, with a salmon-colored 1929 Model R coupe and a gray, red, and black 1937 Hudson Terraplane pickup rounding out the unexpected color extravaganza.

1929 Hudson dual cowl four door sport phaeton

1929 Hudson dual cowl four door sport phaeton.

Color cannot claim to be the only unique factor on many of these cars because Eldon Hostetler set out to collect rare and unusual Hudsons, cars with low production numbers, and one-offs whenever possible. A 1917 Shaw Special is powered by the first of ten special racing engines Hudson produced in 1917. Horace Shaw of Rochester, New York installed engine number one in a Duesenberg chassis with a custom body. The Hostelters believe this is the last example left of these special Hudson engines.

1921 Hudson Opera coupe

 1921 Hudson Opera coupe.

A 1921 Opera coupe with a Biddle and Smart custom body is unique because part of the wood frame is celebrated and exposed around the cowl and windshield. A bright red 1927 Hudson-based fire truck is the result of the Alden, Minnesota fire department removing the body behind the cowl from a long wheel base car and adding fire-fighting equipment. Known as the “Flintstone”, this truck remained in service until 1958. Although the Murphy Company designed many custom bodies for Hudsons that eventually were built by others, Murphy is believed to have built only one custom body for a Hudson, a 1928 four-door town car proudly displayed in the collection today.

1931 Hudson Greater Hudson

1931 Hudson “The Greater Hudson,” alleged to have been used by President Hoover in Panama.

A mysterious custom, which may have been factory produced, is a 1931 “Greater Hudson” believed to have been commissioned by Hudson President Roy Chapin when he became Secretary of Commerce. President Hoover was visiting Panama and it is believed that Chapin had this car built for that trip. A 1931 model from the cowl forward, the rest of the car is a 1930 model. Produced as a convertible phaeton, the car has no provisions for side curtains and was found in Panama in the 1950s by an Army chaplain.

1933 Essex Terraplane flower car

1933 Essex Terraplane flower car.

The only funeral car in the collection is a 1933 Essex panel truck converted to a flower car with interior wood paneling and special coach lamps. Like many of the vehicles, the flower car is a survivor.

1927 Hudson fire engine conversion

1927 Hudson fire engine conversion.

Restorations have been completed where needed, although some cars were purchased already restored. Many of the cars, though, have simply been cleaned up because restoration was not needed.

1942 Hudson woodie

1942 Hudson woodie 1942 Hudson woodie

1942 Hudson Woodie relic.

Historical records had shown that Hudson’s woodie wagons only used Cantrell bodies, so when Eldon Hostetler heard about a Campbell-bodied Hudson wagon, he had to investigate. The wreck — it cannot be described in any other way — was too far gone for restoration, but proved conclusively that the body was built by Campbell. Hostetler arranged for the remains to be used as templates for a new wood body installed on a donor 1942 long wheel base sedan. After being used for the templates, the original wood was wired back on the original chassis and is displayed today alongside the “new” woodie.

1948 Hudson Commodore custom woodie

1948 Hudson Commodore custom woodie 1948 Hudson Commodore custom woodie

1948 Hudson Commodore Eight woodie wagon.

A few vehicles are still in Eldon’s private collection, but show up in the museum occasionally. These include incredibly well done customs such as a 1948 Hudson Commodore Eight woodie wagon recently featured in the Hemmings blog. Hudson did not make woodies in 1948 and they didn’t make pickups in 1952. However, a remarkable jade green 1952 Hudson Hornet pick up is currently on loan.

1951 Hudson Broughm Convertible

1951 Hudson Broughm Convertible parade-movie car four1951 Hudson Broughm Convertible

1951 Hudson Brougham convertible, used as a parade car.

The truly unusual reside here, too, primarily in a bright red 1951 custom parade car. Apparently a Commodore Eight to start, this car’s doors have been cut down and scalloped for a dramatic appearance. The trunk has a slight boat tail effect believed to be done by using part of a 1947 Hudson hood turned backwards. The entire trunk area is now one piece with no seams. In addition to the cut down doors, the A-pillars and the windshield have also been cut down, apparently without any stiffening being added. As a result, the car is not safe to drive. JR says it does run and his father had it out on a country road just once. Eldon declared it ‘scary’ to drive and parked it after a short drive. It has never been driven again.

1952 Hudson Hornet custom pickup

1952 Hudson Hornet custom pickup.

A bit of controversy has added spice at times as some media outlets predicted the end of the museum at a time when the town of Shipshewana went through a rough spot with the company charged with day-to-day operations of the event center. Some media even reported the Hudson museum closed. Things are back on an even keel again and the closing rumors proved to be  unfounded. The collection closes every winter—large groups can still be accommodated with advance notice—and the rumors just happened to correspond with the annual closing.

1936 Hudson convertible coupe Series 65

1936 Hudson convertible coupe Series 65.

Maintaining this collection of mostly operational cars and trucks would not be possible without the 1,200 volunteer hours donated by local residents annually. Some cars are regularly exercised and it is not unusual to see one of the cars on the local roads or as a centerpiece of a small town parade. A visit here is friendly to the wallet with regular adult admissions just $8.00 at this time, with discounts for seniors, active or retired military, and groups of twenty or more.

1947 Hudson Long Boy pickup

1947 Hudson Long Boy pickup.

This small museum with its eclectic collection of Hudson cars and trucks is well worth your time. Exit 107 on the Indiana Toll Road—otherwise known as I-80—takes you a few miles south to Middlebury, which is just a few miles west of Shipshewana. Other transportation-related venues in the area include The National New York Central train museum and the RV Hall of Fame museum, both in nearby Elkhart, Indiana.

1954 Hudson Hornet four-door

1954 Hudson Hornet four-door sedan.

An oasis of Hudson history unexpectedly grounded in a tiny town in northeastern Indiana, this is a museum which deserves a visit. Combining a stop here with other nearby car museums means several days or even a week of antique auto heaven. The A-C-D museum is an hour drive to the southeast. The Studebaker museum is just under an hour to the west, while the Gilmore is about ninety minutes to the north. Add a little more drive time and Ford’s Greenfield Village is less than three hours to the northeast. Shipshewana and Hosteler’s Hudson Museum are the central point in a web of automotive history. Spin your own web with a visit soon.

1954 Hudson Jet 948 Hudson Super Six four-door 948 Hudson Super Six four-door 948 Hudson Super Six four-door 1941 Hudson woodie wagon 1937 Railton Hudson 1935 Hudson custom broughm series 54 1933 Hudson Terraplane convertible 1929 Hudson Model R coupe 1928 Hudson sedan convertible 1925 Hudson Essex roadster convertible 1915 Hudson Model Six-40

 

 


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