WASHINGTON, Sept. 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Historic Vehicle Association (HVA) will present the 25th and 26th vehicles to be added to the National Historic Vehicle Register. The fifth annual exhibition will feature two historically significant vehicles:
September 12 – 19
Apollo 12 Astronaut Alan Bean's 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray
September 20 – 27
1966 Volkswagen Deluxe Station Wagon owned by Esau and Janie B. Jenkins
Each will be a part of the Historic Vehicle Association (HVA) Cars at the Capital exhibition on the National Mall in Washington D.C. Displayed in the HVA glass enclosure on the walkway between the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, the exhibition is free to the public.
Apollo 12 Astronaut Alan Bean's 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray
Starting in 1961, General Motors offered a program to all astronauts - lease a Chevrolet Corvette for $1/year. Each would come from a former Indy 500 winner and GM dealer, Jim Rathmann, who owned a dealership close to the Space Center in Florida.
The fourth human to walk on the moon, Alan Bean, the Apollo 12 Lunar Module Pilot in 1969, took part in the lease program. Bean's two Apollo 12 colleagues, Pete Conrad and Dick Gordon, leased identical Riverside Gold Corvettes with matching custom painted black accent "wings." The three astronauts drove the cars to the space station for training every day.
The current owner, Danny Reed, has owned the car for 48 years. Having seen the car in the December 1969 issue of Life Magazine, Danny was surprised to spot the car on a General Motors Acceptance Corporation (GMAC) lot in his hometown of Austin, TX in 1971. Danny submitted a bid under a closed bid system but lost. Six weeks later, GMAC called – the winning bidder hadn't come up with the cash need and they wanted to know if Danny was still interested. With all he could afford at the time, Danny purchased the car for $3,230 – just $30 more than the third-place bidder.
1966 Volkswagen Deluxe Station Wagon owned by Esau and Janie B. Jenkins
Esau and Janie B. Jenkins were pioneers before and during the civil rights movement. As business owners, community organizers, and founders of organizations and institutions, together they dedicated their lives to providing opportunities, and hope, to the people of Johns Island, South Carolina and beyond.
In the 1940's, using money from farming and selling produce, they would purchase buses to transport children to school and workers to jobs in Charleston, SC. During the bus rides, Esau and Janie B. would teach their adult passengers the information needed to pass the literacy exam so they could become registered voters. Along with others, they were responsible for The Progressive Club, a co-op started in 1948 that provided community programs such as legal and financial assistance, child and adult education, and community workshops. The building housed a grocery store, gas station, community center, meeting and classroom space. Leaders including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and others, participated in workshops and community meetings there.
Their 1966 Volkswagen was an icon throughout their community and throughout the South. On the back hatch of the microbus was painted the famous saying of Esau Jenkins: "Love is Progress, Hate is Expensive." In 2014 the family donated the back hatch, along with the engine cover, to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC where it remains on permanent exhibit. This year, the HVA spearheaded the conservation and stabilization of the Volkswagen in partnership with the Jenkins family, the College of Charleston, the NB Center for American Automotive Heritage and B.R. Howard & Associates.
"These vehicles are an embodiment of the cultural changes associated with the sixties, a decade that transformed the nation," said Diane Parker, Vice President of the Historic Vehicle Association." "The human-interest stories associated with these automotive treasures represent both space exploration and civil rights; two of the most significant movements of the decade."
Schedule of Events (open to the public, free of charge):
September 11
On Wednesday, September 11 at approximately 7:30 p.m. (sundown) there will be a Lighting Ceremony at the HVA's glass enclosure of the Apollo 12 Astronaut Alan Bean's 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. Location: National Mall hardscape between the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum and the National Gallery of Art.
September 12
On Thursday, September 12 at 9:00 a.m. the HVA will host a Press Conference to officially kick-off the Cars at the Capital exhibition. Location: National Mall hardscape between the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum and the National Gallery of Art.
September 14
On Saturday, September 14 from 7:30 a.m. until Noon, the HVA will host "Cars at the Capital and Coffee." This exclusive event will have two vehicles displayed, the Apollo 12 Astronaut Alan Bean's 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray; and the 1966 Volkswagen Deluxe Station Wagon owned by Esau and Janie B. Jenkins. This event is weather permitting. Please note you will not be permitted to bring your personal vehicle(s) onto the grounds of the National Mall where the exhibition is taking place. Parking around the National Mall is very limited at parking meters, so if you do plan to bring your automotive treasure, please plan accordingly.
September 20
On Friday, September 20 at approximately 7:15 p.m. (sundown) there will be a Lighting Ceremony at the HVA's glass enclosure of the 1966 Volkswagen Deluxe Station Wagon owned by Esau and Janie B. Jenkins. Location: National Mall hardscape between the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum and the National Gallery of Art.
These historically significant vehicles are privately owned and are being commemorated and recorded as part of the HVA's National Historic Vehicle Register program, in partnership with the U.S. Department of the Interior's Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) to be permanently archived in the Library of Congress.
The HVA's 2019 Cars at the Capital exhibition and historic documentation program are made possible through its parent company Hagerty, host to the largest network of collector car enthusiasts; and partners: The NB Center for National Automotive Heritage, Shell Including their Pennzoil and Quaker State brands), the National Corvette Museum, B. R. Howard & Associates and College of Charleston.
About the Historic Vehicle Association The HVA is dedicated to preserving and sharing America's automotive heritage. In 2014, The HVA established the National Historic Vehicle Register in partnership with the U.S. Department of the Interior, Heritage Documentation Programs and Library of Congress, respectively, to document historically significant automobiles in America's past. The HVA is supported by over 400,000 individual historic vehicle owners, key stakeholders and corporations as well as individual benefactors. Please visit: www.historicvehicle.org.
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*Kline & Company, "Global Lubricants Industry November 2017: Market Analysis and Assessment."
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