A 1905 Cadillac Osceola. [Detroit Historical Museum]
There's been no shortage of wild anxiety in recent weeks over the prospect of the Detroit Institute of Art's gems being sold off to help pay off the ailing city's debt.
Art patrons have voiced roaring opposition. Whether that's a real possibility is unclear.
Now reporters Bill Vlasic and Jaclyn Trop of the New York Times write that we haven't heard nearly as much about angst among car lovers over the prospect of the city selling off other gems: "A collection of 62 lovingly maintained classic cars donated to the city since the 1950s by civic-minded families seeking to preserve the Motor in Motor City."
The New York Times writes:
Most of the cars are stored under protective plastic bubbles in a World War II-era riverfront warehouse on the grounds of Fort Wayne, while others are on display at the Detroit Historical Museum or on loan to exhibits around the country.
Just as art patrons are resisting selling van Goghs and Matisses to satisfy Detroit’s debt, car lovers are pushing back at the possibility of losing what they regard as the city’s historic industrial heart and soul — including a Cadillac Osceola that dates to 1905, and a vintage Ford Mustang worth an estimated $2 million.
“The cars stand for us, the expression of the thousands of people working hard to produce the birthright of America,” said Jerry Herron, a Detroit historian and dean of the Irvin D. Reid Honors College at Wayne State University. “It would be a sad day for Detroit and for America.”
