Shrine to Speed – A Huge Gallery from the Spectacular Speedway Motors Museum of American Speed
Racing and hot rodding share many of the same objectives and qualities. Chief among those are the quest for speed and the reverence for history, both of which are celebrated at one of the most amazing automotive museums anywhere in the country – the Museum of American Speed in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Yes, that’s correct. This spectacular shrine to speed, style, and performance innovation is not located in the hot rod hotbed of Southern California, or in some crowded corridor of the Northeast. It’s right in the middle of the United States on the campus of America’s Oldest Speed Shop – Speedway Motors.
The museum originated as the Smith Collection Museum of American Speed in honor of its founders, “Speedy” Bill and Joyce Smith, who first opened the doors to their Speedway Motors performance parts business way back in 1952. The Smiths poured their lives into Speedway Motors over the ensuing six-plus decades and developed it into a powerhouse parts purveyor that’s now a cornerstone of the performance automotive aftermarket.
In addition to being a dedicated racer and businessman, “Speedy” Bill Smith was a lifelong collector of all things racing and hot rodding. By 1992, he’d assembled enough historic parts, engines, cars, and artifacts to formally establish the Museum of American Speed as a separate, non-profit corporation dedicated to preserving, interpreting, and displaying items that are significant in racing, hot rodding, and automotive history. The museum moved to its current location in the early-2000s and has been steadily expanding in both scope and size ever since.
The vast collection of cars and artifacts on display in the museum can be traced back to the Smith family’s lifelong involvement in racing and hot rodding. The “speed” element of the museum’s name was particularly key in the early days, when there was a strong focus on early performance parts, racing engines, and racecars. Those elements are still at the collection’s core, but the spacious facility now incorporates infinitely more automotive history and celebrates a much broader range of American culture.
Not only will you find historic racecars and racing engines throughout the expansive museum complex, but also dozens of hot rods, show cars, performance vehicles, and even motorcycles. Complementing those displays are a countless array of toys, pedal cars, bikes, automotive-themed music albums, and other artifacts of American culture and history that help put our favorite vehicles into context. The museum chronicles the simultaneous development of the automotive aftermarket and the growth of grassroots American car culture, celebrating the pursuit of performance and the crucial role cars have played in allowing people to exercise their freedoms and express their personal style.
Near continual expansion has resulted in the museum encompassing an astounding 250,000 square feet in a sprawling three-story facility. Recent additions include special galleries from the integration of the Darryl Starbird Rod and Custom Hall of Fame Museum and the Unser Racing Museum collection. There are also expanded off road and Pikes Peak Hill Climb displays developed in partnership with the Herzog Motorsports Group. That’s on top of expansive exhibits for many other facets of motorsports, ranging from Sprint Cars and Indianapolis 500 racers to NASCAR stock cars, drag racers, land speed vehicles, SCCA cars, and much more. Work is currently underway to integrate the Model Car Museum, formerly of Salt Lake City, Utah, which will greatly expand the museum’s smaller-scale automotive exhibits.
Much like Speedway Motors, the Museum of American Speed benefits from its own rich legacy, namely the involvement of its founders’ family. “Speedy” Bill and Joyce’s surviving sons, Carson, Craig, and Clay, are all on the museum’s board of directors and work closely with Curator Tim Matthews and the rest of the museum staff on displays, donations, acquisitions, and other development. Ongoing growth and promotion have helped make the museum a Mecca for hot rodders and car enthusiasts from across the country and around the world. It has even been voted the #1 Best Attraction for Car Lovers in the USA Today Readers’ Choice Awards and sees a steady stream of visitors throughout the year – especially during monthly cars-and-coffee events held through the summer and fall.
It has been a number of years since we had visited the Museum of American Speed and showcased some of its amazing displays. And, boy, have there been some changes during that time! Our goal with these accompanying photos is to provide a taste of what the museum holds and a glimpse at some of the displays. No matter how many photos we show or words we write, though, nothing compares to the experience of witnessing this incredible collection in person. Take it from us – this place should be a high-priority travel destination for any dedicated gearhead. Until you can get there in person, we hope you’ll enjoy this virtual trip though the museum’s hallowed halls.
