Packard Proving Grounds
Encyclopedia
The Packard Proving Grounds (the remains of which are now called the Packard Proving Grounds Gateway Complex), was an automotive testing facility established near Utica, Michigan
Utica, Michigan
Utica is a city in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,577 at the 2000 census. The 2008 Census Bureau Estimate places the population at 4,924.- History :...

 in 1927 by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

.

History

Packard had been founded in Warren, Ohio
Warren, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 46,832 people, 19,288 households and 12,035 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,912.4 people per square mile . There were 21,279 housing units at an average density of 1,322.9 per square mile...

 in 1899 by brothers James Ward Packard
James Ward Packard
James Ward Packard was an American automobile manufacturer who founded the Packard Motor Car Company and Packard Electric Company with his brother William Doud Packard.-Life and career:...

 and William Doud Packard
William Doud Packard
William Doud Packard was an American automobile manufacturer who founded the Packard Motor Car Company and Packard Electric Company with his brother James Ward Packard.-Life and career:...

. The company attracted several investors from Detroit, and by 1903 the Michigan investors had convinced the Packard brothers to let them relocate the young business to the emerging motor capital of Detroit.

The Packard automobile quickly evolved into a superbly engineered prestige vehicle. To maintain and advance their product position, Packard’s general manager, Henry Bourne Joy
Henry Bourne Joy
Henry Bourne Joy was President of the Packard Motor Car Company, and a major developer of automotive activities as well as being a social activist....

, sought to establish a dedicated testing facility. Testing on local streets and roads was risky due to traffic, and could potentially expose Packard’s future product developments to curious competitors.

An early attempt to locate a testing facility north and east of Detroit near the city of Mount Clemens was not approved by the Packard board of directors. A site had already been acquired by Henry Joy, but the 640 acres (2.6 km²) was deemed to not have enough topographic diversity to allow for such things as hill testing. At the dawn of America’s entry into World War I, Joy leased and eventually sold the site to the U.S. Government for use as a training airfield. The main access road to what was to become Selfridge Field
Selfridge Field
Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located in Harrison Township, Michigan, near Mount Clemens.-Units and organizations:...

 was named Henry B. Joy Boulevard in honor of Joy.

Almost eight years passed before a proving ground was again pursued. This time, a 560 acres (2.3 km²) site in Shelby Township, Michigan
Shelby Township, Michigan
Shelby Township is a civil township of Oceana County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,951 at the 2000 census. The village of Shelby is located within the township.-Geography:...

 about 20 miles (32.2 km) due north of the Packard factory, was procured. Noted Detroit architect Albert Kahn was retained to design the buildings of the facility, which was opened in 1928.

The Packard Proving Grounds consisted of a 2.5 miles (4 km) high-speed concrete oval track with timing tower, miles of test roads of various conditions, an airplane hangar (Packard was also involved in developing aircraft engines, and used the track’s infield as a landing strip), a repair garage, and a gate house/lodge that housed the Proving Grounds manager and his family. The Tudor Revival lodge building also had garage space for eight cars, plus dormitory rooms for visiting engineers.

The garage building contained experimental and engineering laboratories allowing the testing of engines, chassis, electrical components, fuels, and lubricants under a variety of conditions.

During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, the Chrysler Corporation leased the entire Proving Grounds to test tanks and other armored vehicles, and constructed a new building on the site that was capable of servicing tanks.

Packard operated the Proving Grounds until August 15, 1956, when the dire financial condition of the Studebaker-Packard Corporation
Studebaker-Packard Corporation
The Studebaker-Packard Corporation was the entity created by the purchase of the Studebaker Corporation of South Bend, Indiana, by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, in 1954.Packard acquired Studebaker in the transaction...

 forced it to consolidate all operations at Studebaker’s South Bend, Indiana
South Bend, Indiana
The city of South Bend is the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, on the St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total of 101,168 residents; its Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 316,663...

 facilities. That same summer, Studebaker-Packard entered into a management agreement with the Curtiss-Wright Corporation in a last-ditch attempt to avoid bankruptcy. Studebaker-Packard would receive enough funding to continue with a 1957 product program, and in exchange Curtiss-Wright would receive a tax write-off as well as all of Studebaker-Packard’s defense contract business. Curtiss-Wright retained possession of the Packard Proving Grounds after the management agreement with Studebaker –Packard ended in 1959, as C-W was using Packard’s former engine and transmission plant (located on the northwest corner of the Proving Grounds property) to manufacture jet aircraft engines.

Curtiss-Wright sold the property to the Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...

 in 1961. Ford used the former engine plant to manufacture automotive interior trim, and at various times used the lodge and engineering buildings to make small service runs of prior model year trim parts. Ford also used the test track for early emission control testing, saving its main test track in nearby Romeo, Michigan for higher-priority tesing.

By 1998, most of the Ford Motor Company’s surplus land holdings were turned over to an internal unit called Ford Motor Land Development Corporation. With the growth through the years of the surrounding Shelby Township and Utica communities, Ford Land decided to make the excess property at the former Packard Proving Grounds available for development. The first proposal they entertained was for a U. S. Postal Service distribution center to be located along 23 Mile Road at the north end of the Proving Grounds site. Eventually, the intention was to level the original Packard buildings so that the entire site could be marketed.

Although Ford Motor had been a good employer and a good corporate citizen of the area, Ford Land’s initiatives were met with some resistance on several fronts. Some residents objected to the noise, traffic, and light pollution that they felt a USPS distribution center would bring. Others decried the loss of a great amount of wildlife habitat. Historians and old car enthusiasts opposed the loss of a significant automotive landmark. Ford Land applied for demolition permits, but the permits were denied by Shelby Township. Meanwhile, several old car enthusiasts and members of the Shelby Township Historical Commission banded together to submit proposals to have the Packard Proving Grounds site named as a State of Michigan Historic Site, and to have it added to the National Register of Historic Places.

As opposition to the development began to grow, the USPS decided not to risk a protracted legal engagement and instead opted to locate their facility on a portion of the former Pontiac Motor Division site in Pontiac, Michigan.

A non-profit group called the Packard Motor Car Foundation was officially formed to approach Ford Land in an attempt to preserve the most historic and significant portions of the Proving Grounds. After several rounds of meetings, Ford Land generously offered to gift 7 acres (28,328 m²) of land to the Foundation, which contained the lodge building, the garage, the water tower, and the Chrysler Defense building. The Foundation would then be responsible for the restoration and perpetual care of the site. An additional 7 acres (28,328 m²), containing the timing tower and a 458 feet (139.6 m) section of the original test track, would be given to the Foundation once certain restoration and fundraising goals were met. The Foundation moved the aircraft hangar to the reserve property in 2003.

The Packard Proving Grounds was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

in 2000. The site is a part of the MotorCities National Heritage Area established in southeast Michigan by the National Park Service. All restoration work at the Packard Proving Grounds Historic Site is being done to National Park Service standards for historic preservation. Proposals for the future sustaining use of the site include an "Arsenal of Democracy" museum, which would illustrate the many contributions made to World War II by the automotive industry. The site could also be used as a facility for catered events such as business meetings, weddings, and car-related shows and meets.

External links

The Packard Motor Car Foundation

National Heritage Area

Packard Proving Grounds

Packard Proving Grounds Photo Album
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