For more information, contact:

Leesa Brandon
Executive Director and NC Coordinator
Blue Ridge Parkway 75, Inc.
828.271.4779, x 224

When construction of the Blue Ridge Parkway began September 11, 1935, the country’s economy was in decline but America’s love affair with seeing America’s national parks by car remained strong. Visitors to the Blue Ridge Parkway’s 75th Anniversary Festival the weekend of September 10, 2010, at Cumberland Knob, NC, (Milepost 217.5) and the Blue Ridge Music Center near Galax, Virginia (Milepost 213), will be able to enjoy an automotive trip down memory lane. Not only will visitors learn about the construction of America’s Favorite Drive, they’ll also see antique cars and vintage campers spanning the 75 years of the road’s history.

A parade of more than 25 antique cars, representing various years from 1913 until 1964, will begin at Fancy Gap, VA, around 9 a.m. Saturday, September 11, and will proceed to Hillsville, through Fries and on to Independence and Galax, VA. The automobiles will be displayed at the Blue Ridge Music Center beginning at 4:30 p.m. The event, the “Twin County Road Tour Celebrating the Blue Ridge Parkway’s 75 years as America’s Premier Scenic Highway,” is organized by the Twin County Virginia Region of the Antique Automobile Club of America.

In addition, several members of the Tin Can Tourists, a national organization of vintage camper and motorcoach enthusiasts, will be on hand with their rigs from the early 1940s through 1963. Begun in Tampa, Florida, in 1919, the Tin Can Tourists was created to connect like-minded auto campers in promoting clean camps and friendly exchanges. Their signature membership mark was a soldered tin can on their radiator cap.

The antique automobiles scheduled to be part of the Parkway celebration include the following makes and models:

• 1913 Model T Ford touring car
• Several Model A Fords from 1928 – 1931
• 1935 Ford V-8, which was the year Parkway construction began
• 1939 and 1942 Ford V-8s
• 1952 Hudson Hornet
• 1957 Ford Thunderbird
• 1958 Ford Retractable
• 1973 Duster
• 1939 Plymouth truck
• 1965 VW bug
• 1966 Mustang
• 1957 Plymouth
• 1936, 1955, 1956, and 1975 Chevrolets
• 1941 Packard
• 1961 Ford Galaxie Starliner
• 1949 Jeepster
• 1950 Ford
• 1982 VW Camper
• 1964 Dodge Dart
• 1964 Corvair

The Tin Can Tourists will showcase the following makes and models:

• 1942 Teret Teardrop
• 1950 Spartanette Tandem
• 1958 Airstream Sovereign of the Road
• 1949 American Homecrest
• 1947 Kit Kamper Teardrop
• 1962 and 1963 Airstream Globe Trotters

The Blue Ridge Parkway’s 75th Anniversary Festival is free and open to the public. Parking is at the Blue Ridge Music Center and two auxiliary lots located near the intersection of the Parkway and Highway 89, near Milepost 217. Complimentary shuttle service between the Blue Ridge Music Center and Cumberland Knob Recreation Center will be available during festival hours. Please be sure to dress for the weather. Blankets and picnics are allowed. Alcohol and pets, except service animals, are prohibited.

Blue Ridge Parkway 75, Inc. is the non-profit organization designated by the National Park Service to lead the Parkway’s 75th Anniversary celebration. With representation from all of the Parkway’s partner groups, the states of North Carolina and Virginia, and community leaders along the 469-mile scenic route, Blue Ridge Parkway 75, Inc.’s mission is to engage local communities and all visitors in an anniversary that focuses attention on a sustainable and healthy Parkway for future generations. For more information, visit blueridgeparkway75.org.