This past weekend I tagged along with the Hudson Mohawk chapter of the ATHS as they visited the Mahan Collection in Basking Ridge, NJ. Without a doubt this is one of the premiere collection of antiques trucks, heavy equipment, and memorabilia on the east coast if not the country. Before Saturday I had seen a handful of the collection at various truck shows and even caught a glimpse of the grounds through various posts on Facebook. I thought I had a good idea of what to expect during the visit. Turns out, as usual, I was completely unprepared for what I would find.
Building after building on a gorgeous piece of suburban property, complete with pond and stream, were jammed full of antique trucks, signs, gas pumps, toys, and parts. Every time you turned around you saw something new. Some trucks were in museum restored shape while others existed as they did the day they were dragged form the field.
Have you ever seen so many AC (AK’s too) models in your life? The truck wearing the A.T. Otto and Sons banner is the 21st AC ever built and quite possibly the oldest unrestored version in existence.
The entire collection was simply overwhelming. One my favorite buildings contained the all original trucks. Along with this H Model this building contained more than a few gems like a Bridge and Tunnel wrecker from NYC, a tough looking Kenworth W-900A and a Brockway 527 single axle cabover with sleeper. Yes, you did read that right.
There was just too much to see! It was a great problem to have. The collection continues outside of the buildings as well but we’ll see more of those tomorrow. In the mean time, a video walk through of the buildings. No narration was necessary.
can you suggest a hauler to transport a 52 mack semi?