Auto museum in Mississippi closing next year

TUPELO, Miss. (AP) – An automobile museum in Mississippi is closing next year, with the co-founder saying it’s no longer “sustainable” for her and some volunteers to operate.

The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reported the co-founder of the Tupelo Automobile Museum, Jane Spain, plans to sell all 178 vehicles the museum owns, with the proceeds for a charitable education foundation her late husband Frank Spain envisioned.

The museum opened in 2002 but the newspaper reported it’s never had the numbers of visitors needed to be self-supporting.

The auction is set April 25-27. Spain says the museum will stay open until late March or early April, when it closes to prepare for the sale.

Among the collection, an 1886 Benz three-wheeled car, a 1918 Stanley Steamer, a 1929 Dusenberg Model J and a 1957 Corvette.

Information from: Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, http://djournal.com

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