Vintage, early 20th century Singer sewing machine on display in the Lodge House at the Packard Proving Ground.Hilary Davis

Small-Scale 20th Century Design: The Singer Sewing Machine

A different kind of 20th Century engineering! Exploring the Singer sewing machine.
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Check It Out: Continuing the PPG Library Project

Our holdings include a diverse array of print publications, newsletters, magazines, and Packard-original documents that we plan to preserve and protect for the long term.
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Packard Rosies on the Homefront

On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, leading France and Great Britain to declare war against Germany. Thus began WWII.  America was hesitant to get involved after suffering many losses during the Great War, enduring the Spanish Flu, and still struggling through the Great Depression.

The Packard Powered Miss America X

The first thing that one will notice upon entering our museum at the Packard Proving Grounds Historic Site is the 38’ by 10’, eight-ton race boat built by racing legend Garfield Arthur Wood. Its impressive size with four huge Packard engines jutting out of the top instantly draws you in to take a closer look. This race boat represents a significant piece of our local history and is significant to world history in terms of what an advancement it was in mechanical power.
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Work to Win; Honoring Our Packard Rosies

President Franklin D. Roosevelt established a War Production Board (WPB) in January 1942, just a month after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The newly developed board allocated resources, implemented price controls, and set production quotas to encourage workers to produce more goods during the war. Packard and its employees took it to heart as their duty to do all they could to help their soldiers fighting overseas.
1932 photo of the Timing Tower at the Packard Proving Grounds with a Packard staged in front of it.

Packard Proving Grounds: Fulfilling the Need for Regulating Testing and Testers

Regulation of automobile testing and testers, along with the need to get off the busy streets of Detroit, led Packard to the Proving Grounds.
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Packard Towing Dynamometer

The Packard Proving Grounds is in possession of a unique artifact of Detroit history, one that was a common sight at the Proving Grounds - the Packard Towing Dynamometer.
Color image of a scale model Patrol Torpedo boat, which is on display in the Tank Building at the Packard Proving Grounds.Rene Moon
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Sailing Home: The Refurbished Return of the PT Boat Model

Our impressive scale model is docked in the Tank Building, all spruced up and ready for viewing.
Packard Proving Grounds
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A Different Kind of Drafting: Hidden History in the Packard Proving Grounds Office

Make some future plans with the help of a well-used relic from the past!
Emily R. Benoit

Always Check Your Pockets: Messages from the Past

Some unexpected historical help was found while working with one of the PPG's most interesting artifacts.