09/03/2026
Museum Curator Doug Meloan recently welcomed students from Manhattan Area Technical College’s Automotive Technology program for a behind-the-scenes tour of the Midwest Dream Car Collection. The students, who are enrolled in the Intro to Automotive class, had the opportunity to step beyond the typical museum experience and explore the collection while learning about the people, technology, and innovations that have shaped the automobile over nearly 140 years.
As they moved through the collection, students encountered vehicles representing nearly every era of automotive history—from automobiles dating back to 1886 to modern high-performance and exotic supercars. Along the way, Meloan shared stories about the evolution of automotive design, engineering, manufacturing, and performance, giving students a chance to see how the concepts they are learning in the classroom have developed over time.
The tour offered a unique opportunity to connect classroom instruction with real-world examples, while also demonstrating just how much the automobile has changed—and how many of its fundamental principles remain the same. For students preparing for careers in the automotive industry, seeing this history firsthand provided a valuable perspective on where the automobile has been, where it is today, and where it may be headed in the future.
