Last week I finally attended the 5th Annual Northville Concours d’Elegance at the historic Mill Race Village just north of downtown Northville, Michigan. For several years I found excuses for not going. Probably the first was that it seemed like a junior Jaycee project. Second — too close to home. Third, not going to another car show, not even a curated one.
Then, why not? Because they don’t get better? My first car show was in 1964, Sports Cars in Review at the Henry Ford Museum, and then again in 1965. Then I helped take a Packard 740 roadster to the Classic Car Club of America’s Grand Classic on the Cranbrook campus in 1971, and the same car to the Detroit Autorama in 1972 — some of my older posts include references to many more car shows.
So this year, I accepted the invitation to show my 1958 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider Veloce because I had nothing better to do and it was just a half-hour drive. Also, my wife lived in Northville before we met on campus in Ann Arbor. And since we got married in Northville, it was kind of a home coming. I am now glad we went.
A Jaguar E type and an Auburn Speedster welcome visitors at the entrance to Mill Race Village
We staged our Alfa the evening before, then enjoyed a fine Italian dinner in town. On show day, there was a breakfast buffet followed by lunch for exhibitors served in the village church. About 175 cars were invited and displayed, a truly amazing feat considering its modest amateur beginning only four year ago, post pandemic. And just two miles north from the historic St. John’s Provincial Seminary where the successor of the Meadow Brook Concours d’Elegance died in 2021 when the Archdiocese of Detroit sold the 200-acre property to the Pulte family who transformed it into a luxury golf resort. Northville’s Mill Race Village and adjoining ball diamond seems like a better location. Plus Northville with its well-preserved historic houses and cute downtown has a mini Carmel-by-the-Sea vibe, though only by a pond. I recommend it!
Peak chromium with fins from Detroit
Apparently the judges agreed that our Spider is exceptional. It won second place in the Post War European class. However, my wife said that’s it, no more, it’s too bloody hot! And I agree, only in September around my birthday from now on. I’m thinking about car events in Canada and England.
About the Event
The 5th annual Northville Concours d’Elegance took place July 10-12. The event honored Jack Roush and the Roush family as Collectors of the Year. It also featured legendary racecar driver Lyn St. James as chief mentor judge. The Concours began with a Kickoff Party on Friday evening with some panel discussions on Saturday featuring St. James, IMSA Hall of Fame inductee Judy Stropus, and past Concours honorees. On Sunday, some 175 classic vehicles were judged and awards presented.
About the Venue
A long time ago Henry Ford repurposed the mill pond in Northville for his Engine Valve plant — part of his vision of decentralizing manufacturing and integrating it into rural communities. After the land was donated to the City of Northville by the Ford Motor Company in 1972, the Northville Historical Society created the Mill Race Village as a living museum. Once the site of a grist mill — overlooking the meandering of the Rouge River which flows through the village — it is now home to a church, gazebo, school, rustic wooden bridge, blacksmith shop, general store, interurban train station and several homes reminiscent of an era gone by.