Swope’s Cars of Yester Year
Discover the automobiles of yesteryear
Explore automotive history at Swope’s Cars of Yesteryear Museum in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. Discover vintage and antique automobiles, memorable stories, and a family passion for cars. Admission is always free.
See the collection Take the virtual tour
No admission charge 10 AM to 5 PM, Monday through Saturday Vehicles on display may vary
Swope Museum
Welcome to the Swope Auto Museum, home to an impressive collection of vintage and antique cars. Our museum, Swope’s Cars of Yesteryear, allows you to take a tour of different eras, from the early 1900s to the 1960s. Our museum features vehicles of all makes and models.
Everybody has a car story to tell
Automotive history, military service, and a family’s thanks
The Swope collection connects automobiles with the people and events that shaped their stories. Discover those connections through our vehicles and the lives of the museum’s founders.
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World War I
1914 Renault
One of the Paris taxicabs the French pressed into service to rush troops to the front and outflank the German army in 1914. The fleet earned the name the Taxis de la Marne. The Swope family has shared this Renault with the National WWI Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, helping bring automotive history to a wider audience. Contact us to confirm its current display location.
- Swope family loans 1914 Renault to national WWI museum The News-Enterprise
- Immersive Paris at War exhibition debuts at National WWI Museum and Memorial IN Kansas City
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World War II
Bill and Betty Swope
The museum’s founders were World War II veterans themselves. They served the veteran community for the rest of their lives, and the Swope family has backed the armed forces ever since.
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Vietnam
1969 Chevrolet Camaro SS
Elizabethtown went out of its way to welcome its soldiers home from Vietnam. They came back to a booming muscle car era, and for many of them the 1969 Camaro was the car of choice.
“Everybody Has a Car Story to Tell”, Bill Swope, Louisville Life on KET, January 2013.
Also from the museum floor: Remembering Our Heroes, our Memorial Day film.
How much does it cost?
The Swope Auto Museum is owned and operated by the Swope Family of Dealerships, open to the public with no admission charge. You won’t find a “suggested donation box” either — our museum is completely free. We welcome all to come and enjoy, a way of expressing our appreciation for the sixty years that the Swope Family of Automobile Dealerships has been embraced by the Kentucky community.
Hours and tours
The museum is open from 10 AM to 5 PM, Monday through Saturday. A knowledgeable hostess is on duty to greet you and give guided tours. The Swope Museum offers ample tour bus and RV parking. The museum is air-conditioned and is handicapped accessible. Don’t miss our vintage car library and a do-it-yourself car video theater! Cameras are permitted.
Highlights from Our Collection
Explore the online gallery ›A selection from our collection. Vehicles shown online may not be on display during your visit.
Inside the museum
Explore vintage and antique automobiles on the museum’s air-conditioned floor, with stories that bring automotive history to life. Enjoy the displays at your own pace or ask our team about guided tours. Vehicles on display may change as select automobiles are shared with other museums or participate in photography and film productions. You can also explore a recorded view of the museum through our virtual tour.
Coming to see a particular vehicle? Contact the museum or call (270) 763-6175 before your visit to confirm whether it is currently on display.
Cars for sale
Full inventory ›The museum is not selling its collection. Vehicles that have left the floor — and listings from fellow collectors — are offered here.
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1965 CHEVROLET CAPRICE FOR SALE
$30,000
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1925 Dodge Roadster
$33,000
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1925 Ford Model T
$35,000
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1937 DeSoto Business Coupe
$35,000
How the Swope vintage collection came to be
It was May 8, 1945, and Bill Swope was a young soldier fighting with the United States Army in Germany when the cheering started — Germans, Americans, soldiers and civilians alike. The war in Europe was over. After V-E day Bill came home, married his college sweetheart Elizabeth Sanford, and, after Japan surrendered, finished his schooling at Miami University of Ohio.
Selling building materials out of Cincinnati, he found he was far more interested in his company car than in anything he was selling. So the family moved to Winchester, Kentucky, where he opened his first dealership — a Dodge/Plymouth store on Main Street. Sixty years of Swope dealerships followed, and the collection grew alongside them.
Come see them in person
1080 North Dixie AvenueElizabethtown, Kentucky 42701
(270) 763-6175
Look for the stone sign on North Dixie, right beside Swope Nissan. Tour bus and RV parking out front.