NOTE TO MEMBERS:

Next General Meeting will be September 23, 7:00 pm at the WDM.

The membership of the SAAC would like to extend our condolences to the family of long time member Oscar Olson.

The Saskatoon Antique Auto Club meets the 4th Tuesday of every month (except December and January) at the Western Development Museum.

2008 Executive:

Fred Remillard - President, Sheldon Weinert - Vice President, Ritch Gifford - Secretary, Wayne Oscvirk- Tresurer, Norm Mowles Past President

Directors: Mike VanGrondelle, Orville Dunlop, Dave Huber, Dan Reid, Remus Reichert

History of the Saskatoon Antique Auto Club

by Gene Searcy (1999)

The organizational meeting of the Saskatoon Antique Auto Club (SAAC) was held on November 4, 1964 in the boardroom of the Western Development Museum (WDM). Approximately 30 people were in attendance from which the following officers were elected: President – Jack Braithwaite, Vice-President – Jim Allen, Secretary-Treasurer – Paul Matlock, Directors – Lloyd McLeod, W. Campbell, Roy Sisetki, W.J. Rea, Bill Horning, Gordon Wilson, Dan Meyers and Gordon Leach. The annual membership fee was set at $5.00.

Within two months of the organizational meeting, the SAAC was offered a trophy by the Draggins Rod and Custom club for competition and space for displaying members' cars at their annual show. The club has maintained a continuous presence in this show for 38 years. In its formative years, the SAAC was also an active participant in Pion-Era parades. A major undertaking as a Canadian Centennial project was the restoration of a 1912 Rambler car which remains on display at the WDM.

On August 21, 1967, at a joint meeting of the SAAC and Saskatoon Muzzle Loaders Club executive committees, a motion was carried that both clubs would co-sponsor a “Centennial Antique Auto and Gun Show” on October 7-9, 1967. Les Smith was appointed as the show chairperson. The show was held at the Jubilee Building at the exhibition grounds with 52 cars on display, including 23 cars from the WDM, 14 from the SAAC, 9 new cards from dealers, and 26 non-member cars. Approximately 1,600 people attended the first show and receipts equalled expenses. The show was repeated in 1968 but was expanded to include other hobbies and was named the “Saskatoon Hobby Show.” Thus the Saskatoon Hobby Show came into being and celebrates its 38 th anniversary in 2005.

Other significant events in 1968 included the establishment of a club library located in the WDM, the design of a club decal and crest, and the purchase of a car trailer for rent by members. Motions to allocate expenditures for frequent repairs to the trailer resulted in spirited discussions at general meetings until it was sold in 1982. In 1968, meeting dates were set for the fourth Tuesday of each month, a tradition which is still in existence.

In 1984, the twentieth anniversary of the SAAC, a Founders' Banquet was held at which several of the original executive members were recognized for their contributions to the establishment of the SAAC. A similar less formal function was held in 1994 to honour those members who had contributed significantly to the club during its first decades.

Over the years, the SAAC has developed a number of events which now occur annually. A banquet at which there is election of officers is held in January. Following the May meeting, there is a tour of members' garages followed by pizza and refreshments. A show and shine and safety inspection followed by a barbeque are held on a Sunday afternoon early in June. In recent years, following the July meeting there is a tour to the Berry Barn near the South Saskatchewan River, where the vehicles are assembled for display while participants enjoy saskatoon berry desserts. On a Sunday early in August, the SAAC executive hosts members at a picnic site in the country for the annual corn roast and barbeque.

Another recently established tradition, in place of the regular August meeting, is to tour to the Barn Playhouse 25 km north of Saskatoon where the cars are displayed for public viewing and members enjoy an outdoor meal and a play. The Saskatoon Cruise Weekend is a major event in August where members of SAAC display 20 to 30 vehicles under the blue and gold club banner. Since 1975, the annual steak fry takes place in early October.

The SAAC continues to host the annual hobby show in cooperation with the Saskatoon Muzzle Loaders Club. Recently this show has moved to the Wheatland Complex at the exhibition grounds in which larger numbers of vehicles are displayed. Antique farm tractors are now included in the display. A Christmas party for members' children and grandchildren is hosted annually by the Club in early December.

It is noteworthy that the SAAC has contributed to charities including Big Brothers, Big Sisters, and the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB). In 1990 the Big Sisters organization was designated as the sole annual recipient charity of the Club. In 1998 members of SAAC assisted the CNIB in selling tickets on a 1964 Thunderbird.

SAAC has consistently appointed delegates to the executive body of the Saskatchewan Association of Antique Auto Clubs (SAAAC). The SAAC hosted SAAAC tours known as the Prairie-to-Pine tours in 1973 and 1984 and the tours in 1991 and 1997.

As noted above, SAAC was founded with encouragement and support from the management of the Western Development Museum. Throughout its history, the club has held most monthly meetings at the museum where the club library is housed. In 1986, SAAC entered into an agreement with WDM in which all SAAC members became museum members and club dues were increased to include the additional membership fee. During the period 1991-1993, SAAC contributed funds to the Boomtown volunteers of the WDM, who then restored a 1928 Ford model A Phaeton which remains on permanent display in the museum. In 1993 the Club purchased a 1952 Pontiac which wa on display in the museum until space constraints necessitated the sale of the car.

Membership in the SAAC has exceeded 100 members since 1984 with an unusually high attendance at monthly meetings. Close ties have been maintained with the Scattered Spokes of Lanigan and Dusty Wheels Antique Auto Club of Rosetown as significant numbers of members in these clubs hold membership in SAAC. The Club has avoided some of the pitfalls which have befallen a wide variety of similar organizations because of controversial issues by having an executive committee review major topics and present recommendations to general meetings. This results in shorter business meetings with more time for post-meeting activities and fellowship. Maintenance of these traditions by the SAAC ensures a stable or increasing membership dedicated to the restoration and preservation of vehicles well into the next century.