A new look at the Coolspring collection

Reader Contribution by Leslie Mcmanus
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It’s summer and the living is easy … unless you’re a member of the old iron community, in which case the pace is approaching full-scale frenzy. Finishing projects, planning road trips, volunteering at shows – it’s the time of year when dance cards fill up in a heartbeat. And that is exactly where your friends at Gas Engine Magazine can lend a hand.

Nope, they won’t strap engines on to a trailer and they won’t help with final reassembly after the paint dries – but they have put together a dandy of a book that will give you an in-depth look at a very fine museum: The Coolspring (Pa.) Power Museum.

Created by a group of passionate engine enthusiasts, the Coolspring museum is a world-class collection of rare and historically significant antique engines. As the focus of Gas Engine Magazine‘s Preservations Series, Coolspring, Discovering America’s Finest Antique Engine Museum takes you through the best of the best in this unique museum.

Housed in 20 buildings, the Coolspring collection includes more than 250 engines. Singling out 40 of those engines, this new book gives the reader a cross-section of the museum collection and also serves as a tour guide – because after you read this book, you will want to visit the museum. A map and an index of the collection team up to ensure that your visit to Coolspring will be time well spent, indeed.

One particular beauty of the Coolspring museum is the fact that the engines there are fully operational. Demonstrating the purpose for which they were designed, these historic relics capture a unique era in a meaningful way. Maybe you can’t make the museum today, but this new book from Gas Engine guarantees an up-close look that ought to keep you engaged until you can pencil in a trip of your own.

 Information on each of the 40 engines featured was provided by museum founder Paul Harvey, curator Preston Foster and president Clark Colby. Gas Engine editor Christian Williams edited the work, and you’ll appreciate his firm grip on the wheel.

If you’ve visited the Coolspring museum, you’ll particularly appreciate the selection this book contains. And if you’ve not yet been, this book will whet your appetite and beckon you to come by for a closer look. Whether you’re an armchair tourist or a road warrior, this book will be a fine addition to your collection! FC

To order your copy of Coolspring, Discovering America’s Finest Antique Engine Museum, visit the Farm Collector store by clicking here.

  • Published on May 17, 2011
Tagged with: Reader Contributions
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