LeMay Museum finally breaks ground; Will display LeMay’s collection of 3,000 autos

Ten years in the making and many disputes with developers and state and local governments later, the LeMay Museum has finally broken ground as of last week. Fitted with a budget of about $100 million and a timeline of 18 months until completion, the LeMay Museum will bring to light the astounding collection of Harold E. LeMay, founder of a waste management business in the state of Washington.

Harold E. LeMay was able to collect about 3,000 cars during his lifetime which is deemed the largest collection of its kind by the Guiness Book of World Records. In 1998, LeMay founded the LeMay Museum with the intentions of displaying his marvelous collection for all to see. Unfortunately, Harold LeMay was unable to see the completion, or even the start for that matter, of his museum before his death in 2000. Of course, as they say, behind a great man there is a wonderful woman and following his death, LeMay’s wife, Nancy, took on the project. With her many fundraising efforts, Nancy LeMay was able to allocate $15 million of her own along with $11 million from the state of Washington, and $1.6 million from AAA car club.

The design for the museum consists of a spiraling display ramp and lots of chrome and glass featuring 500 of LeMay’s classic automobiles sitting on nine acres. Retail shops, dining, and entertainment venues will also take up shop on this parcel of land. Developers project a total of about 425,000 visitors and $34 million in revenue per year.

Among his collection of 3,000 automobiles, LeMay has a 1916 Buick Abadal, a 1924 Lincoln L Towncar, a 1929 Ford Model AA, a 1950 Chrysler New Yorker Convertible, a 1959 Chrysler 300E, a 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray, a 1983 DeLorean DMC 12, and just about everything in between.