Where History Comes Alive
Pioneer Acres is fortunate enough to have not one but two buildings that comprise the Pioneer Truck Museum. Building #1 is referred to as the Ron Carey building since most of the trucks in that building are from Ron Carey's collection. Ron was a businessman from Calgary whose passion was meticulously restoring antique trucks and old gas pumps from filling stations. Some years ago, Ron donated a good portion of his collection to Heritage Park in Calgary, which now forms their Gasoline Alley exhibit but much of the remainder of his collection was kept at Pioneer Acres. Unfortunately, Ron passed away in 2019 but we are grateful that the trucks that he kept at Pioneer Acres were donated to us in November 2022. Several members of Pioneer Acres members have taken on the tasks involved in operating and maintaining these vehicles. Presently five of the nine donated trucks have been brought back to operational status and can be seen driven at our annual show in August.
Building #2 contains about 30 trucks and cars that are mostly owned by our members and are on display for all to enjoy. They range in production from the early 1900's to the 1950's and range in size from a 2-seater convertible to highway transport trucks. Most of them are restored as they orginally were from the factory, but some are in good enough condition that they are displayed as they were found. All of them are in running condition and can be seen driven around our grounds at various times.
Many of the Pioneer Acres members who look after the Truck Museum are also members of the Alberta Chapter of the American Truck Historical Society. Each year, during Pioneer Acres Annual Show and Reunion, members of the Alberta Chapter hold a Chapter President's Barbeque on site. Throughout the year numerous work days are scheduled to handle cleaning and maintenance items for both Truck Museum buildings. If you have an interest in antique trucks, or just want to learn more about maintaining and restoring antique vehicles, please send us an email or give us a call.