A Visual History of American Automobiles

Did you know that Ted Leonsis, the owner of the NHL's Washington Capitals and soon-to-be majority owner of the NBA's Washington Wizards, is a prolific blogger? I did and that's why, despite being a Bruins fan, a small part of me felt bad about watching his team lose in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Everyday, Mr. Leonsis writes posts about sports, technology, business, and new media. Today, one of his posts featured a neat website that is attempting to catalog the brochures of every American car manufacturer in the 20th Century.

American Car Brochures scans and displays the brochures that you would have found in automobile dealers' showrooms in the 20th Century. The brochures are organized by manufacturer and by year. The scans are of a very high quality which makes it easier to read the fine on some of the brochures. Below is an image of the brochure for the 1955 Packard Clipper.















Mr. Leonsis is also one of the major investors in Snag Films. I've written about Snag Films many times in the past, check out two of those posts here and here.

Applications for Education
A resource like American Car Brochures is an easily-accessed resource that could be used to in a history lesson about 20th Century US history. American Car Brochures could also be used as a historical reference in a graphic design or advertising design course.