R.E. Olds Transportation Museum

The R.E. Olds Transportation Museum is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization governed by a Board of Trustees. The museum preserves and promotes Lansing’s rich automotive heritage, its lasting impact on the mid-Michigan community, and its influential role in shaping the American automotive industry.

Dedicated to Ransom Eli Olds, a Lansing inventor, entrepreneur, financier, and one of Michigan’s most notable automotive pioneers, the museum celebrates the innovations and legacy of a man who helped transform transportation in America. Olds pioneered the principle of the automotive assembly line and founded two groundbreaking automobile companies: Olds Motor Works/Oldsmobile (1897) and REO Motor Car Company (1904).

Key production milestones in early 1900s Lansing demonstrate the city’s rise as a national automotive leader:

• 1901–1902: Following the establishment of the Olds Motor Works factory, production surged from 425 vehicles in 1901 to 2,500 in 1902.
• 1904: The Curved Dash Oldsmobile became recognized as the first mass-produced automobile in the United States.
• 1905: After a devastating fire in Detroit, production was centralized in Lansing, where 6,500 automobiles were produced that year alone.
• REO Motor Car Company: Founded by R.E. Olds in 1904, the company quickly rose to prominence and by 1907 was among the four wealthiest automobile manufacturers in the United States.

These pioneering achievements placed Lansing at the forefront of the American automotive industry and helped establish manufacturing methods that would influence automobile production worldwide.

The R.E. Olds Museum was incorporated in 1977 through the initiative of a study task force organized by the Greater Lansing Chamber of Commerce. Following site selection and renovation, the museum opened to the public on May 18, 1981, at its current location. The museum leased its building from the City of Lansing until February 2018, when the city sold the building to the museum for $2.

Today, the museum houses an extensive collection of automobiles, engines, and automotive artifacts significant to the transportation history of the region. The James D. Butt Archives contains hundreds of thousands of historical materials, including photographs, drawings, manuals, newsletters, and records documenting the evolution of the automotive industry.

The R.E. Olds Transportation Museum and the Bates and Edmonds Engine Company offices are resources within the Lansing Stewardship Community of MotorCities National Heritage Area, an affiliate of the National Park Service. Museum operations are funded primarily through the generous support of members, donors, and community partners.

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500 E Michigan Ave Ste 180
Lansing, MI 48912