Auto-Archives on the move to Pennsylvania’s NB Center

Auto-Archives, a growing library of automotive and motorsport reference material based in Colorado since 2010, will be moving to is relocating to eastern Pennsylvania.

Led by automotive historian William Taylor, the non-profit Auto-Archives has gathered, organized, and preserved over 85,000 historic books, magazines, photographs, technical manuals, sales literature, and other ephemera—a living open to automotive enthusiasts, car clubs, researchers, journalists, historians, and students to view and use.

Its mission—the preservation of cars and passing on of knowledge and skills from the 20th century golden age of the American automobile industry—has been hampered space constraints, with two Denver locations plus much material also kept in storage. The Auto-Archives board has been looking for a single site to house the collection for a number of years, and found it in the 27-acre Allentown, Pa., campus of The NB Center for American Automotive Heritage.

Founded by noted international jeweler, car collector, and historian Nicola Bulgari whose own extensive collection of American cars is housed in both the U.S. and Italy. Multiple buildings at the U.S. facility in Allentown are dedicated to storage, restoration and maintenance of nearly 200 cars, each kept in ready-to-drive condition.

The NB Center seeks to keep the passion for automobiles alive by putting them into their correct historical and sensory context, aligning well with the Auto-Archive seeking to involve, inspire, and educate future generations of “motorheads."

The Allentown facility will be opening a new visitor center in 2023 and will have regular visitation schedules in the coming years. Auto-Archives will be integrated into the campus in a building with access for those making appointments to use the library.

Keith Flickinger, curator and manager of The NB Center in Allentown and Jed Rapoport, project manager at The NB Center will be joining William Taylor on the Auto-Archives Board.