$30 Million Tank Collection Donated to Collings Foundation

[Pat Carry]

I guess I can step forward now and confirm that the process of creating The Jacques M. Littlefield Collection at The Collings Foundation has been something that has been in "the works" for quite some time. There have been lots of meetings between the Littlefield family, the MVTF directors and The Collings Foundation. It was clear from the start that The Collings Foundation was interested in turning what was the best private collection of military vehicles in the United States, into a world class museum. Part of that is going from a collectors standpoint of buying anything you can find for sale, to limiting the collection to tell the story and meet the objectives of the museum. When people see that we are selling such a large percentage (number wise) of the collection, what they do not see is the actual descriptions of what is being sold. Being a collection, Jacques was not against buying multiples of the same vehicle. As a museum, paying the transportation, upkeep and storage of multiples is not financially smart. One Stuart M3 is going to be able to tell the story just as well as 3 of them. It is an evolving process as the list of vehicles that will ultimately be part of the museum is still in flux. There are a certain number of vehicles that the Littlefield family are keeping, a certain group of vehicles that "have" to be part of the museum in Stow (including the Panther), another set of vehicles that we feel will finish telling the story within the museum, then the rest of the vehicles that we feel are excess to the story we want to tell.

There will be an auction there in Portola Valley by Mecum Auction House on August 1st and 2nd, 2014 where there will be at least 100 military vehicles for sale. There will be everything from Stuart's to Sherman's, to M-60's that will be sold. Some of them are restored to running status, some are display status, and there are some projects that MVTF never got to. We feel that this is probably one of the largest auctions of this caliber of military vehicles for sale in one location in quite a few years. There may never be another one like it. There is already some world wide interest in the auction, and it was announced less than a week ago.

To keep this thread from getting moved out of the Warbird part of the forum, I will throw out a teaser that we will be making another major announcement in the next few weeks that is warbird related.

A very interesting thread. This will be an exciting addition to the CF's collection. Your last statement has me and I'm sure a great deal others here sitting on the edge of our seats awaiting the big announcement.

[JimH]

[Jerry O'Neill]

This topic is fascinating and I feel it is very appropriate for the Warbird Forum and WIX. With the recent activities involving changes in some major aviation collects, the process on how the Collings/Littlefield donation develops and plays out can give everyone here great insight into how some of these private collections, whether autos, tanks, trucks, trains or planes, move forward into the future. How a collection can remain intact after the passing of the founder or the changing economy has direct bearing on all of us who are interested in preserving history, especially operating that history. Kudos the The Collings Foundation and the Littlefield family for doing what is right for the future of the collection!

[markboss]

To all parties involved...A big THANK YOU!!!

[CAPFlyer]

This topic is fascinating and I feel it is very appropriate for the Warbird Forum and WIX. With the recent activities involving changes in some major aviation collects, the process on how the Collings/Littlefield donation develops and plays out can give everyone here great insight into how some of these private collections, whether autos, tanks, trucks, trains or planes, move forward into the future. How a collection can remain intact after the passing of the founder or the changing economy has direct bearing on all of us who are interested in preserving history, especially operating that history. Kudos the The Collings Foundation and the Littlefield family for doing what is right for the future of the collection!

Exactly my sentiments. This transaction/donation/whatever you want to call it is setting a new standard for how these kinds of transactions will be handled in the future. By being public and open about it, you guys have everyone, enthusiasts, collectors, operators, museum directors, etc, looking at you, mostly in awe, at how you've done something great and not put yourselves in a major hole in the process. I hope everyone follows this thread and the story wherever it's continued with interest because it could be setting the model for how many of our favorite museums succeed in the future.

[Mark Allen M]

I agree that this particular donation is unique in it's openness to public discussion. Quite surprising yet unique actually, and for this reason I also find it fascinating as well. I wouldn't go as far as stating it's groundbreaking or setting any type of new standards, at least no new standards in a general sense of donated acquisitions. These types of transactions and agreements have been common for quite some time in art, antiques, automobiles and real estate just to name a few. What actually is quite interesting in the donation world are the amount of items turned down as far as material donations offered to museums and non-profit organizations. There are many reasons for turning away a well-intended donation and the logistics can sometimes be more trouble than it's worth to accept a material donation. Accepting a monetary donation is quite another thing all together, but even sometimes accepting a dollar donation can be tricky. The CF folks sound like they have done their homework well. Good for you folks.

I'll state I know no one associated with the Collins Foundation personally but I have been following their interests over the past few years. I find the organization to be quite intelligent in their strategy and aggressive in their approach to expanding their portfolio. Quite uncommon in this day and age of the standard practice of streamlining and cut backs.

I've always been a fan and supporter of their tours (especially on the west coast in my neck of the woods) and have paid a visit several times to their stops in my area. The financials and logistics for conducting such tours is quite a detailed set of tasks for sure I would think, but the rewards for their efforts are clearly evident, at least from my experiences paying them a visit. The amount of joy and satisfaction from veterans alone whom I have seen at these tour stops is enough for me to continue to support their efforts as I'm all about the veterans.

Best of luck with your auction.