The 40th Annual Meeting of the Pierce-Arrow Society continued a long tradition of fun-filled touring in great automobiles.  Two hundred seventy members of the Pierce-Arrow Society gathered for the 40th annual meet on Lake Superior the week of July 29-August 3, 1997. Pierce-Arrows and Pierce-Arrow enthusiasts came from all over the country to attend this year's meet, many driving their Pierce-Arrows from far distances.  Pierce-Arrows arrived from Florida, Idaho, Massachusetts, California, Illinois, Michigan, and other locations under their own power. The 1912 Pierce-Arrow shown here was driven from Massachusetts. Many others were trailered to the meet. Dave Harris, Pierce-Arrow Society President and this year's meet chairman, did a great job in organizing his meet committee and ensuring that everyone that came had a wonderful time.

The meet began Wednesday morning with a tour of the Duluth skyline.  Several Pierce-Arrows crossed the border into Minnesota to tour the hills west of Duluth.  The tour offered many miles of scenic driving, with several opportunities to look down over Duluth and the harbor beyond.  A Wednesday evening buffet offered the opportunity for Pierce-Arrow Society members to greet old friends and get to know some of the many first-timers.  Entertainment included musical selections from "Annie" and "Annie, Get Your Gun", performed by a local community theater troupe.  Later, the Duluth/Superior Harbormasters Chorus sang barbershop harmony.  They were even joined by Pierce-Arrow Society members Dave Harris and Ed Edison.

The second day of touring started early Thursday morning with a trip to Bayfield, Wisconsin.  After arriving at Bayfield, many of the Pierce-Arrows boarded the Island Queen ferry for a trip to Madeline Island.  PAS members had lunch on their own on Madeline Island or Bayfield.  After a brief tour of the Island, including a stop for pie, the Pierce-Arrow's returned to the mainland and back to the Barker's Island Inn.  The picture to the left shows some of the Pierce-Arrows on Madeline Island waiting to board the ferry.  Thursday evening featured a Pierce-Arrow parts auction where many members bought items for their cars.

The Friday tour took the Pierce-Arrows along the North shore of Lake Superior.  After driving along the shoreline and a lunch stop at the Lake Superior Shores Resort, the group returned to Duluth to visit the Depot Museum.  Housed in the old Duluth train station, the museum has an impressive collection of locomotives and other rolling stock.  There was even a trolley car in operation, giving short rides to eager passengers.  One of the highlights of the meet was the Friday evening dinner cruise on Lake Superior.  The cruise, that started just outside the hotel, took us on a harbor tour, pointing out the ships in port and telling us about their cargos and destinations.  As we ate the prime rib dinner, the ship continued around the Duluth harbor.  Returning to the hotel, we saw the lights of Duluth reflected in the lake.

People were up early on Saturday preparing their cars for the annual car show and judging. The car show was held on a grass lawn between the hotel and the lake shore.   The Saturday afternoon technical session presented a demonstration of wood-graining techniques and provided a forum for questions to the Pierce-Arrow Society Technical Committee. The meet came to an end for another year with the awards banquet Saturday night. Awards went to winners in each class plus the Weis trophy for the most authentic restoration at the meet, the Vale Faro award for the most original car, and the long distance trophy for the Pierce-Arrow that was driven the farthest to attend the meet.  An invitation was made to attend next year's 41st Annual Meet to be held in Silverdale, Washington.  It promises to be another great meet with the beautify scenery of the Pacific Northwest.  Start making your plans to attend now.

The award winners at this year's meet were: