Published: May 26, 2006 11:07 am      

Tin Can Tourists will travel Historic National Road, beginning at the Queen City

CUMBERLAND — From June 4-10 Cumberland area residents and others will have a chance to see the first caravan by the Tin Can Tourists as members of the group travel from the Queen City to Vandalia, Ill., along the Historic National Road.

Many may have seen the group on the Travel Channel or in feature articles in recreational vehicle magazines, but as part of the Historic National Road’s 200th anniversary, visitors will have the opportunity to meet the owners and take a peek inside these unique, classic motor homes.

Thirty members will traverse the nation’s “first interstate highway” and offer a glimpse of classic road travel.

The group will hold an open house at the Allegany County Fairgrounds from 10 a.m. to noon on June 4, before leaving with a police escort by the Allegany County Sheriff’s Office to U.S. Route 40, according to Kim Shirer, director of tourism programs for the Allegany County Department of Tourism.

A cruise-in in their honor will be held at Canal Place in Cumberland with Rockin’ Red Bob the night before. The local chapter of the Maryland Good Sam’s Club will be assisting the group.

There also will be a signing and presentation of a large postcard by the Cumberland postmaster. The card will be carried throughout their trip.

The Tin Can Tourists was organized at Desoto Park, Tampa, Fla., in 1919. The group’s stated objective was “to unite fraternally all autocampers.” Their guiding principles were clean camps, friendliness among campers, decent behavior and to secure plenty of clean, wholesome entertainment from those in camp.

The group, known for the soldered tin can on their radiator caps, grew rapidly during the 1920s and ’30s. Members could be inducted by fellow campers through an initiation process that taught the prospective member the secret handshake, sign and password.

After singing the official song, “The More We Get Together,” the trailerite was an official member of the Tin Can Tourists of the World. By 1932, with membership estimates ranging from 30,000 to 100,000, the original organization remained in existence until the mid-1970s.

The organization was revived in 1998 when Forrest and Jeri Bone renewed the club as an all make and model vintage trailer and motor coach club. The renewal gathering was held in their hometown of Milford, Mich. Twenty-one rigs attended the May Renewal Gathering. By the end of the year, 50 members were accepted as charter members of the renewed version of the Tin Can Tourists. The group has grown steadily, currently holding annual gatherings in Michigan, Florida, and regional rallies at various locations in the United States. Recently regional representatives have been added to represent England, Japan and France.

The caravan will begin in Cumberland and follows this schedule, according to Shirer.

* Sunday, June 4

10 a.m. to noon, open house at the Allegany County Fairgrounds, Cumberland

2 to 4 p.m., Grantsville

4:30 p.m., Addison, Pa.

* Monday, June 5

10 a.m., depart Addison

5 to 8 p.m., open house, Uniontown, Pa., at Mount Macrina

* Tuesday, June 6

10 a.m., depart Uniontown

10:30 a.m., arrive at Brownsville

1 p.m., depart Brownsville

3 p.m., arrive Oglebay Park, Wheeling ,W.Va.

6 to 9 p.m., open house

* Wednesday, June 7

7:30 a.m., depart Wheeling.

9 a.m., arrive at Zanesville, Ohio, at the The National Road-Zane Grey Museum

10 a.m., Depart Zanesville

Noon, arrive in Columbus, Ohio

2 p.m., depart Columbus

4 p.m., arrive Springfield, Ohio, Joe’s Grill

* Thursday June 8

8 a.m., depart Springfield

9:30 a.m., arrive Richmond, Ind.

10 to 10:30 a.m., welcome reception Old National Road Welcome Center

11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., historic Hoosier gym celebration in Knightstown. The Tin Can Tourists will be participating in the 20th anniversary celebration of the movie “Hoosiers” that was filmed in the Hoosier Gymnasium.

12:30 p.m., Depart Knightstown; travel distance to Terre Haute, Ind., 103 miles

4:30 to 7:30 p.m., Terre Haute, evening gathering and open house, Deming Park

* Friday, June 9

7:15 a.m., depart Terre Haute to Clabber Girl Museum

11 a.m., arrive Greenup, Ill.

1 p.m., depart Greenup

3 p.m., arrive Vandalia, Gallatin Street

Evening, Sonnemann Park; supper will be “The Taste of the National Road,” representing the heritage of each community in the Vandalia area

* Saturday, June 10

10 a.m. to 1 p.m., open house at Sonnemann Park

To learn more about the group, visit www.tincantourists.com.