Margaret Dunning Foundation Gives $100K Grant to Horseless Carriage Museum

The Margaret Dunning Foundation awarded a $100,000 grant to the Museum of the Horseless Carriage on July 22, helping fund lighting for a new Brass Era museum now planned for the Gilmore Car Museum campus in Hickory Corners, Michigan. The award is the museum’s first grant and comes as the project works toward a $5 million fundraising goal.

Why it matters: - The $100,000 grant gives the Museum of the Horseless Carriage its first outside grant funding. - The award supports a new museum focused exclusively on Brass Era, pre-1916 automobiles and the people who built them. - The grant moves the project closer to a $5 million capital campaign target.

What happened: - The Margaret Dunning Foundation awarded the Museum of the Horseless Carriage a $100,000 grant on July 22, 2026. - The funding will help pay for lighting in the museum’s new building. - The announcement came days after the museum’s official groundbreaking ceremony. - The museum is planned for the Gilmore Car Museum campus in Hickory Corners, Michigan.

The details: - The new museum building is planned at 12,000 square feet. - Construction is expected to begin soon. - The Gilmore Car Museum is North America’s largest auto museum and hosts seven partner museums on its campus, including the Museum of the Horseless Carriage. - When complete, the Museum of the Horseless Carriage will be the first U.S. museum devoted exclusively to Brass Era vehicles and their pioneers. - Museum planners say the exhibits will focus on early engineering, technology, design, and the motor car’s impact on societies and cultures around the world. - The Museum of the Horseless Carriage is temporarily located in the Steam Barn near the construction site. - More information about the foundation is available here. - More information about the museum is available here. - The museum also shared a Facebook page: Facebook.

Between the lines: - The grant is a notable endorsement for a museum still in development and trying to build momentum with donors. - Margaret Dunning’s long connection to philanthropy and classic cars fits the museum’s mission, which may help explain the match. - The award literature says the foundation was founded in 1997 and built from Dunning’s estate after her death in 2015 at age 104. - Dunning supported Plymouth-area nonprofits and participated in the Woodward Dream Cruise with a 1930 Packard 740 Roadster.

What's next: - The museum will continue its capital campaign as construction gets underway. - The project will likely seek more donations to reach the $5 million goal. - The temporary Steam Barn location remains the public-facing home while the new building is built.

The bottom line: - The grant is both funding and a credibility boost for a museum aiming to create the nation’s first Brass Era-only automotive institution.