FLINT -- The former Buick City will get a chance to show its historic ties to General Motors Corp. this weekend as the automaker celebrates its 100th anniversary.
The GM birthday party includes cake and a clown for children Saturday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at River Bank Park. A parade will be held at 1 p.m. Sunday that will feature 92 vehicles, each meant to represent a year in GM's history.
Three 1908 Buicks will start the parade at City Hall, which ends on Saginaw Street. A 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe hybrid, a Cadillac CTS and a Chevrolet Malibu will bring up the rear of the parade. Also included in the parade are military vehicles and Corvettes, Pontiacs, Oldsmobiles and other GM staples.
Advertisement
Organizers still are looking for autos from 1909, 1911, 1912, 1914, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1942, 1943, 1945, and 1983, according to a Web site dedicated to this weekend's festivities.
William "Billy" Durant founded GM in Flint in September of 1908. Durant, who became rich selling horse carriages, already had founded the Buick imprint in 1904 that was the forerunner of the legendary automaker.
A massive Buick plant in Flint was closed in 1999 as the auto industry sputtered. The sprawling 235-acre site was meant to be GM's answer to Toyota's Toyota City in Japan. A sign that welcomed people to Flint, calling it Buick City, has since been removed.
A car show is scheduled for 10 a.m. Sunday on East Saginaw Street. |
