Category: Indiana

2023 Fall Adventure Episode 13: Elkhart, Indiana, RV/MH Hall of Fame and Museum

On By LToddIn Indiana, Photography, RV Travel, States, Travel2 Comments

On October 14, 2023, we packed up and headed to Morris, Illinois, for a one-night stay before arriving in the “RV Capital of the World,” Elkhart, Indiana. My skepticism about staying at a truck stop soon dissipated once we backed into our site. The extra room to put out the slide and stairs left plenty of space between our neighbors and us. We’ll consider Love’s RV Hookup during future travels, especially for one-night stays.

Overnighted at a Love’s

I goofed at the end of last week’s post when I mentioned a Grand Design Factory tour. I forgot they did not permit posting tour photos because they might reveal trade secrets. Fortunately, two days after our tour, we visited the RV/MH Hall of Fame and Museum, where they had a miniature display of the factory process. The photos in this post show the RV manufacturing process and take a peek at the collection of museum’s historical trailers and motorhomes.

Here are the sixteen (16) steps of the RV manufacturing process:

Steps 1 and 2: Start with a frame and install holding tanks
Steps 3 and 4: Install carpet and lino, then cabinets
Steps 5 and 6: Install exterior walls and roof
Steps 7, 8, and 9: Run electrical wiring, cover with roof decking, and install roof rubber
Steps 10 and 11: Install windows and slideouts (roof omitted to show interior)
Steps 12 & 13: Install doors and drawers, then appliances
Steps 14, 15, and 16: In goes the furniture, final finish, and quality inspection

I saw nothing that was proprietary in this photo, so thought I’d include it. This is the inspection area of the factory. The inspectors go through the entire unit and tag anything that needs fixed before it leaves the area.

I always enjoy factory tours and Grand Design’s was one of the best. We glimpsed behind the curtain to see how they made our 5th wheel from the ground up.

And here’s a sampling of the units included in the RV/MH Hall of Fame and Museum:

1880s John Deere Conestoga Wagon
The Covered Wagon, or Gypsy Wagon, was the origin of both the RV and MH industries.
The inside reminds me of today’s class B vans
The oldest travel trailer in the world? It’s a 1913 “Earl” custom made for Cal Tech professor by an LA carriage maker.
The dining table seats four and converts into a double bed.

It’s been a roller coaster ride for the RV industry these past few years. Low demand for new RVs, increase in interest rates, and recession fears predicted a downturn in the industry going into 2019. When the pandemic hit in 2020, scores of individuals and families clamored to purchase an RV and find freedom on the road.

In the early 1980s, we started out in a trailer like this. Ours was a 1957 Kenskill
Jon and I slept in the bottom bunk, our daughter slept in the top bunk, and we swapped out the dining table for our son’s pack-and-play
Restored and airbrushed “On Cabin Time” a 1967 Fan Camper once featured in Vintage Camper Trailers Magazine
In the section for RV vendors to display their products, we found this outfitted motorhome.
The motorhome is furnished with many of the products sold by Furrion by Lippert
They included all the creature comforts

After a peak of 600,240 delivered units in 2021, the industry dipped in 2023 with 313,174 units, according to RV Industry Association. Indiana Business Review expects 350,000 units shipped in its 2025 forecast. Of course, many factors may upset that forecast, mainly interest rates, tariff threats, and unforeseen events and policies. It makes me wonder why people forecast anything.

1928 Pierce Arrow Fleet Housecar
A Mid-Century Dream
Cozy living room
Kitchen hall and bedroom
Clark Cortez motorhome made by Clark Forklift

Indiana holds the largest concentration of shipped units at 84%, with 67% shipped from Elkhart. So, in whatever direction the economy and RV industry winds blow, so goes the economy and job opportunities in Elkhart. On the Grand Design tour, we learned that many of the workers at the factory are Amish. Perhaps they are better prepared than us city dwellers to wait out a downturn in the economy.

Bluebird Daydream Motorhome

If an RV factory tour doesn’t suit your fancy, there’s plenty more to see and do in Elkhart and the surrounding towns. To mention a few, visitors can take a buggy tour, shop downtown, or browse through the Shipshewana Trading Place.

Amish parking. Who cleans up the horse droppings?

Visitors can also tour the Menno-Hof Museum, Ruthmere Museum Campus, or Wellfield Botanic Garden. And don’t forget the restaurants. We picked Blue Gate Restaurant and Bakery for dinner one night.

Blue Gate Restaurant

Want a place to stay for a night or two? The RV/MH Hall of Fame and Museum is a Harvest Host with plenty of room for self-contained RV parking. Hookups not available.

Next Up: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library in Grand Rapids, Michigan

Safe Travels