Jack Sisemore RV Museum and Storage
A great place to go during a day of downtime or when traveling south into or through the city of Amarillo is the Jack Sisemore RV Museum and Storage. This museum features collections that were acquired by local RV salesman Jack Sisemore and his son Trent, a former mayor of the city. The father-son pair collected their first motorhomes in the 80s. They had an eye for the interesting ones.
The legacy of Jack Sisemore started when he first opened a gas station in Amarillo, then began renting out motorhomes as an additional part of his business. The business spiraled into a full-blown RV sales operation and was renamed Jack Sisemore’s Traveland. The father and son duo eventually grew their collection of unusual motorhomes so much that they decided to open a museum featuring their collection to the public at no charge.
The museum is located at 14501 I-27, Amarillo, TX 79119, on the right side of the highway coming into Amarillo from the south. The museum was first opened off Route 66 in a smaller space but has been relocated to a warehouse that is more accommodating to the number of vehicles in their collection. The Amarillo Motorsports Museum is also housed in this facility. The collections have been combined to showcase one large group of vehicles for visitors to see. It costs guests nothing to go in and explore the various exhibits. You can even climb in the campers and see what traveling across the country in one would feel like.
A teardrop camper, in addition to a 1962 Bambi Airstream, was the first of the collection for the pair to acquire. These motorhomes were restored along with the other vehicles they would find and purchase. The collection is home to some unique vehicles, such as the original RV that was used to film the movie RV and a one-of-a-kind 1935 Airstream Torpedo, which happens to be the first of its kind ever. It was built with materials from a lumber yard following a blueprint that was bought for $5 by a family and belonged to them for 81 years.
The retro-looking layout of the 18,000-square-foot museum really encompasses the feeling of being a 1950s road traveler. When you first walk into the warehouse, you will notice a vertical stack of three of the father/son’s Harley Davidson motorcycles. Because of the combination of the Jack Sisemore RV Museum and the Motorsports Museum, the collection is larger than ever. It features a broader array of vehicles, including child-sized wooden race cars as well as actual ones. These belonged to the Amarillo Motorsports Hall of Famer Dale Cross.
When you plan on visiting the Jack Sisemore RV Museum and Storage, it is recommended by other visitors to call ahead to confirm they are open. Regular operating times for the museum are Thursday to Saturday, opening at 3:00 pm and closing at 10:00 pm. You won’t be able to visit in the winter months. They are closed from the end of December through March.
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