JOLIET — A new western transportation themed museum has opened in Downtown Joliet at 110 South Main Street.
Treasures Out West celebrated its grand opening on Friday. The museum features several western transportation displays including a replica of an original wagon wheel.
To honor Montana culture, the museum also has a gift shop featuring local crafters and artists with handmade items, along with Wilcoxson’s Ice Cream.
The museum is open all weekend, and the owners hope to eventually expand the business to be open everyday.
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YouTube star and wagon wheel enthusiast opens western transportation museum in Joliet
All of the transportation-themed items in the museum belong to Dave Engel’s personal collection.
Engel, a YouTube star, has been restoring and recreating antique wagons since the 1970s. Engel told MTN on Friday he loves history about the Wild West, and that he hopes to honor Montana with the museum.
“This is a part of the American West. It’s the roots of America, how all the settlers moved from eastern areas, St. Joe, Missouri, to this country, all happened with what I work with. All the pioneers came out here, the whole country was opened up on wagons. And that’s just part of who we are,” said Engel.
Mack Carmack, MTN News
Since last summer, Engel has worked on opening the museum.
“This isn’t near big enough. I’m beginning to realize that fairly quickly. We could easily triple, or quadruple this room here,” he said.
The center of the museum is taken up by an original restored manure spreader from Engel’s personal collection. But, Engel says his favorite item in the entire museum is a large wagon wheel, which he created from scratch based off an original antique.
“This is a project that I got involved with the beginning of 2014, and it is a project that has never been done before. These wagons were built in the early 1880s, and no one has ever rebuilt these since,” he said.
Mack Carmack, MTN News
Just across the street from Engel’s museum is his workshop.
There, Engel restores and builds old wagons. It’s also where he films his YouTube videos.
Since 2015, Engel has been posting videos on his YouTube channel, Engel’s Coach Shop, where he demonstrates his craftsmanship.
Mack Carmack, MTN News
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“People watch this project and then they can come and actually see it hands on, first hand, of what they watched on their television,” said Engel.
For almost as long as Engel has been working on wagons, his brother-in-law, Rich Bischoff, has been restoring carriage and early automobile lamps, which are also featured in the museum.
Mack Carmack, MTN News
“Just the fact that, well, some of this machinery that I’ve used, it’s really cool to see here that Dave got a special spot for, honoring me by doing that… It’s just real exciting” Bischoff said Friday.
Around 40 years ago, Engel and Bischoff worked together reproducing carriage lamps, before separating into their own interests.
“The only thing that isn’t represented here is hearse lamps. But everything from buggies, to small carriages, to large carriages… to early automobiles (is represented),” said Bischoff.
Because of their former working relationship, Engel devoted a portion of the museum to Bischoff’s lamp collection, which includes lamps from the 1850s to the 1920s.
“I never dreamed that this would be in a display like that for people to come and look at it,” he said.
Mack Carmack, MTN News
The museum is open on Saturday until 6:00 p.m. and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.
