Mecum offers up automotive 'captivation' with the John Lemmons Collection in Glendale
By: Old Cars Weekly
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Mecum offers up automotive 'captivation' with the John Lemmons Collection in Glendale
The captivating Lemmons Collection assemblage heads to Mecum Glendale 2026 on March 17-21.
John Lemmons Collection - 1960 Ford Custom Deluxe Country Squire Wagon Courtesy Mecum Auctions
MECUM AUCTIONS - The From the John Lemmons Collection refuses to lean on spectacle or volume. It reveals itself the way beautiful meanings often do—gradually and quietly, once pulses slow enough to notice that something in front of them is uniquely special. When the Lemmons assemblage heads to Mecum Glendale 2026 this March, it won't feel like a finale so much as a turning of pages, the sound of velvety paper being leafed through in a well-read book.
John Lemmons was never the fellow to chase milestones, trophies or headlines. Rather, he followed a sensation—an early, indelible yank that took hold of a young boy as he stood beside his grandfather's 1930 Chevrolet, bought new and lived with as a family car. It wasn't cautiously preserved as a garage goddess; it was utilized, enjoyed and counted on. That distinction mattered for Lemmons. It taught him that machines, like people, reveal their true character only when they are allowed to live.
John Lemmon Collection - 1969 Buick GS 400 Stage 1 Courtesy Mecum Auctions
John Lemmon Collection - 1931 Lincoln Limousine Courtesy of Mecum Auctions "
"I remember being captivated by it," Lemmons expressed. Though this captivation was not by rarity or value, but by the reality of discovering that things can be both beautiful and utilitarian.
What followed was an accumulation steered by instinct. Lemmons would go on to save patiently, search carefully and construct a wide-ranging collection that suited his taste. Cars would find him through magazines and classifieds, auctions and trades, and through like-minded conversations that carried a certain recognition between people who understood what "originality" really meant. When he sensed something truly rare surfacing, Lemmons traveled out of state, far out of his way, because he knew that the best specimens rarely popped up within arm's reach. These cars were always low-mileage, unaltered and authentically honest. Mecum became part of that journey too, as a reliable hunting ground for some of the most consequential vehicles ever built.
John Lemmons Collection - 2006 Cadillac XLR-V convertible Courtesy Mecum Auctions
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This article caught my eye because my first car when I was 16 years old, shared with my brother, was a 1950 Ford Custom Coach with absolutely nothing automatic or electronic except a manual 5 push button (to change stations) A.M. radio. I had a laugh when I saw that the author captioned the Ford wagon as a 1960 model - was that so the auction house could get more money for it? LOL
I also at a later time owned a Buick GS 350 of the same era and looks of the GS 400 pictured.
See some interesting cars sold at Mechum
Yes, these were a few pretty good ones.