Brighton, Milford celebrate the centennial of the world's first automotive testing center

BRIGHTON — An open house will celebrate the centennial of the General Motors Milford Proving Ground.

The nonprofit open house will run 10 a.m-3 p.m. Saturday, May 18, at The Lingenfelter Collection, 7819 Lochlin Drive in Brighton. The event is hosted by the GMPG Retiree Club.

There will be 175 classics/special vehicles for attendees to view. There will also be videos and photos highlighting the history of the Milford Proving Ground. Retirees will be available to share their experience working there.

Monetary donations will be accepted at the door to support Gleaners Community Food Bank. The first 100 people to donate to Gleaners in-person will receive a commemorative coin. Donations can also be made online at fooddrives.gcfb.org/event/2024-milford-gm-proving-grounds-100th-anniversary.

An open house will celebrate the centennial of the General Motors Milford Proving Ground.
An open house will celebrate the centennial of the General Motors Milford Proving Ground.

The Milford Proving Ground, located at 3300 General Motors Road, is located in both Brighton Township and Milford Township.

The Proving Ground opened in 1924 and spans 4,000 acres with 150 buildings and 150 miles of road system, according to the General Motors website. It's "the lead facility for GM’s global proving grounds, responsible for product development and durability testing for its North American and global products."

It was the first dedicated automotive testing facility in the world, the company says.

Jim Lafferty, event chairman, began working at the Milford Proving Ground in 1967 and helped make improvements to durability. He lived in Germany for 2 1/2 years to collect data on how Europeans drove their vehicles.

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He's met some of the people who worked at the Proving Ground when it first opened.

“There’s a lot of history ... from the people that I worked with,” he said.

The historical societies in Brighton and Milford have made the centennial of the Milford Proving Ground their theme for this year, with exhibits at both locations. More events to celebrate the anniversary are planned for later this year.

— Contact reporter Evan Sasiela at esasiela@livingstondaily.com. Follow him on Twitter @SalsaEvan.

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Brighton, Milford celebrate centennial of world's first automotive testing center