May 4th, 2019 - 11:00 am to 3:00 pm
The Twenty-fourth Annual Lewes British Motorcar Show
The British are Coming!…Again!! Featured Marque - NASH METROPOLITAN
The Lewes British Motorcar Show “The British are coming...Again!” will welcome a wide array of classic British vehicles to Lewes on Saturday, May 4 (NO RAIN DATE). The Lewes Chamber of Commerce sponsors the show with assistance from the British Car Club of Delaware. It will be held from 11 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Cape May-Lewes Ferry terminal. The show is supported by Southern Delaware Tourism.
Twenty four years ago, Car Show chairman Mike Tyler and the British Car Club of Delaware originated the concept of staging a British Motorcar Show in the spring to attract visitors to Lewes before the summer season got into full swing. Each year the show features a different marque. The 2019 Featured Marque is the Nash Metropolitan. It’s an American-designed car, built in Europe and exclusively marketed in North America. Some 95,000 Metropolitans were sold in the United States and Canada from 1953 – 1961. Its sales in 1959 helped spur the introduction of the Big Three’s (GM, Ford and Chrysler) new compact models.
According to Betsy Reamer, executive director of the Lewes Chamber of Commerce, “The popularity of this show has continued to grow over the years and the show’s venue at the Cape May-Lewes Ferry terminal allows for staging 100 + vehicles with the backdrop of the beautiful Delaware Bay.” One of the many attractions to attending this show, both as a car entrant and as a spectator, is the show’s proximity to the historic business district with its shopping (Sidewalk Sale bargains!) and restaurants. To that end, there are free shuttles during show hours (11 a.m. - 3 p.m.) to downtown Lewes for all the British car owners entered in the show and to the show attendees who pay the show’s $3 entry fee.
The British Motorcar Show concludes at 3 p.m. with the Winners’ Circle Parade from the ferry terminal, across the drawbridge and then down Second Street. Show admission is $3 for adults and children under 12 are free. For more information and to register a car in advance, call the Lewes Chamber of Commerce at 302-645-8073. The fee to register the car in advance is $20 and $30 on May 4th. Car entrants can download the entry form by visiting the Chamber’s website at www.leweschamber.com, click on Calendar of Events and scroll down to British Motorcar Show entry form.
The British Motorcar Show is scheduled the same weekend as the Merchants’ Spring Sidewalk Sale in the Historic Lewes Commercial District around Second Street. Their three-day sale begins Friday and ends Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. There are other events sponsored by Lewes Chamber members taking place that weekend including the Lewes in Bloom Spring Plant Sale in front of Citizens Bank on Second Street; the Blessing of the Fleet at Fisherman’s Wharf; the Historic Lewes Farmers Market in George H.P. Smith Park; the DE Center for the Inland Bays Native Plant Sale at the James Farm Ecological Preserve; Wheels for Meals Bike Ride, presented by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery; Summer Sundays at the Fort Miles Museum with tours led by FMHA Docents beginning at 11 a.m.; Peninsula Gallery’s opening reception for their multiple artist exhibition - “Fiber Art” and presentations at the Clear Space Theatre and the Rehoboth Beach Film Society films at their Cinema Art Theater. Details about all these events are on the Lewes Chamber of Commerce website’s calendar of events - www.LewesChamber.com