HOURS:
Thur., Fri., Sat., Sun. &
Memorial Day, Veterans Day:
10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
ADMISSION:
Pricing and Special Group Tours (Minimum of 10 or more): Full Information Here
4251 Dry Creek Road
Paso Robles, CA 93446
Kathy Kroeker
Museum Bookkeeper
February Dinner
No Host Bar 5:30 p.m., Dinner 6:30 p.m.
Dinner is catered and open to the public,
reservations are required prior to 6 p.m.,
Monday prior to dinner, either
On-line HERE
Our February monthly dinner has been moved to Friday, February 14th, Valentine's Day. The normal dinner cuisine has will be an all-you-can-eat crab feed! This special dinner has been set aside as not just an opportunity to spend a special event with your favorite sweetheart, but will also serve as fund-raising event for the museum. All profits raised from this event will go directly to the operations of our museum. I would encourage you to make and pay for your reservations now as this is a special catered event. All reservations must be paid prior to 10:00 a.m. on February 5th. We do have opportunities for table sponsors and recognition at this event. I am looking forward to you joining us for this awesome event.
For the next few months I’d like to recognize our paid staff for their contributions to the success of our museum. A bookkeeper is the financial backbone of a nonprofit museum, ensuring its sustainability and success. Meticulous record keeping and compliance work guarantee that our funds are managed appropriately, allowing our museum to fulfill its mission. Kathy Kroeker has been our bookkeeper since 2022 and has worked hand in hand with our Treasurer, Cindy Bergin to make sure our bills are paid promptly, and our many accounts are kept organized accurately. Kathy is well versed in industry standard bookkeeping practices and is knowledgeable in many other areas as well. Working with Kathy is a pleasure. Her professionalism and clear communication lend to a positive approach to any problem. We are very fortunate to have Kathy working with us. Please join me in recognizing Kathy for her valuable contribution to our success!
- John Couch
- 805 440-1663
Our Newest Restoration Project Has Arrived
Introducing the Type 97 Te-Ke Tankette. This tankette was used by Imperial Japanese Forces in WWII. There were 616 produced and only 10 are left in existence! It mounted a 37mm gun and was powered by a 65 hp 4 cylinder, air cooled, inline diesel engine capable of reaching 26 mph.
This particular tankette was captured by the 640th Tank Destroyer Battalion (part of the CA National Guard) in 1944 in the Philippines. The tank was brought back to Camp San Luis after WWII and has been on display ever since. Time and weather have done their best to break down this tankette. That's where Estrella Warbirds Museum comes into play. We will be cosmetically refurbishing this tankette to its former self and it will be put on display at the 40th Infantry Divisions HQ in Los Alamitos, CA.
Shown above, Left to Right, Dennis Johansen, Rick Cimino, Greg Heydenreich, John Everett, and Steve Foss. Special credit for help to Scott Stelzle for the expert forklift skills and Josh Nowakowski and Andrew Pate of the National Guard for allowing us to do this restoration! Note the size comparison between the Type 97 and F-16B!
You can follow the progress of this restoration here.
New Aircraft Have Been Added to our Inventory
Three aircraft, formerly on display at the California Air National Guard Museum in San Luis Obispo, have been transferred to Estrella Warbirds Museum, where they will undergo restoration and placed on static display here in Paso Robles. The aircraft include a 1953 Cessna O1-A Birddog, a 1953 De Havilland U-6A Beaver and a 1956 Hiller OH-23 Raven. If you would like to assist in restoration of any of the above aircraft, we would love to meet with you. Extensive experience is not required but a willingness to learn and participate in a mutual project is appreciated. Stop by any Saturday morning and meet our all volunteer restoration crew.
New At The Woodland Auto Display
No Thanksgiving turkey for the Woodland clan again this year. Once again it will be racetrack hot dogs as the Woodland Auto Display sponsored 8w midget will be competing in the 83rd running of the Thanksgiving Midget Grand Prix in Ventura, Calif.. We have rising star Chase McDermond in the driver's seat for both this final midget race for 2024 as well as for the January opener in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Chili Bowl. (McDermond is fresh off 1st and 2nd place finishes at the BC Classic at Indianapolis.)
Other news; We will be moving out several of the race cars currently on display in order to make room for 3 of our cars that have been on display for approximately 3 years in Knoxville, Iowa at the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame as well as the East Coast Museum of Speed in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. One is 5 time Calif. Racing Assoc. champion Jimmy Oskie's famous Hank Henry built car. Another is the Bogar Special that was piloted by the great Jan Opperman and the 3rd is the Bobby Allen built car driven by Smokey Snellbaker who was considered one of the best of the "Pennsylvania Posse". While it was great to have these cars on a national tour, we are glad to welcome them back home.
In the vintage car department, Alex is making excellent progress on our 1953 Hudson Hornet. We hope to have this car on display sometime late next year. We recently acquired a 1926 Dodge Bros. sedan that should be ready for display shortly after the first of the year.