Did you know the City of Oldsmar was an automaker's vision?

Ransom Eli Olds, inventor of the Oldsmobile and founder of the Olds Motor Works, wanted to create a working-class planned community in the Tampa Bay area. Olds hired city planners to design the city like the hub of a wheel. The plan called for tree-lined boulevards to fan out from a central point, similar to Washington, D.C. Unfortunate events of the late 1920s put an end to the multi-million-dollar investment. Olds-by-the-Bay later incorporated as the City of Oldsmar and developed and prospered on its own - just as Olds intended.

In 2003, the city bought a working replica 1901 Curved Dash Oldsmobile Runabout in honor of Oldsmar's founding. Runabouts were the most popular cars of the era and the first cars to carry the Oldsmobile name. The city's wood-paneled Runabout is displayed in City Hall and is used for parades and special events. In July 2004, Oldsmar received one of the last Oldsmobile Aleros made by General Motors. The two cars mark the beginning and ending of an era tied very closely to the city's own history.

Reprinted from Quality Cities September/October 2004

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