Classic car museum cruises to new location

CLARKESVILLE, Ga. - It all started with a 1959 Cadillac Coupe De Ville.

“My grandpa bought this car new, in California,” says Sean Mathis, looking at the classic car that he dreamed of eventually owning. “And I never saw this car outside in natural sunlight in my entire life until it was delivered to me when I was living in North Carolina.”

Finally the owner of Pop’s ’59 Caddy, Mathis knew he couldn’t lock it away in storage where nobody would ever appreciate it. So he came up with the concert of Miles Through Time, an automotive museum in which collectors could store their classic cars and visitors could come and check them out.

We first visited Miles Through Time in April of 2019, when the museum was located in a 14,000-square foot space in Toccoa. Since then, Mathis has moved the museum inside the Old Clarkesville Mill in Clarkesville, Georgia — doubling his space and turning the museum into a nonprofit.    

Mathis says because the museum is a “hands-off” experience, anyway, he’s been able to allow visitors during the coronavirus pandemic. Current hours are 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily, and museum admission is $7. The museum’s new address is 583 Grant Street in Clarkesville.

We took a trip up to Habersham County to check out the museum’s new space — click the video player to see more.