The Story Behind the Collection

The Seal Cove Auto Museum grew from the passion and vision of Richard C. Paine, Jr., a dedicated automobile collector whose appreciation for early motoring extended beyond the vehicles themselves. Through years of collecting, researching, buying, and trading automobiles, Paine assembled an extraordinary collection that reflects the innovation, craftsmanship, and design of an important era in American history.

Preserving a Legacy

During his lifetime, Richard Paine established the nonprofit Seal Cove Auto Museum to provide a place to preserve and display his collection. Following his death in 2007, the Museum’s board worked with the Richard C. Paine Jr. Charitable Trust to safeguard the collection and keep his legacy alive.

The Museum continues to share these remarkable vehicles and their stories with visitors, exploring the people, ideas, and technological advances that helped shape the early automobile.

More Than Automobiles

The collection represents more than one man’s love of cars. It reflects Paine’s appreciation for design, his New England roots, and the region’s important role in the development of the American automobile industry.

Today, the Seal Cove Auto Museum preserves this legacy by connecting visitors with the ingenuity, imagination, and changing ways of life that defined the dawn of motoring.