Paul Adair’s family knew he collected vintage cars, but they had no idea how extensive his collection was. According to ClassicCars, the widow discovered her husband’s ownership of several garages and even former salt mines only after his death in November 2019.

Former mines are used as storage facilities all over the United States because they are easy to keep at the required temperature and humidity. In a nutshell, it’s an ideal location for a few dozen rare cars from around the world.

Adair’s widow and children were astounded: the old man had secretly assembled a museum for several decades while they were unaware. Hundreds of rare models, including a 1979 Glen Pray Auburn Boattail Speedster replica, a 1970 Samco Cord replica, a 1970 Mercedes-Benz 280 SE sedan, and a closed 1984 Chevrolet, were discovered in garages.

The collection’s highlight was 14 1932 Chrysler Plymouths. Mr. Adair, who was born in 1945, reportedly had a special fondness for the stylish gangster model, which was associated with prosperity at the time.

Workers at a retro car auction house were taken aback when they discovered themselves in a garage full of legendary Plymouths. For whatever reason, their ardent fan was clearly uninterested in keeping them in good shape. Despite this, complete sets of original parts for almost every rarity were found in each of the garages.

Even the rarest models were in disrepair. A four-door Plymouth Phaeton convertible, for example. There were 259 of these models made, with only six of them being right-hand drive. One of them ended up in Paul Adair’s “barn”.