By Nicole Thomas

Known as “The Home of the Classics,” DeKalb County in northeastern Indiana features four automotive museums honoring the county’s rich classic car heritage. 

A century of pickling

The town of St. Joe has celebrated its Pickle Festival every July since 2000. Featuring a variety of activities like a pickle-eating contest and a volleyball tournament, the festival honors Sechler’s Pickle Factory, founded in 1921. Ralph Sechler leased two pickle-receiving stations for farmers to bring their cucumbers, and he initially shipped brined pickles to processors like the D.M. Sears Company in Fort Wayne. After this company went bankrupt during the Great Depression, Sechler
and his wife, Anna, began pickling in their home kitchen. As their business grew,
they converted their barn into a factory and established Sechler’s Pickles in 1948. Today, the company remains dedicated to traditional pickling methods and continues offering its original 1920s recipes, like its Genuine Dills and Candied Sweet Orange Strip Pickles.

Auburn’s timeless treat

Martha’s Popcorn Stand has been a downtown Auburn staple since the 1940s. Martha Falka, who worked at Auburn Automobile Company, opened her original popcorn business in a restaurant next to Carbaugh Jewelers, which remains on 7th Street in downtown Auburn. When a local car salesman donated his small office space to Falka, her popcorn stand moved in and has been there for over 70 years. The popcorn stand’s current owner, Jordan Yarde, serves fresh buttery popcorn and homemade caramel corn from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., Thursday through Saturday, from May to September. 

Revving up history

Every Labor Day weekend since 1971, the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Festival celebrates automotive history with an 800-car cruise-in, live music, food trucks, and a collector car auction. The festival collaborates with the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum. Founded in 1974, the museum is dedicated to preserving cars the Auburn, Cord, and Duesenberg motor companies produced in the early 20th century. It is housed in an Art Deco building that was once the Auburn Automobile Company’s headquarters and showroom. It offers seven galleries across three floors with over 120 classic and antique luxurious cars. 

 County facts

FOUNDED: 1835 

NAMED FOR: Johann de Kalb, a French military officer in the American Revolutionary War 

POPULATION: 43,265 

COUNTY SEAT: Auburn 

INDIANA COUNTY NUMBER: 17 

Nicole Thomas is a freelance writer from Indianapolis.