On a country road in Oaklandon, IN between a bridge and a four way stop on property that has been in the family since 1888 lies what may be the world’s eighth wonder for Pontiac TransAm fans.  Steve Hamilton’s “Bird Houses” domicile the most magnificent collection of Trans Ams known to any who share the common passion of the car hobby.  Steve does not physically reside at this address.  However, since he spends the majority of his time pursuing his passion, he has built a small efficiency apartment within the second of the buildings to accommodate living arrangements in his “home away from home.”  Steve contracted a pole barn builder to build the walls of each building as well as a heating and air conditioning professional for their expertise.  Steve was the nuts and bolts of the remainder.    

Four buildings house over eighty Birds from 1969 to 2002, half of which are show pieces, in addition to two fire trucks (‘52 and ‘62 models) with the remainder consisting of drivers and project cars.   Steve was a volunteer fire fighter for fourty years.  The fire trucks serve a dual purpose.  Their advantageous classification of insurance rate carries over to the Birds as well.  The largest single building and the first built is 56’ x 96’.  It was intended to be the building to end all buildings.  As his car hobby disease manifested and he acquired more neglected orphans, more buildings emerged.  The museum pieces are housed in what he refers to as his heated and air conditioned “museum.”  The Birds are back to back and two stories high in some places.  Each car has its own set of keys.  Steve makes his rounds every month or so with a trickle charger to maintain the seventy batteries for those deemed road worthy.  Steve does all the restoration and mechanical work but farms out the body work and paint work to the experts with proper equipment. As with most of us, the possibility of Steve restoring the computerized generation of Birds is slim to none.

Ideally each car should be parked next to a door for easy access.  However a heated and air conditioned building is not conducive for having a door for every vehicle.  Steve attempts to plan ahead and parks closest to the doors the next slated for a road trip.  The rest are stored in a back bay.   Steve has engaged road trips as far as Fort Walton Beach, FL to the Southern Trans Am Regional STARS show during spring break.  It is always a treat to get a break from OH winters and head for the heat.  Each year a car hauler is loaded with at least seven of his prized possessions and it heads to the Trans Am Nationals in Dayton, OH where spectators nationwide view the best of the best.  You may find Steve at the Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH for the Pontiac Nationals each August.  He has a standing reservation.

A third Bird House is reserved for drivers and project cars.  Some have been parted.  Some have been sold.  Others have been restored.  Steve has been known to accidentally buy cars.  Case in point, a 1970 Formula 400 automatic arrived at the nest sight unseen after a three way phone conversation from Detroit simply because the bumper was worth the asking price.  Steve knows his stuff.  He acquired a 70’s Ram Air just because the color was the correct Carousel Red.  The fact that the passenger door pillar was off a half inch was immaterial.

Steve reserves his fourth Bird House for parade cars.  They are not mint.  They are not show material.  They may be a 4-speed rarity.  They may be a 350 HO.  Or anything in between.  But certainly admirable enough to take for a spin to dinner.   

The Collection

Steve’s lovbirbirdde of the early ‘70’s is accountable for this leisure pursuit.   Investments plus dividends made it all possible.  Steve bought and traded a 1969, a 1973 and a 1977 before he realized you do not have to trade a car to buy another one.  A Brewster Green ’76 Trans Am was his first collectible.  To date he owns twelve ‘76’s.  When asked his favorite…“Well that’s a tough question.  They each have their own story.  Only two unique Firebirds are nestled among the TA’s.   The most memorable is the ’99 30^th Anniversary.”  Probably the rarest, a ’69 Ram Air, column shift, 4-speed that was shown at the Cavalcade of Customs in Cincinnati in 1997 won Best Display along with a friend’s ’96 Ram Air.  In 1996 Pontiac re-introduced the Ram Air again.  Steve purchased a 5-speed ’87 GTA with a 305 because of its rarity.  More 5-speeds were equipped with the 350 engine. 

Few of his cars have low mileage.  Steve believes in exercising them.  Only three were bought new…an ‘80 Turbo, an ‘89 Pace Car and a ’99 30^th Anniversary.  The farthest Steve has traveled to foster another Bird is Cortez, CO.  Steve bought a round trip air fare just in case the deal did not materialize.  30 mpg and a grand scenic road trip later, the Bird House in Oaklandon, IN became home to a ’94 TA. 

The newest of the orphans, a 2002 TA, first caught his eye at the Trans Am Nationals in Dayton OH.  This was the last year for Pontiac’s Trans Am and Steve had not owned one yet.  The owner tried to strike a $35K deal with Steve, but this was not accepted.  The owner eventually traded it on a Corvette.  When the original owner learned the Chevy dealership brokered the Bird, he called Steve who called the Broker.  The rest is history.  Steve drove 560 miles to southern AL to bring this baby back home.

Where it all happens

Built in 1992, Steve manages all maintenance in his major surgery garage where he has two bays with two lifts.  The one given according to Steve is “all T-tops leak.”  This garage is shared with the mouse control unit, two cats that that go by the names of Junker and Cat.  Junker earned her name when she arrived on the site’s mini junk yard.  No garage is complete without a junk yard.

The next step

Steve is not particularly in an acquisition phase.  However, if another orphan Bird should arrive on his doorstep Steve, of course, could be conditioned for yet another companion.  His priority is to finish the project cars.  In Steve’s words, “It is a log-rhythmic curve.  You never get done.”  It is doubtful that Steve Hamilton will ever become an empty nester.  He has been inspired by a love for his Trans Am collection that will never fade.  If you want to meet the most genuine and knowledgeable person with endless stories, Steve Hamilton is your man.  If you want to see a collection beyond words, Steve is your man.  If you want to view the ultimate garage for TA fans, Steve is your man.