Bendix Woods
| Bendix Woods County Park | |
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Aerial photo of the track
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| Type | County park |
| Location | Olive Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana |
| Coordinates | 41°40′11″N 86°29′18″W / 41.66972°N 86.48833°W |
| Area | 195 acres (0.79 km2) |
| Operated by | St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Department |
| Open |
All year; Closed Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day |
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Studebaker Clubhouse and Tree Sign
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Studebaker "D" in Bendix Woods Park, November 2013
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| Location | 32132 State Road 2, south of New Carlisle, Olive Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana |
| Area | 21.1 acres (8.5 ha) |
| Built | 1926, 1938 |
| Architect | Young, Ernest W. |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| NRHP Reference # | 85002430 |
| Added to NRHP | September 18, 1985 |
All year; Closed Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day
Bendix Woods County Park is the name of a park located in Olive Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana, south of New Carlisle. The park is under the control of the St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Department.
The name Bendix Woods originates from the Bendix Corporation which donated the land to the county for the creation of a park. The park's historical significance, however, dates to its establishment by the Studebaker Corporation, formerly of nearby South Bend, Indiana as the first model test facility for an American automobile company.
Studebaker developed the 840 acres (3.4 km2) of land in 1926 as the first-ever controlled automotive-testing grounds for its product lines, beating Packard, Studebaker's future business partner, by one year. Studebaker heavily promoted the grounds as a "Million Dollar Outdoor Testing Laboratory" in advertisements. The test track that ran through the grounds simulated a variety of terrains and road conditions. Studebaker landscaped the park by keeping natural features.
Following the collapse of Studebaker's U.S. production facilities in 1963, the land was acquired by Bendix Corporation which used the grounds for corporate purposes. In 1996 Bosch purchased the property; in 2015 Navistar acquired it from Bosch and renamed it "Navistar Proving Grounds".
The Studebaker Clubhouse is a historic clubhouse. It was built in 1926, and is a two-story, "U"-shaped, Colonial Revival style brick building. The front facade features a one-story frame porch supported by Tuscan order columns. The building was remodeled in 1947, 1961, and 1966-1967. It was built as a place for the approximately 100 proving ground employees to eat, relax in off hours, stay in bad weather, and board if they so desired. It currently houses the parks Nature Center and offices.
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