Corvette History

A 1954 Corvette “Entombed” at the NCM

Scott Kolecki··
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An Entombed 1954 Corvette From Maine Finds Its Way to Bowling Green, Kentucky

The story of this 1954 Corvette is the kind of tale you hear once or twice in a generation.  Although there are some unique and uniquely bizarre elements to this narrative, we think you’ll agree it’s also quite incredible.

The story starts, as you might expect, in 1954.  Richard Sampson of Brunswick, Maine, decided to purchase a brand new Corvette.  The car, which bore the serial number E54S001147, was one of just 3,640 Corvettes produced that year.

Richard Sampson's 1954 Corvette on display at the National Corvette Museum.
Richard Sampson’s 1954 Corvette on display at the National Corvette Museum.

Excited to have the car, Richard drove it regularly for almost five years,  In 1959, feeling the continual disappointment of driving a car that his wife did not enjoy, Richard decided he no longer wanted to drive it either.  However, he wasn’t ready to part with the beautiful Corvette that had so completely caught his attention a half-decade earlier.

Instead, Richard Sampson elected to do something immensely unconventional with his Corvette.

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