Press Release

Box Elder, MT, USA, July 15, 2025 -- An amazing barn find collection of dry Western, rust-free classic cars, trucks, tractors, stationary gas engines and more – over 500 items in all, spanning multiple generations in the Dielman family – will be sold in an online-only auction. Bidding is live now and ends Monday, July 28th, starting at 10am Central Time. Previews will be held July 18-19.

“Every collector is looking for those rust-free originals and this collection has many,” said Yvette VanDerBrink, whose Minnesota-based firm VanDerBrink Auctions is conducting the sale. “I have spent many hours with this collection, and they are wonderful. You won’t want to miss this chance to acquire dry, Western classics now waiting for buyers at the Dielman farms.”

She added, “There’s something for everyone, from 1957 Chevrolets bought new by the family, to rows of Chevrolet, Dodge, and GMC pickups, grain trucks, square-body pickups, Titan tractors, Lincolns, Maxwells, REOs and many pre-war, rare vehicles from the 1910s to the 1970’s, plus several project 1924 White Yellowstone buses and International, Case, and John Deere tractors.”

All bidding is available through www.VanDerBrinkAuctions.com.

Lewis Dielman, the late patriarch of the Dielman clan, was the only child of Alverta and George Dielman, who purchased 160 acres in Box Elder in 1935. There, they raised wheat, barley, oats, and even chickens on what became a multi-generational family farm. Lewis always loved cars and what eventually became an astounding collection began as a bet between him and his dad.

Young Lewis wanted a car, and father George, said, “I bet you can’t buy those cars we saw for about $50 each. If you get them for less, then make a deal. Bet you can’t.” Well, the challenge was on. Lewis took the bet and bought the cars for $35 each. That started the Dielman collection. Lewis liked Dodge pickups, Buicks and Lincolns. His very first car was a 1940 Chevrolet coupe.

That car is still in the collection. The father-and-son duo started going to auctions and traveled around the area, buying vehicles, trucks, and more. Soon, car dealers would call them to buy the vehicles they would take in on trade. The Dielman collection grew larger. Lewis got married and started a family. The sons and daughter were also interested in cars and the collecting adventures.

They eventually had so many vehicles that they would sell parts to area residents to fix their cars. Three generations of the Dielman family were all together buying cars, trucks, and pickups, and bringing them to the homestead and stashing them away. They would come across some unusual Lincolns and other rare classics. These will also be in the auction.

Grampa George Dielman eventually passed away, but Lewis and the Dielmans remained fixtures at auctions and kept buying more vehicles. In the 1980s, Lewis had one auction and then another auction of about 600 vehicles and he even sold some of his rare classics, but he wasn’t done. He was still buying up until the week he passed. His last purchase was a 1975 Volkswagen Beetle, which he purchased brand new for his wife prior to her passing.

Now, with the passing of their father, Linn, Mark, and Alvie Dielman have started the task of selling the massive collection – three generations of classics packed away in the buildings at two farms and four buildings in town. Dust covers the classics, but now they’re all being pulled out to be sold for other collectors to enjoy. The process started last year and was recently completed.

Potential bidder/buyers can come and preview and go back home and bid. After the catalog has closed, there will be scheduled load-outs for winning bidders. The pictures and catalog are up and online now and ready for bidding. We hope to see you at the preview. Get all the details, catalog, and online bidding, end times, and more auctions at www.vanderbrinkauctions.com

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