Brantford Kinsmen Club hosted its 51st annual Car Show and Swap Meet in Paris on Sunday, September 13, 2026.
Throughout the event, several hundred drivers, passengers and spectators took the opportunity to check out the different vintage, antique, classic and newer model entries into this year’s show including a 1998 Honda Acty, 1942 Fargo 3000-lb. truck, 1979 Cadillac Diamonte, 1969 Chevrolet Nova SS, 1983 Morgan Three-Wheeler, 1950 Plymouth Deluxe P17 and a 2023 Dodge Charger SRT Super Bee.
With the event being known as one of Southern Ontario’s largest annual car shows, registered owners from Brantford and beyond came out to show off their colourful rides.
“We’ve got a good mix of old cars, new cars and different trucks here today,” said Norm Philpott, Chair of the Brantford Kinsmen Car Show. “We’ve registered about 250 vehicles today and there’s all sorts of goodies from the 1930s up to 2025.”
The event also featured more than 30 vendors participating in the swap meet. From old car parts to Hot Wheels collectables, vintage books and more, there was plenty to browse and buy for all.
Towards the end of the show, organizers presented 21 awards in different categories for makes such as Chevrolet, Ford, Plymouth, Dodge, Studebaker, and Imports, as well hot rods, paint and upholstery.
When asked what it was about car shows that drew in a crowd, Philpott said it must have something to do with being able to reminisce about the old days.
“There’s something about coming here and seeing what was, and how things used to be,” he said. “There’s just a real variety here, and when you see all the love and attention that’s been given to these old cars, it’s just amazing.”
When asked the same question, Wayne Rowe, who was at the event showing his red 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 XL convertible, said “vintage cars are a lifestyle.”
“I would go back any day to that era,” he said, with a smile. “When you own a vintage car, people can’t help but wave at you or give you a thumbs up. I’ve just always been into cars because they’re so much fun. Back in the day you could rip them apart, put them on the lawn and then put them back together before we had to go out that night to the drive-in.”
Rowe said the kind of details that catch his eye when looking at vintage cars are the motors and the clean, straight lines of the bodywork, but when questioned about his favourite vehicle at the show, he laughed, saying, “Oh I love them all, I couldn’t pick one.”
The annual car show and swap meet has been running since the early 1970s after Brian Heap, a member of both the Brantford Piston Pushers and Brant Street Rods brought the show to the Kinsmen Club.
While the show started off as a three-day event held at Ontario Park on Highway 24, it eventually moved over to the Paris Fairgrounds around 1981 as a one-day event.
The show is one of the Kinsmen’s largest fundraisers of the year, alongside the group’s annual Ribfest in August and the Brantford International Villages in July. Philpott said the funds raised from their events go towards supporting a number of local causes.
“A lot of our funds go back to the Bellview Community Hall, and other community projects or organizations like the Lansdowne Children’s Centre, and of course, cystic fibrosis,” he said.
While the weather for the day was initially going to bring rain, Philpott said he and the other Kinsmen were happy to see nothing but sunshine.
“The weather has just been terrific,” he said. “Thank goodness too, because we’ve still had a good turnout.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
