WITH AONE HAVING RECENTLY TURNED 50 YEARS OLD, we’ll be presenting a series of articles about the history of our club over the next few months. In this first installment, AONE President Greg Stidsen chats with Jim Miga (a very early member) about the early days of AONE:

GS: Jim, how did you get involved with the Club and when was that?

JM: I first got involved with AONE early in 1972. I knew Faye and Carl Bolivar, who lived in our neighborhood in Winchester. They owned a beautiful 1958 Giulietta Spider and were early members of AONE. I had purchased my Duetto in August of 1971. That winter, they told me that an Alfa club was being formed and encouraged me to join. 

GS: In those days, Alfa was actively selling cars in the United States. Who were the local dealers, and were they supportive of the Club?

JM: Yes, Alfa was actively selling cars at that time. The 1750 models were popular and club members were excited about the upcoming 2000 models. The dealerships in the Boston area were Gaston Andrey in Framingham (also branches in Watertown and Brookline) and Anderson Foreign Motors in Woburn. We often held evening meetings in their showrooms.

GS: Did AONE start as an AROC affiliated club, or did that come later?

JM: I think we became an affiliate of AROC in April of 1971.

GS: What types of events did the Club sponsor in those early days?

JM: The first official meeting was held in early 1972 (Jan or Feb maybe). It was held in Framingham at Sue and Bill Holaday's apartment. They are the founders of AONE and many early meetings were held at their apartment. We also met at the Bolivars’ home in Winchester or at Gaston Andrey in Framingham. As the club grew, we did some tours and tech sessions, and participated in rallies with the North Shore Touring Club. 

GS: I’m sure you have lots of interesting stories from the first years of the Club, but are there one or two that stand out in your memory?

JM: Favorite meetings included a visit to Dave Amenn's home in Lincoln. He was a successful SCCA racer at the time. His garage had several GTV (maybe GTA) race cars. We also met his crew chief, Gary Rutherford. We also were invited to view a private classic car collection in Belmont, MA, which included a Bugatti and a 1930s Alfa 1750! The cars were owned by Mark Gibbons, who had been featured in a Car & Driver article called "The Man with Perfect Taste". 

To be continued ………………

Hey, you long-time members! Care to contribute your knowledge, memories, or anecdotes to our History series? Give Greg Stidsen a shout!