I am glad somebody is taking a major step to preserve this Automotive Historical Landmark. 
At half a mile long and visible from space, the Studebaker arboreal sign outside New Carlisle, Indiana, is certainly the largest artifact of that company’s existence, and as such, it’s also the one that requires the most upkeep. Yet, surprisingly, the giant landmark has made it through the last 70-plus years with a maintenance budget of zero, something its caretakers aim to change. With the help of a $2,500 endangered places grant from Indiana Landmarks, awarded last month, the St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Department has taken the first steps toward preserving and maintaining the sign, starting with an assessment of the current health of the trees in the sign. The red and white pine trees, planted by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1938 on what was then the Studebaker proving grounds, currently stand about 60 to 70 feet tall, but there’s no telling how long they’re expected to live, according to Evelyn Kirkwood, director of the parks system. “These pine trees are not the longest living when planted in our area, and because they were planted so close together, they’re now stressed and don’t have the root systems they should,” Kirkwood said. “Any time we get a windstorm or a heavy, wet snow, we do get trees that topple, and because they’re so close together, we get a domino effect going.” The study, funded in part by the grant, expected to wrap up later this month, will also recommend management strategies for the health of the trees and a long-term plan for replacing and re-planting the sign. About 5,000 trees make up the sign. Studebaker was the first American car company to establish its own proving grounds in 1926, on a plot of land just west of South Bend. When Studebaker exited the car business in the mid-1960s, it sold the proving grounds to Bendix, which later split off 190 acres of the grounds – including the arboreal sign and the former Studebaker clubhouse – and donated that land to the county for use as a park. Bendix has since sold the adjoining proving grounds and three-mile test track to Bosch.
Unfortunately, lost to development IIRC.
