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Occoneechee Speedway

Coordinates: 36°4′23″N 79°4′57″W / 36.07306°N 79.08250°W / 36.07306; -79.08250
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Occoneechee Speedway
Revitalized flag stand - 2010 Car Show
LocationElizabeth Brady, 0.3 N of US 70 Business, Hillsborough, North Carolina, United States
OwnerClassical American Homes Preservation Trust
OpenedMay 5, 1947
ClosedJune 1968
Former namesOrange Speedway
Major eventsHillsboro 150 (1949–1968)
Oval
SurfaceDirt
Length0.9 miles (1.5 km)
Turns4
Occoneechee Speedway
Occoneechee Speedway is located in North Carolina
Occoneechee Speedway
Coordinates36°4′23″N 79°4′57″W / 36.07306°N 79.08250°W / 36.07306; -79.08250
Area44 acres (18 ha)
NRHP reference No.02000435[1]
Added to NRHPMay 2, 2002

Occoneechee Speedway was one of the first two NASCAR tracks to open. It closed in 1968 and is the only dirt track remaining from the inaugural 1949 season.[2]

It is located just outside the town of Hillsborough, North Carolina.

Site history

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Occoneechee Speedway / Orange Speedway

[edit]

The Occoneechee Farm occupied the land in the late 19th century. The farm was named after the Occaneechi Indians that lived in the area in the late 17th century and late 18th century. The landowner, Julian S. Carr, raced horses, and built a half mile horse racing track on the site.[3]

Bill France noticed the horse racing track and expanse of open land while piloting his airplane.[3] On the site of the earlier horse track, he built a 0.9-mile dirt track in September 1947, two months before NASCAR was organized. In its earliest days, Fonty Flock and his brothers Bob and Tim dominated the track. Louise Smith became NASCAR's first female driver at the track in the fall of 1949.[4] The Occoneechee Speedway hosted stock car racing legends such as Fireball Roberts, Richard Petty, Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson. It was a crown jewel in NASCAR for most of its existence.[citation needed]

The Sunday racing schedule prompted grassroots opposition in Hillsborough, and the final race at the track, which by that time was called the Orange Speedway, was a Richard Petty victory on September 15, 1968.[5][6]

The loss of the speedway later made Bill France look for a new spot in the area to build a bigger, better, and faster track with speeds in excess of Daytona International Speedway. Eventually he looked towards South Carolina and eventually Alabama where he built the Talladega Superspeedway which opened a year later where it took Occoneechee Speedway’s date on the schedule.[citation needed]

The Occoneechee/Orange speedway, along with North Wilkesboro Speedway, is one of the inspirations for the dirt track Thomasville Speedway in the Pixar movie Cars 3 in which Petty voices the character Strip Weathers.[7]

The track was featured on the Peacock original series, Lost Speedways hosted by NASCAR Hall of Famer, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matthew Dillner.[8]

Historic Occoneechee Speedway Trail

[edit]

The Occoneechee Speedway site is now heavily forested with pines and sycamores. The grandstands are still visible, as is much of the mile–long oval track. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and now comprises 44 acres (180,000 m2) with over 3 miles (4.8 km) of trails.[2] A walking trail was built in 2003 that crisscrosses the clay track. A non-profit local group, The Historic Speedway Group, continues to organize volunteers to renovate historic structures and maintain the track and trails. The group has collected an impressive archive of videos, photographs, and historical information about the site.

In 2022, the site, owned by the Classical American Homes Preservation Trust, was transferred to state ownership to become part of Eno River State Park.[9]

Winners

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Race Date Cars Winner Make / Model Length Miles Purse Pole Speed (mph)
1949-03 08/07/49 28 Bob Flock 1948 Oldsmobile 1.000 200 $5,000 76.800
1950-10 08/13/50 27 Fireball Roberts 1949 Oldsmobile 1.000 100 $3,975
1950-19 10/29/50 29 Lee Petty 1949 Plymouth 1.000 175 $4,675 85.898
1951-05 04/15/51 33 Fonty Flock 1950 Oldsmobile 1.000 95 $4,665 88.287 80.889
1951-31 10/07/51 24 Herb Thomas 1951 Hudson 1.000 150 $3,550 79.628 72.454
1952-15 06/08/52 19 Tim Flock 1951 Hudson 1.000 100 $3,425 91.977 81.008
1952-30 10/12/52 29 Fonty Flock 1952 Oldsmobile 1.000 150 $5,045 75.901 73.489
1953-26 08/09/53 19 Curtis Turner 1953 Oldsmobile 1.000 100 $3,425 89.078 75.125
1954-08 04/18/54 28 Herb Thomas 1954 Hudson 1.000 100 $3,825 86.767 77.386
1955-07 03/27/55 21 Jim Paschal 1955 Oldsmobile 1.000 100 $3,800 91.896 82.304
1955-45 10/30/55 25 Tim Flock 1955 Chrysler 1.000 100 $4,285 81.673 70.465
1956-17 05/13/56 31 Buck Baker 1956 Chrysler .900 90 $4,285 89.305 83.720
1956-50 09/30/56 23 Fireball Roberts 1956 Ford .900 99 $4,560 88.067 72.734
1957-07 03/24/57 19 Buck Baker 1957 Chevrolet .900 99 $3,835 87.828 82.233
1958-06 03/23/58 18 Buck Baker 1957 Chevrolet .900 99 $3,585 83.076 78.502
1958-47 09/28/58 33 Joe Eubanks 1957 Pontiac .900 99 $3,885 87.308 72.439
1959-04 03/01/59 22 Curtis Turner 1959 T-Bird .900 99 $3,785 87.544 81.612
1959-40 09/20/59 22 Lee Petty 1959 Plymouth .900 99 $3,945 85.533 77.868
1960-18 05/29/60 23 Lee Petty 1960 Plymouth .900 99 $3,985 88.190 83.583
1960-39 09/18/60 18 Richard Petty 1960 Plymouth .900 99 $3,785 85.285 80.161
1961-11 04/02/61 20 Cotton Owens 1960 Pontiac .900 99 $3,895 91.836 84.695
1961-52 10/29/61 20 Joe Weatherly 1961 Pontiac .900 149 $5,625 95.154 85.249
1961-62 1/7/62 19 Josh Arnold 1961 Ford .900 500 $5,580 25.190 170.941
1962-09 03/18/62 21 Rex White 1961 Chevrolet .900 99 $4,575 96.285 86.948
1963-10 03/10/63 23 Junior Johnson 1963 Chevrolet .900 149 $6,900 95.716 83.129
1963-54 10/27/63 24 Joe Weatherly 1963 Pontiac .900 150 $6,650 93.156 85.559
1964-15 04/12/64 27 David Pearson 1964 Dodge .900 150 $6,800 99.784 83.319
1964-55 09/20/64 28 Ned Jarrett 1964 Ford .900 150 $7,000 89.280 86.725
1965-08 03/14/65 23 Ned Jarrett 1965 Ford .900 150 $6,600 98.570 90.663
1965-53 10/24/65 20 Dick Hutcherson 1965 Ford .900 101 $4,540 98.810 87.462
1966-45 09/18/66 23 Dick Hutcherson 1966 Ford .900 150 $6,600 95.716 90.603
1967-44 09/17/67 28 Richard Petty 1967 Plymouth .900 150 $6,850 94.159 81.574
1968-43 09/15/68 24 Richard Petty 1968 Plymouth .900 150 $6,900 93.245 87.681
[edit]
  • The horse racetrack on Occoneechee farm, 1938
    The horse racetrack on Occoneechee farm, 1938
  • Aerial view of Occoneechee Speedway in 1955
    Aerial view of Occoneechee Speedway in 1955
  • Former ticket office
    Former ticket office
  • Former outhouse location
    Former outhouse location
  • Pepsi coolers at the concession area
    Pepsi coolers at the concession area
  • View of the grandstand lights
    View of the grandstand lights
  • Stairs leading from the track level through the grandstands
    Stairs leading from the track level through the grandstands
  • Overgrowth covers the remains of the grandstand
    Overgrowth covers the remains of the grandstand
  • The track around the start/finish line
    The track around the start/finish line
  • Grandstands back in use – 2010 Car Show
    Grandstands back in use – 2010 Car Show
  • A rusted car that was modified for racing on the speedway
    A rusted car that was modified for racing on the speedway

References

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  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ a b Brief History, Page 1
  3. ^ a b Brief History, Page 2
  4. ^ Jennifer Martin and Sarah Woodard, and Virginia Freeze (August 2001). "Occoneechee Speedway" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places — Nomination and Inventory. North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office. Retrieved 2015-02-01.
  5. ^ Cruze, Sidney. "Kickin' Up Dust Again at the Orange Speedway, North Carolina Electric Cooperatives, 2004-01. Accessed 2017-12-26.
  6. ^ "History Speedway Group: History". Historic Speedway Group. Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
  7. ^ Mark Vaughn (May 22, 2017). "'Cars 3' will pay tribute to abandoned 'ghost' tracks". AutoWeek.
  8. ^ "Earnhardt revisits racing's past with 'Lost Speedways'". Boston Herald. 2020-07-09. Retrieved 2023-11-23.
  9. ^ Keck, Aaron (2022-03-11). "Historic Speedway Trail To Be Part of Eno River State Park Expansion". Retrieved 2022-12-24.

Further reading

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  • Occoneechee-Orange Speedway — Magazine (Speedway Spotlite Publications) by Ed Sanseverino (1994)
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