This Day

September 26, 1909 – NASCAR founder Bill France is born

America’s prohibition era surely fueled the rise of NASCAR, but it took one man to make it official. Drivers who delivered illegal alcohol needed fast cars to outrun police, so they regularly tuned their vehicles for more power and better handling. Following prohibition, these drives still possessed a need for speed. They began to organize races, pitting their hopped up cars against each other, often in hopes of bringing home a cash prize. Daytona mechanic Bill France Sr., born on this day in 1909, loved what the racing scene, but believed it could use more structure. With the assistance of a few partners, he developed a points system and race schedule for stock car racing.

France soon began working with influential racers and race promoters to create a governing body for these races already taking place all over the country. France, with the assistance of several other drivers, founded NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) on February 21, 1948

. The original points system, as with many great ideas in history, had its first iteration drawn out on napkin in a bar

Later, France commissioned the building of Daytona International Speedway, where the first Daytona 500 took place in 1959. He remained CEO of NASCAR up through 1972. At that time the Grand National series became the Winston Cup and all dirt track and sub 100 mile races vanished from the schedule. At that point, France turned the business over to his sun Bill France Jr. About 20 years later, on June 7, 1992, NASCAR founder Bill France Sr., passed away at age 82.

Brian Corey

Recent Posts

November 20, 2011 – Famed Ferrari designer Sergio Scaglietti dies

Scaglietti, left, in his body shop Sergio Scaglietti opened Carrozzeria Scaglietti, an auto repair and…

2 days ago

November 19, 1959 – Ford announces the end of Edsel

Too much money. Too much hype. Too much of the same old thing. Designed to…

2 days ago

Rare 1955 Mercedes Truck for Sale

This 1955 Mercedes-Benz 170 S-D Diesel pickup truck appears to be an exceptionally rare find,…

2 days ago

November 18, 1960 – End of the line for DeSoto

1961 DeSoto Less than a week after Chrysler acquired Dodge Brothers, it debuted its new…

4 days ago

November 17, 1986 – The Assassination of Renault CEO Georges Besse

Georges Besse (Renault) On this day in 1986 Georges Besse, the 58-year-old CEO of French…

5 days ago

November 16, 1904 – The history of auto theft in Los Angeles begins with first recorded stolen car in the city

1905 White steam car. Not the first stolen car, but similar. This one is known…

6 days ago