Hillsborough in Orange County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Historic Occoneechee-Orange Speedway
Timeline & History
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, August 31, 2023
1. Historic Occoneechee-Orange Speedway Marker
Inscription.
Historic Occoneechee-Orange Speedway. Timeline and History. HOST and NASCAR Timeline , 1920-1933 Stock car racing grows in popularity during the Prohibition era, when bootleggers who modified their cars for rough terrain held recreational races to see who had the fastest car. , 1935-1940s Bill France Sr. works to promote stock car racing in Daytona Beach, Florida, where the ocean-side racetrack had become known as a place to set record speeds. Recreational racing declines during world war two, when manufacturing priorities shift from cars to tanks, but enthusiasts persevere and racing becomes more popular than ever in the years following the war. , December 14, 1947 Bill France Sr. gathers with 34 men in Daytona Beach, FL for a meeting to establish bylaws, rules and guidelines for a national stock-car racing organization. , 1947-1948 Bill France Sr. spots the horse racetrack at the Occoneeche Farm while flying over Hillsborough. He thinks its riverside location is ideal for an auto racetrack and joins with Enoch Staley, Ben Lowe, Dobe Powell, and Joe Buck to form the Hillsboro Speedway Corporation, which purchases and transforms the horse racetrack into a 1-mile oval auto racetrack, named the Occoneechee Speedway. , February 21, 1948 National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing NASCAR is incorporated and Bill France Sr. is elected President. , June 27, 1948 NASCAR promotes a modified stock car division for the inaugural race at the Occoneechee Speedway. Almost 20,000 fans join to watch the 100-mile race, a highlight of the 1948 season. , August 7, 1949 NASCAR's Strictly Stock division holds the third race in its eight-race inaugural series at the Occoneechee Racetrack. Bob Flock, driving a 1948 Oldsmobile, wins the 200-mile race at an average speed of 76.8 MPH. , 1949-1968 NASCAR races are held at the Occoneechee Speedway once or twice a year until the construction of the 2.6-mile paved super speedway in Talladega, Alabama. , 1952-1956 Bill France Sr., Anne France, and Enoch Staley partner to form the Orange Speedway, Inc. and purchase the racetrack from the Hillsboro Speedway Corporation. They shorten the track from 1-mile to 0.9-mile and change the name to Orange Speedway. , March 10, 1963 Movie Star Jayne Mansfield is the guest of honor at the Speedway. , September 15, 1968 The Hillsboro 150 is the last NASCAR race held at the Occoneeche-Orange Speedway. Drivers must make 167 laps on the 0.9-mile track to meet the 150-mile mark. , 1969-1997 The Occoneechee-Orange Speedway and its grounds become overgrown as it sits in disuse for almost three decades. , June 1997 France and Staley Estates sell the speedway land to the Historic Preservation Foundation of North Carolina, Inc. with help from the James M. Johnston Trust. , December 1997 Classical American Homes Preservation Trust (CAHPT) purchases 200 acres of land, including the old speedway trail and its surrounding structures, with plans to preserve the land and open it to the public. , May 2, 2002 The Occoneechee Speedway is added to the National Register of Historic Places, joining the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Bonneville Salt Flats as the third racing venue to receive this honor. , September 1, 2002 The Historic Occoneechee Speedway Trail opens to the public as a walking path. , May 2006 Volunteers form the Historic Speedway Group to assist in the preservation and maintenance of the track area and surrounding structures. The group hosts an annual car show and racers reunion at HOST. , December 2011 CAHPT donates a Mountains-to-Sea Trail (MST) easement to the State of North Carolina, connecting HOST to the larger MST system. , Drivers , Weldon Adams #72 . Johnny Allen #64 #264 . Bobby Allison #2 . Eddie Anderson #65 . Jack Anderson #20 . Don Angel #37 . Bob Apperson #11 . Buddy Arrington #2 #67 #78 . Woodie Arrington #94 . Bruce Atchley #107 . L.D. Austin #74 . Jimmy Ayers #3 . Buck Baker #86 #87 #88 #89 #300 . Buddy Baker #6 #19 #73 #92 . Herman Beam #19 . Dick Beaty #34 . Dick Biederman #94 . Gene Black #75 . Bunkie Blackburn #64 . Bill Blair #2 #5 #15 #41 #44 . Don Branson #0 . E.J. Brewer #10 . Buck Brigance #62 . Earl Brooks #5 #55 #76 . Perk Brown #22 . Dick Burns #18 . Herbert Burns #18 . Red Byron #22 . Ted Cannady #32 . John Capps #80 . Billy Carden #271 . Donnie Carr #285 . Jim Carruso . Neil Castles #57 #86 #88 #89 . Ted Chamberlain #93 . Bill Champion #35 . Sara Christian #71 . Ed Cole #94 . Ed Cole, Jr. #460 . Neil Cole #52 . R.L. Combs #63 . Joe Cotes #01 . Doug Cox #30 . Tom Cox #60 . Bob Cooper #01 #02 #51 . Doug Cooper #02 #88 . Curtis Crider #02 #31 #35 #62 . Spook Crawford #24 . P. Cunningham #62 . Jim Delaney #99 . Bob Derrington #68 . Clarence DeZalia #94 . Ben Dickson #15 . Darel Dieringer #02 #9 . John Dodd, Jr. #73 . Fred Dove #19 . Ray Duhigg #10 #24 #44 . Gerald Duke #92 . Glenn Dunnaway #49 #55 . Ralph Earnhardt #31 #75 . J.D. Edwards . Stick Elliott #18 . Ray Erickson #5 . Bill Ervin #31 . Joe Eubanks #6 #82 . Ernest Eury #60 . Harold Fagon #75 . Jim Fieblekorn #10 . Bob Flock #7 . Fonty Flock #7 #14 #47 . Tim Flock #41 #90 #91 #98 #300 #301 . Sonny Fogle #31 . Jimmy Florian #27 . Bill Foster #2 . Larry Frank #14 #19 #76 #99 . John Gardner #202 . Paul Goldsmith #99 . Cecil Gordon #19 . C.L. Grant #25 . Henley Gray #97 . Bill Grass #121 . George Green #1 #32 #35 #176 . Bobby Green #21 , Johnny Grubb #47 #144 . Dick Hallock #136 . Mack Hanbury #140 . Fred Harb #2 #17 #86 #88 . Jack Harden #30 . Jimmy Harris #97 . Bill Harrison #34 . George Hartley #60 . Harvey Hege #81 . Buddy Helms #28 . Bobby Henderson #19 . Elton Hildreth #167 . Ray Hill #06 . Gene Hobby #99 . Bill Holland #98 . Jack Holloway #8 . Paul Dean Holt #01 #15 #95 . Dick Hutcherson #1 #29 #47 . James Hylton #48 . Tommy Irwin #16 #26 #36 #85 . Bobby Issac #71 #99 . Charlie Jackson #34A . Frank Jamison #80 . Ned Jarrett #11 #38 . Jon Jernigan #4 . Junior Johnson #11 #13 #26 #27 #55 . Bobby Jones #7A . Joe Jones #77 . Bill Joslin #60 . Reds Kagle #88 . Bobby Keck #23 #48 #96 . Brownie King #32 #33 #760 . Bud King #55 . Shep Langdon #64 . Elmo Langley #10 #45 #61 #66 . Coleman Lawrence #37 #71 . Henry Leake #97 . Jimmy Lewallen #0 #2 #5 #7 #24 #32 #78 . Paul Lewis #1 #27 #56 . Ralph LiGuori #5 #6 . Dick Linder #25 . Ed Livingston #68 . Sterline Long #31 . Tiny Lund #32 #55 #76 #89 #98 #189 . Frank Lupton #9 . Clyde Lynn #20 . Chuck Mahoney #77 . Larry Manning #X #8 #09 #63 . Johnny Mantz #90 . Otis Martin #4 #19 . Pee Wee Martin #47 . Jimmy Massey #04 #49 #55 #96 . Roy Mayne #33 . J.L. McDaniel #4 . J.D. McDuffie #70 #76 . Worth McMillion #80 #83 . Ken Meisenhelder #88 . Major Melton #36 #88 . Tommy Melvin #21 . Stan Meserve #51 . Joel Million #88 . Clyde Minter #19 #38 . Ralph Moody #12 . Bud Moore #5 . Doug Moore #58 . Lloyd Moore #59 . Earl Moss #110 . Frank Mundy #23 . Bill Myers #14 #22 . Johnny Nave #561 . Ed Negre #8 . G.T. Nolan #80 #83 . Whitey Norman #41 . Cotton Owens #3 #5 #6 #286 . Eddie Pagan #45 . Mike Page #50 . Marvin Panch #21 #98 . Jimmy Perdue #2 #27 #54 . Jim Paschal #2 #12 #17 #22 #41 #43 #44 #60 #71 #75 #78 #80 . Johnny Patterson #58 . David Pearson #5 #6 #17 #67 . Del Pearson #88 . Lee Petty #42 , Maurice Petty #41 #42 #43 . Richard Petty #2 #43 . Tom Pistone #59 . Blackie Pitt #59 . Bill Poor #711 . George Poulos #57 . Floyd Powell #17 . Ray Pruitt #79 . J.T. Putney #19 . Darvin Randahl #204 . Dick Rathmann #98 #107 #120 . Lee Reitzel #83 . B.E. Renfro #1 . Bill Rexford #50 #62 #80 . Jack Reynolds #53 . Tommy Ringstaff $58 . Fireball Roberts #11 #22 #71 . Shorty Rollins #39 . Jim Roper #34 . Bobby Rose #80 . Ken Rush #2 #44 . Red Ryder #65 . Bucky Sager #101 . Gary Sain #62 . Lucky Sawyer #96 . Bill Schade #19 . Volney Schutze #X . Bill Scott #23 . Wendell Scott #34 . John Sears #4 #81 . Bill Seifort #45 #64 #95 . Ned Setzer #31 . Buddy Shuman #89 . Gene Simpson #460 . Eddie Skinner #28 . Bob Smith #25 . Frank Smith #11 . Garland Smith . Jack Smith #47 . Louise Smith #94 . Slick Smith #4 #25 . Wayne Smith #38 . Bill Snowden #3 #37 . Gober Sosebee #50 #51 . G.C. Spencer #34 #48 . Walt Sprague #1 . Nelson Stacy #29 . Gwen Staley #2 . Johnny Steele #12 . Marshall Teague #6 . Dave Terrell #198 . Donald Thomas #9 #72 #91 #93 . Hank Thomas #92 . Herb Thomas #92 #300B . Jabe Thomas #25 . Larry Thomas #36 . Jimmy Thompson #26 . Speedy Thompson #1 #46 #61 #297 . Leonard Tippett #99 . E.J. Trivette #0 #19 #27 #52 . Curtis Turner #4 #11 #15 #21 #99 . Roy Tyner #9 #51 #64 . Bobby Waddell #0 #24 . Billy Wade #5 . Bob Walden #52 . Gayle Warren #44 . Al Watkins #48 . Joe Weatherly #8 #9 #12 . Ewell Weddle #2 #78 . Bob Welborn #44 #49 . Don White #1 . Gene White #25 . Rex White #X #4 #15 . Bill Whitley #97 . Bill Widenhouse #23 . Dink Widenhouse #B29 . Felix Wilkes $5 . Glen Wood #21 . Cale Yarborough #3 #06 #08 . Lee Roy Yarborough #45 . Doug Yates #23 #72 . Shorty York #90 . Stevie Young #86 . Pete Yow #302 ,
HOST & NASCAR Timeline 1920-1933 Stock car racing grows in popularity during the Prohibition era, when bootleggers who modified their cars for rough terrain held recreational races to see who had the fastest car.
1935-1940s Bill France Sr. works to promote stock car racing in Daytona Beach, Florida, where the ocean-side racetrack had become known as a place to set record speeds. Recreational racing declines during WWII, when manufacturing priorities shift from cars to tanks, but enthusiasts persevere and racing becomes more popular than ever in the years following the war.
December 14, 1947 Bill France Sr. gathers with 34 men in Daytona Beach, FL for a meeting to establish bylaws, rules and guidelines for a national stock-car racing organization.
1947-1948 Bill France Sr. spots the horse racetrack at the Occoneeche Farm while flying over Hillsborough. He thinks its riverside location is ideal for an auto racetrack and joins with Enoch Staley, Ben Lowe, Dobe Powell, and Joe Buck to form the Hillsboro Speedway Corporation, which purchases and transforms the horse racetrack into a 1-mile oval auto racetrack, named the Occoneechee Speedway.
February 21, 1948 National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing NASCAR is incorporated and Bill
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France Sr. is elected President.
June 27, 1948 NASCAR promotes a modified stock car division for the inaugural race at the Occoneechee Speedway. Almost 20,000 fans join to watch the 100-mile race, a highlight of the 1948 season.
August 7, 1949 NASCAR's Strictly Stock division holds the third race in its eight-race inaugural series at the Occoneechee Racetrack. Bob Flock, driving a 1948 Oldsmobile, wins the 200-mile race at an average speed of 76.8 MPH.
1949-1968 NASCAR races are held at the Occoneechee Speedway once or twice a year until the construction of the 2.6-mile paved super speedway in Talladega, Alabama.
1952-1956 Bill France Sr., Anne France, and Enoch Staley partner to form the Orange Speedway, Inc. and purchase the racetrack from the Hillsboro Speedway Corporation. They shorten the track from 1-mile to 0.9-mile and change the name to Orange Speedway.
March 10, 1963 Movie Star Jayne Mansfield is the guest of honor at the Speedway.
September 15, 1968 The Hillsboro 150 is the last NASCAR race held at the Occoneeche-Orange Speedway. Drivers must make 167 laps on the 0.9-mile track to meet the 150-mile mark.
1969-1997 The Occoneechee-Orange Speedway and its grounds become overgrown as it sits in disuse for almost three decades.
June
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, August 31, 2023
2. Marker Detail: Race Results
1997 France and Staley Estates sell the speedway land to the Historic Preservation Foundation of North Carolina, Inc. with help from the James M. Johnston Trust.
December 1997 Classical American Homes Preservation Trust (CAHPT) purchases 200 acres of land, including the old speedway trail and its surrounding structures, with plans to preserve the land and open it to the public.
May 2, 2002 The Occoneechee Speedway is added to the National Register of Historic Places, joining the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Bonneville Salt Flats as the third racing venue to receive this honor.
September 1, 2002 The Historic Occoneechee Speedway Trail opens to the public as a walking path.
May 2006 Volunteers form the Historic Speedway Group to assist in the preservation and maintenance of the track area and surrounding structures. The group hosts an annual car show and racers reunion at HOST.
December 2011 CAHPT donates a Mountains-to-Sea Trail (MST) easement to the State of North Carolina, connecting HOST to the larger MST system.
Drivers
Weldon Adams #72 Johnny Allen #64 #264 Bobby Allison #2 Eddie Anderson #65 Jack Anderson #20 Don Angel #37 Bob Apperson #11 Buddy Arrington #2 #67 #78 Woodie Arrington #94 Bruce Atchley #107 L.D. Austin #74
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, August 31, 2023
3. Historic Occoneechee-Orange Speedway Marker
Jimmy Ayers #3 Buck Baker #86 #87 #88 #89 #300 Buddy Baker #6 #19 #73 #92 Herman Beam #19 Dick Beaty #34 Dick Biederman #94 Gene Black #75 Bunkie Blackburn #64 Bill Blair #2 #5 #15 #41 #44 Don Branson #0 E.J. Brewer #10 Buck Brigance #62 Earl Brooks #5 #55 #76 Perk Brown #22 Dick Burns #18 Herbert Burns #18 Red Byron #22 Ted Cannady #32 John Capps #80 Billy Carden #271 Donnie Carr #285 Jim Carruso Neil Castles #57 #86 #88 #89 Ted Chamberlain #93 Bill Champion #35 Sara Christian #71 Ed Cole #94 Ed Cole, Jr. #460 Neil Cole #52 R.L. Combs #63 Joe Cotes #01 Doug Cox #30 Tom Cox #60 Bob Cooper #01 #02 #51 Doug Cooper #02 #88 Curtis Crider #02 #31 #35 #62 Spook Crawford #24 P. Cunningham #62 Jim Delaney #99 Bob Derrington #68 Clarence DeZalia #94 Ben Dickson #15 Darel Dieringer #02 #9 John Dodd, Jr. #73 Fred Dove #19 Ray Duhigg #10 #24 #44 Gerald Duke #92 Glenn Dunnaway #49 #55 Ralph Earnhardt #31 #75 J.D. Edwards Stick Elliott #18 Ray Erickson #5 Bill Ervin #31 Joe Eubanks #6 #82 Ernest Eury #60 Harold Fagon #75 Jim Fieblekorn #10 Bob Flock #7 Fonty Flock #7 #14 #47 Tim Flock #41 #90 #91 #98 #300 #301 Sonny Fogle #31 Jimmy Florian #27 Bill Foster #2 Larry Frank #14 #19 #76 #99 John Gardner #202 Paul Goldsmith #99 Cecil Gordon #19 C.L. Grant #25 Henley
via N.C. Department of Cultural and Natural Resources (Public Domain)
4. Historic Occoneechee-Orange Speedway
Fans line the embankments to watch a race.
Gray #97 Bill Grass #121 George Green #1 #32 #35 #176 Bobby Green #21
Johnny Grubb #47 #144 Dick Hallock #136 Mack Hanbury #140 Fred Harb #2 #17 #86 #88 Jack Harden #30 Jimmy Harris #97 Bill Harrison #34 George Hartley #60 Harvey Hege #81 Buddy Helms #28 Bobby Henderson #19 Elton Hildreth #167 Ray Hill #06 Gene Hobby #99 Bill Holland #98 Jack Holloway #8 Paul Dean Holt #01 #15 #95 Dick Hutcherson #1 #29 #47 James Hylton #48 Tommy Irwin #16 #26 #36 #85 Bobby Issac #71 #99 Charlie Jackson #34A Frank Jamison #80 Ned Jarrett #11 #38 Jon Jernigan #4 Junior Johnson #11 #13 #26 #27 #55 Bobby Jones #7A Joe Jones #77 Bill Joslin #60 Reds Kagle #88 Bobby Keck #23 #48 #96 Brownie King #32 #33 #760 Bud King #55 Shep Langdon #64 Elmo Langley #10 #45 #61 #66 Coleman Lawrence #37 #71 Henry Leake #97 Jimmy Lewallen #0 #2 #5 #7 #24 #32 #78 Paul Lewis #1 #27 #56 Ralph LiGuori #5 #6 Dick Linder #25 Ed Livingston #68 Sterline Long #31 Tiny Lund #32 #55 #76 #89 #98 #189 Frank Lupton #9 Clyde Lynn #20 Chuck Mahoney #77 Larry Manning #X #8 #09 #63 Johnny Mantz #90 Otis Martin #4 #19 Pee Wee Martin #47 Jimmy Massey #04 #49 #55 #96 Roy Mayne #33 J.L. McDaniel #4 J.D. McDuffie #70 #76 Worth McMillion #80 #83 Ken Meisenhelder #88 Major Melton #36 #88 Tommy Melvin #21 Stan
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, August 31, 2023
5. Historic Occoneechee-Orange Speedway
One of the two wrecked race cars on the former race track, now a walking trail.
Meserve #51 Joel Million #88 Clyde Minter #19 #38 Ralph Moody #12 Bud Moore #5 Doug Moore #58 Lloyd Moore #59 Earl Moss #110 Frank Mundy #23 Bill Myers #14 #22 Johnny Nave #561 Ed Negre #8 G.T. Nolan #80 #83 Whitey Norman #41 Cotton Owens #3 #5 #6 #286 Eddie Pagan #45 Mike Page #50 Marvin Panch #21 #98 Jimmy Perdue #2 #27 #54 Jim Paschal #2 #12 #17 #22 #41 #43 #44 #60 #71 #75 #78 #80 Johnny Patterson #58 David Pearson #5 #6 #17 #67 Del Pearson #88 Lee Petty #42
Maurice Petty #41 #42 #43 Richard Petty #2 #43 Tom Pistone #59 Blackie Pitt #59 Bill Poor #711 George Poulos #57 Floyd Powell #17 Ray Pruitt #79 J.T. Putney #19 Darvin Randahl #204 Dick Rathmann #98 #107 #120 Lee Reitzel #83 B.E. Renfro #1 Bill Rexford #50 #62 #80 Jack Reynolds #53 Tommy Ringstaff $58 Fireball Roberts #11 #22 #71 Shorty Rollins #39 Jim Roper #34 Bobby Rose #80 Ken Rush #2 #44 Red Ryder #65 Bucky Sager #101 Gary Sain #62 Lucky Sawyer #96 Bill Schade #19 Volney Schutze #X Bill Scott #23 Wendell Scott #34 John Sears #4 #81 Bill Seifort #45 #64 #95 Ned Setzer #31 Buddy Shuman #89 Gene Simpson #460 Eddie Skinner #28 Bob Smith #25 Frank Smith #11 Garland Smith Jack Smith #47 Louise Smith #94 Slick Smith #4 #25 Wayne Smith #38 Bill Snowden #3 #37 Gober Sosebee #50 #51
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, August 31, 2023
6. Historic Occoneechee-Orange Speedway
The concession stand at the former racetrack.
G.C. Spencer #34 #48 Walt Sprague #1 Nelson Stacy #29 Gwen Staley #2 Johnny Steele #12 Marshall Teague #6 Dave Terrell #198 Donald Thomas #9 #72 #91 #93 Hank Thomas #92 Herb Thomas #92 #300B Jabe Thomas #25 Larry Thomas #36 Jimmy Thompson #26 Speedy Thompson #1 #46 #61 #297 Leonard Tippett #99 E.J. Trivette #0 #19 #27 #52 Curtis Turner #4 #11 #15 #21 #99 Roy Tyner #9 #51 #64 Bobby Waddell #0 #24 Billy Wade #5 Bob Walden #52 Gayle Warren #44 Al Watkins #48 Joe Weatherly #8 #9 #12 Ewell Weddle #2 #78 Bob Welborn #44 #49 Don White #1 Gene White #25 Rex White #X #4 #15 Bill Whitley #97 Bill Widenhouse #23 Dink Widenhouse #B29 Felix Wilkes $5 Glen Wood #21 Cale Yarborough #3 #06 #08 Lee Roy Yarborough #45 Doug Yates #23 #72 Shorty York #90 Stevie Young #86 Pete Yow #302
Erected by Classical American Homes Preservation Trust.
Location. 36° 4.42′ N, 79° 4.932′ W. Marker is in Hillsborough, North Carolina, in Orange County. Marker can
be reached from Elizabeth Brady Road, on the right when traveling north. Marker is along the Terrace Trace Trail at Historic Occoneechee Speedway. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 320 Elizabeth Brady Rd, Hillsborough NC 27278, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Also see . . . 1. Occoneechee Speedway (PDF). National Register nomination and photographs submitted for the speedway, which was listed in 2002. (National Archives) (Submitted on September 9, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
2. Orange Speedway 1957. Archive footage of the 1957 Grand National race at Hillsborough. Buck Baker, driving a 1957 Chevrolet, won the race in front of some 8,000 fans. (King Rose Archives, uploaded Jan. 22, 2013) (Submitted on September 9, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Credits. This page was last revised on September 9, 2023. It was originally submitted on September 8, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 82 times since then and 28 times this year. Photos:1. submitted on September 8, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on September 9, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
