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Abandoned History: The Time the Indianapolis 500 Moved to Cincinnati
- In 1916, the Cincinnati Motor Speedway held the First International Sweepstakes Race, attracting major racing teams like Peugeot, Mercedes, and Stutz.
- When World War I caused the cancellation of the 1917 Indianapolis 500, the Cincinnati Speedway Company proposed hosting the event in Cincinnati on May 30th.
- Renamed the 2nd Annual International Sweepstakes Race, the event drew about 65,000 spectators, significantly less than the 85,000 at the 1916 Indianapolis 500.
- The race was won by Louis Chevrolet, the founder of Chevrolet, driving for Frontenac Motors, with speeds reaching 100 to 107 miles per hour on the wooden track.
- The track, made of wood, faced degradation and eventual dismantling in 1919 due to exposure to the elements and damage from a fire.
- The wood from the track was repurposed for the war effort to build structures for Camp Sherman, a training camp that operated until 1921 in Chillicothe, Ohio.
- The track site later became the Coney Island Speedway, which operated from 1928 to 1935, with little remaining evidence of the historic event that occurred there.
- Today, the location of the former track is occupied by businesses and the I-275 loop intersecting with I-75, with the Fourth and Walnut Center occupying the building that once housed The Cincinnati Speedway Company.
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