First Race Is Held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

On August 19, 1909, the first automobile race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, beginning the story of a track that would become one of the most famous venues in American sports. Long before the Indianapolis 500 became a Memorial Day tradition, thousands of spectators gathered to watch automobiles compete on a brand-new 2.5-mile circuit outside Indianapolis. The event showcased the possibilities of the rapidly developing automobile—but it also exposed the serious dangers of early motor racing.

The speedway had been built on 328 acres of farmland about five miles northwest of Indianapolis. Local businessmen envisioned it partly as a testing ground for Indiana's booming automobile industry. Manufacturers could race their vehicles against competitors, demonstrate their speed and durability, and potentially turn spectators into customers. The rectangular track featured four turns connected by two long and two short straightaways, creating the 2.5-mile configuration that remains synonymous with Indianapolis racing today.

The first race on August 19 was a short, five-mile contest consisting of two laps. An estimated 12,000 spectators watched Austrian-born engineer Louis Schwitzer race to victory at an average speed of 57.4 miles per hour. By today's racing standards, that speed may sound modest, but in 1909 automobiles were still relatively new machines. Watching drivers push them to nearly 60 miles per hour offered spectators a dramatic glimpse of the future.

Unfortunately, the speedway's original surface proved dangerously inadequate. Rather than the bricks that would later make Indianapolis famous, the track was initially covered with a mixture of crushed rock and tar. As cars raced over it, the surface broke apart, producing ruts and hazardous conditions. During the opening racing program, accidents resulted in the deaths of drivers, mechanics, and spectators. The tragedy made it clear that major improvements were necessary before racing could safely continue.

Speedway officials responded by undertaking an enormous reconstruction project. The original surface was replaced with approximately 3.2 million paving bricks, laid over sand and secured with mortar. When the speedway reopened in December 1909, the brick surface gave the facility the nickname that remains associated with it more than a century later: “The Brickyard.”

An even more important change arrived in 1911. Rather than continuing to rely on numerous shorter races, the speedway's owners decided to stage one spectacular annual event: a 500-mile race offering a substantial prize. On May 30, 1911, Ray Harroun won the inaugural Indianapolis 500, completing the distance in approximately six hours and 42 minutes at an average speed of 74.59 mph.

Over the following decades, asphalt gradually replaced the bricks, with nearly the entire track paved by 1941. In 1961, the remaining racing surface was covered except for a three-foot strip of original bricks at the start-finish line. That surviving section provides a tangible connection to the speedway's earliest days—and to the August afternoon in 1909 when Indianapolis began its transformation into the capital of American auto racing.