Eddie Anderson of Grinnell, Iowa
1949 IMCA Stock Car Champion
By
Lee Ackerman
Omaha,
Neb. - In the last few years, considerable effort has been given to documenting
the early years of NASCAR. What many fans are unaware of is that before IMCA
became a grass roots racing series famous for its sanctioning of over 100
weekly racing tracks across the country, it had a stock car series that for
many years rivaled its southern counterpart, NASCAR.
The
International Motor Contest Association (IMCA), organized in 1915, is the
oldest active automobile racing sanctioning body in the United States. J. Alex Sloan, a native of Pittsburgh, Pa.,
was instrumental in establishing the IMCA, and for years ran more races than
all other promoters in the United States combined, all under IMCA sanction.
After Sloan’s death in 1937, his son John
continued the IMCA tradition. Under his
leadership, IMCA continued to grow and reports suggest that IMCA held its first
late model stock car race on November 9, 1947 in Lubbock, Tex. Certainly, the
first recorded season of IMCA stock cars was 1949.
Today,
late models are all specially constructed frames, mass produced on a jig at a
chassis companies such as Rocket, MastersBilt, GRT or whomever. In 1949, when
IMCA conducted its first year of stock car racing, many of the cars were
ordinary passenger cars were driven to the track with license plates remaining
on the car during the race.
As you will see in this story, many car
companies were represented, some of which have been all but forgotten. What’s a
Kaiser-Frasier you ask, how about a Willy’s? A Nash won several stock car races,
you have to be kidding!
Information
about that first IMCA stock car season is certainly not complete, but while no
points were kept, we do know that it is well documented that Eddie Anderson of
Grinnell, Iowa was declared the first IMCA stock car champion.
The
first race of the season was held at the Mid-America Fairgrounds on May 30,
which became the traditional Topeka Memorial Day Race. Bob McKim of Salina, Kan., won the 200-lap
feature in an Oldsmobile 88 owned by Ron Rice. Ray Rutman finished second,
Eldon Burkeholder took third and Frank Winkley was fourth.
Winkley
and his wife Verna would later form Auto Racing, Inc. (ARI) and for many years
promoted IMCA events. The other group that promoted IMCA sanctioned events for
years was National Speedways, Inc. led by Al Sweeney.
Herschel Buchanan receive congratulations from IMCA promoter Al Sweeney.
It is also reported that Hershel Buchanan of Shreveport, Louisiana won a race at the Louisiana State Fairgrounds in a Nash on the same day that may have been an IMCA sanctioned event. Buchanan had spent a number of years racing in the IMCA big car (sprint car) division prior to racing stock cars. In 1950 and 1951 Buchanan won the IMCA stock car championship.
On
July 4, the IMCA stock cars ran a 200-lap race at the Kansas State Fairgrounds
at Hutchinson with McKim leading 96 laps in his 1940 Oldsmobile 88 (which
carried the number 88), prevailing again before 8,000 fans. Norm Horn finished
second, Jim Roper third, Herschel Buchanan fourth and Don Smith fifth.
Also,
in the field was Nick Nachicas. Nachicas would later work for Winkley and ARI
serving as an announcer of IMCA events for many years.
As
for Jim Roper, that’s the same Jim Roper from Halstead, Kan., that won the
first ever NASCAR strictly stock car race on June 19, 1949 at the three
quarter-mile Charlotte Speedway. Roper pulled a Lincoln all the way to
Charlotte, N.C., and ran second to Glenn Dunaway. Roper was awarded the win
when Dunaway was disqualified for illegal use of rear springs.
As
for Dunaway…
The first National
Speedways, Inc., sanctioned stock car race took place on August 20, 1949 at
Cedar Rapids, Iowa with Glen Dunaway of North Carolina winning in an
Oldsmobile. Yes, the same Glenn Dunaway that was disqualified at Charlotte.
A tremendous crowd of 14,000 jam-packed the All-Iowa Fair grandstand and watched Dunaway push his black 1949 Oldsmobile coupe around the half-mile 200 times in 2 hours and 22 minutes. He finished two laps ahead of Herschel Buchanan.
"Wild" Bill Harrison of Topeka, Kan. - Photo courtesy of Troy Harrison
On
August 21, Wild Bill Harrison of Topeka, Kansas drove his Lincoln to the 200-lap
feature win at the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds in Davenport, Iowa, before
7,052 curious fans. Glen Dunaway followed in an Oldsmobile with Buchanan third
in his 46’ Nash. The race took 2 hours, 9 minutes and 30
seconds to complete.
August
23 saw the series back at Topeka, Jim Roper of Great Bend, Kansas winning a 200-lap
feature in a Lincoln. Three days later,
on August 26, Herschel Buchanan drove his Nash to victory at the Sioux Empire
Fairgrounds in Sioux Falls.
On
September 1, 1949, Anderson came alive and drove his 1949 Mercury to a 200-lap
victory at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines defeating highly touted
Herschel Buchanan. The car Anderson
drove had been wrecked in a highway accident near Grinnell, and Anderson took
possession of the car from the insurance company only five days before the
race.
On
September 2, at the Minnesota State Fair in St. Paul, Tom Adelman of
Minneapolis drove his 1948 Kaiser-Fraiser to a win in the 200-lap event. Bill
Harrison in a Lincoln and Wally Dahl in a Ford finished second and third.
Eddie
Anderson scored another win on September 4, at the All-Iowa Fair in Cedar
Rapids, Jack Morgan of Duenwig, Mo., ran second driving a 1941 Mercury with
Dick Hobel of Cedar Rapids third in a Buick and Harlan Young of Anamosa, Iowa
fourth in a 1940 Willys.
Herschel
Buchanan, who set fast time by blistering the half-mile in 34.765 seconds, finished
fifth after making a couple of pit stops. Anderson’s winning time was 2 hours, 10
minutes and 35 seconds.
IMCA Stock Cars roll down the front stretch at the Nebraska State Fair. A standing room only crowd eagerly awaits the action.
On
September 9, at the Nebraska State Fair in Lincoln, Eddie Anderson continued
his winning ways once again taking a 200-lap win pocketing $500 for his
efforts. Herschel Buchanan brought his Nash home second, Wayne Selzer of Omaha
was third in a Ford and open-wheel ace Frank Luptow ran fourth.
Anderson
kept his streak going by winning the 200-lap race at Topeka, Kansas on October
2. He then added yet another win on October 9 back at Hawkeye Downs where he completed
the 200-lap affair in 2 hours and 20 minutes with Don Fischer in a '46 Ford
finishing second and Sonny Ebsen in a '41 Mercury third.
The
final event of the season was run on October 26 at the Louisiana State
Fairgrounds in Shreveport with Buddy Keith winning in a 1939 Lincoln. For a
good part of the 29 years that the IMCA stock car series raced, the series
started the season and ended the season in Shreveport.
There
were several other IMCA events that were reported ran in 1949, but no reliable
information is available on those events. In the end, we know that Eddie
Anderson in his wrecked '49 Mercury was the class of the field and usually had
to battle Herschel Buchanan in his Nash for the win.
The
IMCA stock car series grew to be the leading series in the Midwest for many
years and in the beginning rivaled NASCAR. IMCA races at the various state
fairs routinely drew 20,000 or more fans. Ernie Derr became a legend in the
series, winning 12 IMCA national stock car championships, but in the end the
series faded into history with 1977 being its last year of competition.
