InstaGRAM Report: The Racing History of Deer Park Speedway
Online records of Deer Park Speedway are sparse; this article connects the dots from newspapers and photo captions and showcases photographs rarely seen publicly (thanks to the archive collections of the Marty Himes family and the Revs Institute.)
In 1929, a ½ mile dirt oval racetrack opened in Deer Park, Long Island. This racetrack was one of the countless early tracks that lacked safety for both drivers and spectators, and its decline involved the IRS, safety issues, and noise complaints. It also reopened as a ⅕-mile racetrack in 1946, ultimately closing for good in 1948.
Online records of Deer Park Speedway are sparse; this article connects the dots from newspapers and photo captions and showcases photographs rarely seen publicly (thanks to the archive collections of the Marty Himes family and the Revs Institute.) If these obscure racing photos had not been preserved, this article would not be possible, and I am so excited to share with our readers the full history of the oval race track that once operated in Deer Park.
By Gram Spina
The beginning of Deer Park Speedway: 1929 - 1941
In the early days of the Deer Park Speedway, the track was a dirt oval in a grass field. The corners were banked at an angle, as you can see in this photo. The track was in Dix Hills, and according to the Long Islander newspaper company, it was “about 30 minutes from New York City.” Not sure how they were measuring time back then…
The exact year of this image is unknown, but it is from the track’s early years of operation.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
According to the Long Islander newspaper company on October 5, 1928, the construction cost for Deer Park Speedway was estimated at $300,000. The grandstands were able to accommodate 6,000 spectators.
Image from the Revves Institute Photo Archives.
This image from 1932 is of the start/finish line with the official race monitors' stand in the center of the photo. Driver Frank Framer is seen front right in his race car numbered 33.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
Driver Bob Sall is seen here in the pits in 1932.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
The long half-mile track was a disaster waiting to happen. This image shows how few preventive safety measures existed for both the track and the race cars. No roll bars on the cars, large amounts of dust kicked up by the tires, wooden “guard rails,” and a mesh fence separating the racing action from the spectators.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
This image is a frame of a video capturing Harry Wirth’s 1929 fatal crash during the Speedway's opening year.
On May 13, 1929, The New York Times reported the following: "Harry Wirth, dirt track automobile racing driver, was killed this afternoon when in view of hundreds of spectators he lost control of his car and crashed into a guard rail on the Babylon- Deer Park Speedway. The car turned over several times, crushing him beneath it."
Right before the track closed in 1941 for the first time, it was home to “stock car” racing. The image here is a scan of a newspaper article covering a race. The cars shown here are bone stock and were possibly owned by area residents or local dealerships (similar to a race that took place at Dexter Park).
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
At that time, the track closed because the owner failed to pay his taxes to the IRS. The image shown here is a rare photo from the Marty Himes Family showing the track gated up for good, with a sign reading “Track Closed. Broke. Bill Dark.”
The image is dated 7/9/1941.
The Re-Opening of Deer Park Speedrone 1946 - 1948
The track reopened in 1946 under new management by Angelo Longo with a completely new layout: a smaller, paved 1/5th-mile oval. It was exclusively used for Midget and Quarter Midget racing. The name also changed to Deer Park Speedrone to reflect its shorter track length.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
Chaos still unfolded at Deer Park Speedrone despite the shorter track. This image captures multiple accidents, where we can see how some of the drivers were forced to safely navigate around their crashed competitors.
Image from the Revves Institute Photo Archives.
Driver promotional image of George Rice in his number 36 Midget racer at Deer Park Speedrone. Note the updated spectator grandstands in the background.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
Deer Park Speedrone only hosted races during the daytime, unlike the more well-known Long Island race tracks ( like Freeport Speedway which also hosted events at night).
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
This Illustrated Speedway News cartoon drawing from 1946 promoted upcoming races at Deer Park Speedrone.
The text under the cartoon reads: “WITH THE NATION'S LEADING AUTO RACE DAREDEVILS all set to dish out hot competition at the Deer Park Speedrome, Deer Park, July 4th afternoon in the Inaugural program of speed over this new hard surface banked speedway, Long Island thrill seekers will receive more than their share of thrills when the ‘cream of the crop’ battle it out for midget auto race supremacy. Fiery cars and hot pilots will make this opening menu a spicy dish as Johnny Swies, Al Duffy, Johnny Petersen, Buster Williams, Andy DeVercelly, Henry Steiger, Walt Pusco and a host of other Lead-foots of note clash in the afternoon's speed festival.”
A spectator's point of view at a midget race where cars are battling it out on the first corner.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
A wide-angle photograph taken in 1947 of the Deer Park Speedrone from behind the fence of the last corner before the main straight.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
A driver goes up and over the wooden barrier during a race, with spectators seemingly inches away from the overboard midget racer.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
Len Doncan takes the checkered flag at Deer Park Speedrone in 1947.
Image from the Revves Institute Photo Archives.
The End of Racing at Deer Park Speedrone: 1949 and Beyond
This aerial image from 1953 best shows the size difference between the original Deer Park Speedway and the smaller paved Deer Park Speedrone. The track was unfortunately a sacrifice to Long Island's suburban growth, and this aerial image shows the result.
When the track first opened, there was nothing but wide open grass fields. However, when the track reopened after WWII, demand for housing had increased dramatically and developers started buying land near the racetrack. New neighbors complained about the noise and traffic, and that, combined with declining attendance, forced the track to close.
The Corvette shown here is a 1958 model year, which tells us the image was taken after the Deer Park Speedrome was abandoned. The abandoned track was unmaintained and was sporadically used by hot rodders who wanted to go fast without getting in anyone's way.
Image from the Marty Himes Family.
Fast forward to 1985, and the Deer Park Speedrone was fading away into obscurity. This image is of the second corner coming out of the back straight.
Image taken by Russell Stockert.
Another image of Deer Park Speedrone in 1985. This image shows the heavily faded start/finish line.
Image taken by Russell Stockert.
Today, there is no sign of the Deer Park Speedrone, as the land has been fully developed with housing. I circled roughly where the track property used to be in red.
But wait, there's one more aspect to the history of Deer Park Speedrone that our regular readers would enjoy.
The Long Island Motor Parkway connection.
Back in 2012, we posted this image, seen here as a mystery photo. At the time, we wrote:
“This photo is the Motor Parkway looking west in Dix Hills, most likely west of Deer Park Avenue. It was used to connect to Deer Park Avenue when the Motor Parkway bridge was still in use. Based on the Deer Park Speedway "Sunday, September 8" event, the photo was taken in 1929, 1935, 1940 or 1946.”
I would like to add that since the race track in Deer Park only was called Deer Park Speedway under the first ownership that this image could only be from 1929 or 1935.
Here is a close-up of the sign for Deer Park Speedrone.
I hope you have enjoyed this look back at the racing history of the Deer Park Speedrone.
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