It is rare that we learn the story behind the storyteller. The teller of tales does not usually reveal his or her background. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum is giving fans a lokk at its origins before it begins a new chapter in its life.
The IMS Museum has told the story of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500 for 67 years. In November the museum will close for a massive upgrade to bring the archives and collection intothe 21st century.
I vaguely remember the original museum. The six cars were displayed in the ticket office. I went to the building to pick up tickets, and I noticed the cars. They were fun to look at, but the museum was kind of an afterthought to getting the tickets. When the mnuseum moved to the current location in 1976, it became more impressive. The IMS Musuem always seemed a step behind other museums. That situation wioll change in 2025.
Their current pair of exhibits, 1956 and Our Collection, Your Favorites, tells the story of the museum’s rather humble beginnings and brings to the floor many of the gems that are seldom on display.
1956
The cars that made up the original collection make up the bulk of this exhibit. The Marmon Wasp, of course is there, and Wilbur Shaw’s Boyle Maserati. The Maserati was purchased by Karl Kizer, the museum’s first curator.
It is arguably one of the greatest cars to ever run at the speedway With Shaw drivinbg, it won twice, and the car was leading in 1941 when a wheel collapsed. After World war Two, Ted Horn drove the Maserati to three top five finishes. Mauri Rose drove it in and Bill Vukovich took his rookie test in the car.
The most recent addition to the original museum was the Cummins Diese, which ran in1951.
Another addition wasthe Tucker tordpedo, the first rear engine car to qualify for the 500
In addition to cars, the museum also housed the Borg Warner Trophy and the Stark &Weyzel original Rookie of the Year Award.
Our Collection, Your Favorites
Next door to the 1956 exhibit is the fan favorites display. A chart on one wall shows the voting for the 15 cars in the room. I am shocked that the Fuel Injection Special and the Belond Exhaust Special didn’t make the cut, but I wonder if the choices were limite to cars not regularly in the showroom.
A car I have only seen on display one opther time is the Ferrari from 1952, driven by alberto Ascari
Jim Clark’s 1964 Lotus, the car that started the switch to rear engine cars, makes a rare showing
A fan favorite collection would not be complete withou a Miller entry. Two made it out of the basement.
One of my favorites, the Dowgard driven by Tony Bettenhausen in 1958.
I had a nice morning remembering the time when the Speedway and I were just getting to know each other. It was fun seeing cars I had never seen race, as has been the case in recent exhibits. I don’t feel so old now.
As the museum prepares for its transition, I think this exhibit is important in the process. In 10 years visitors will probably have no idea of how the collection began. I think at the reopening of the new iteration of the the iMS Museum, the 1956 display should be repeated and maybe expanded.
I have some photos wihich I will post on The Pit Window later today.
The Pit Window by Mike Silver 