The Millstone Times May 2020

Did You Know...? By Pam Teel

Did you knowHamilton Township was once the home of a Grand National Speedway and in 1957 it hosted its first Nascar National event? The speedway, called the Trenton Speedway, was officially opened in the 1900’s as a dirt horse track and was placed next to the old New Jersey fairgrounds. It stayed a dirt track for nearly 60 years. In the 1940’s, they expanded the track to one mile and brought in auto racing. In 1957, the track was paved and in 1969 the track was expanded to 1 ½ miles. From 1968-1980 the speed- way became an International Speedway.

In its final form, Trenton Speedway was one of the most unusual oval circuits in the world. Its unique dogleg-kinked back straight was a necessary by-product due to the fact that they couldn’t expand the backstretch because of a property owner. The oval track looked like it had a kink in it so not to infringe on people’s properties. This created somewhat of a problem for the racers. According to racingcircuits.com info, in the early 1900’s, aside from horse races at the fairgrounds, there was also Automobile racing. The first race was held on September 24, 1900. Motorized vehicles were still a rarity, so the event must have been some sight to see. It took until 1907 for the next race to be held but it wasn't until 1912 that things got into full swing. Over the next few years the circuit developed, with grandstands being erected, as the facility became an established part of the State Fair. Expansion was on the cards in 1946, when the entire course was replaced by a new one-mile dirt oval. In 1957, the decision was taken to pave over the racing surface. The track then began to flourish. Among its biggest races was the annual visit of the USAC Championship cars (who had previously held one event on the old dirt surface in 1949). Drivers such as Rodger Ward, Eddie Sachs and Tony Bet- tenhausen tasted victory here, but it was A.J. Foyt who was the undisputed king of the USAC era, taking 12 wins – including five straight between 1963 and '64. In 1957 Trenton hosted its first NASCAR Grand National event, as the sport sought to expand from its southern routes. The Chevrolet of Fireball Roberts won the race with a good margin over another star of the era, Junior Johnson in a Ford. The following year saw victory go to Tim Pistone, a Chicago native and one of the few northern drivers on the NASCAR circuit at that time. NASCAR's Grand National series didn't return again until 1967, when Richard Petty took his famous sky blue Plymouth to victory circle. When the NASCAR circus returned the following year, the drivers were confronted with a much-modified circuit. The Fair Park wanted to create a 1.5- mile long course, but was presented with a major headache when an elderly woman whose property they needed to buy behind the back straight refused to sell. The solution was to divert the backstretch into the infield to bypass the offending property, creating the rather unique situation of having a right-hand turn on an oval course. This signature quirk was to be the bane of race engineers over the years as they struggled to find setups that would allow tires to last. While it was this configuration, which captured the imagination, it didn't necessarily bring the crowds flocking. NASCAR continued through until 1972, with the final race won by Bobby Allison. Trenton was in fact on the 1973 schedule and the racers duly practiced and qualified, but heavy rain forced the cancellation on race day and the event was never rescheduled. USAC races continued on through the 1970’s, and by the end of the decade Trenton was part of the upstart CART series. Indeed, there were three Indycar events that year, twin races in June won by the Penske of Bobby Unser and a further event in August, won by fellow Penske racer Rick Mears. For 1980, Trenton was dropped from the Indycar schedule and the writing was thus on the wall. The final race run at Trenton was for the asphalt Mod- ified stock cars, in June, 1980. That scheduled 134-lap event, which was called official after 79 circuits due to rain, was won by Geoff Bodine. Many time NASCAR Modified champion Richie Evans finished close behind with NJ's John Blewett Jr. third. Dwindling profits meant that interest by the owner of the property turned from entertainment to development. In 1980, the land was sold and the New Jersey State Fair was held for the last time on this site. Trenton Speedway was no more, with the land auctioned off for development and demolition com- ing a short time later. Today the site houses a UPS shipping facility, a housing development known as 'Hamilton Lakes' and the New Jersey Grounds for Sculpture. The area referred to as the "sculpture pad" was originally the foundation for the grandstand extension, but there is little else to suggest that there was ever one of the world's most unique oval courses there. The lake was once the inside area of the track.

8 The Millstone Times

May 2020