Tomorrow, at the Tyrone History Museum, local historian Mike Halloran of Altoona will give a presentation on the former Altoona Speedway, which was located in Tipton and was often referred to as the Altoona-Tyrone Speedway.
The program is titled “The Former Altoona Speedway – One of the World’s Fastest Mile-and-a-Quarter Board Racetracks”.
Halloran will show some old film clips of the raceway and three tables will be set up to display pictures, posters and other memorabilia.
The museum will open at 6 p.m. to allow early arrivals extra time to view the displays and the presentation will begin at 7 p.m.
In addition, the displays can be viewed at the museum from 1 to 4 p.m. tomorrow afternoon during regular Wednesday visitor hours.
Halloran said he became interested in the former speedway about 15 years ago when he purchased a race program at an auction. He has always been interested in antique cars which prompted him to purchase the program.
It was that program that piqued his interest and Halloran decided to search for more items from the speedway. He placed an advertisement in the local newspaper which led to the purchase of several original 8×10 photographs of the board track.
Once those were in his possession, Halloran said his interest in the speedway really grew.
“A lot of people don’t realize this track was the top echelon of racing,” said Halloran.
He explained it wasn’t just locals racing here, but people were traveling from all over to participate in the events in Tipton.
“People raced in Indianapolis and then traveled to race here on June 14 and they came back again in the fall to race on Labor Day.”
The track, which was constructed of wood, opened in 1923 and closed in 1931. Halloran said at times 70,000 people would attend an event at the raceway.
Interested individuals are invited to stop by the museum tomorrow to view the many artifacts Halloran has collected throughout the years including posters, photos and a stock certificate from Delaware.
His presentation will include the construction and the history of the speedway.
Halloran said many people are not aware that such a track existed, yet it was right here in our own backyards.
Over the years, the oval racetrack went through many transformations, becoming an airfield and then a drag-strip and finally an industrial park.
This program is free to the public and everyone is welcome to attend.
