ALABAMA (USA)
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1906 - BIRMINGHAM FAIRGROUNDS RACEWAYThe original one-mile dirt oval was built on a horse track and opened on the 7th of October 1906, the track hosted its first motorcycle race, followed by an automobile race three days later, These events continued regulary through the on-going years.
In 1925 a 10,000 seat grandstand was constructed to cater for the increasing crowds.
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1932 - BIRMINGHAM FAIRGROUNDS RACEWAY 1/2 MILE
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In 1932 the oval was reduced to a half mile circuit, The smaller configuration was used until July the 4th in 1942, when the venue was closed for World War two, the track was reopened again on the 1st of October 1946 and began hosting weekly auto racing events organized by promoter J P Rotton.
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1958 - BIRMINGHAM FAIRGROUNDS RACEWAY 1/4 MILE
A quarter mile dirt oval was added in 1958 and was the first track to be paved, with the first event held on the new surface on the 15th of July 1960, after one season of racing on the quarter-mile the present five-eighths-mile course was constructed with the first race meeting held on the 28th of June 1962,
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1962 - BIRMINGHAM FAIRGROUNDS RACEWAY 5/8 MILEWith the new 5/8 mile track so did other changes, With new lighting installed the Sunday afternoon meetings were moved to Friday nights.
Between 1958 and 1968 a total of eight NASCAR races were run at the Fairgrounds Raceway, during that same period Bobby Allison had moved to Hueytown from Miami, Florida and convinced his Brother Donnie and fellow racer Red Farmer to join him in founding a new race shop, the so-called "Alabama Gang" dominated the racing at the fairgrounds track, but other legends of the sport also recorded wins including "Fireball Roberts, Richard Petty and Ned Jarrett.
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NASCAR Champion Red Farmer |
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Richard Petty
Morgan Shepard |
Richard Petty
Darrell Waltrip |
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2008 - THE TRACK WILL BE CLOSED
On the 19th of June 2008, Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford proposed a plan to move BIR from the Fairgrounds to city-owned property in Northwest Birmingham, Langford said the track, which has been in continuous operation for over eighty years in Five Points West, needs to be upgraded and does not fit into current plans for the renovation of Fair Park, Langford committed one million dollars to the project but stated that track officials would have to come up with the majority of the funds needed for the project.
After the 2008 race season the track was shut down on the 30th of January 2009, demolition of the grandstand began and was completed two months later.