Driver and Mechanic Starting Dry Lakes Race Car, circa 1940

01

Artifact Overview

By the 1930s, speed enthusiasts in Southern California were souping up older cars and driving these "hot roadsters" at full speed on nearby dry lakebeds. The smooth, flat expanses are ideal for speed contests. These unusual geographic features made California the epicenter of hot rodding before World War II.

Artifact Details

Artifact

Photographic print

Subject Date

circa 1940

Location

By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center

Object ID

P.1774.X.136

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of the Family of Henry Austin Clark, Jr.

Material

Paper (Fiber product)

Technique

Gelatin silver process

Color

Black-and-white (Colors)

Dimensions

Height: 8 in
Width: 10 in

Driver and Mechanic Starting Dry Lakes Race Car, circa 1940