Buried Treasure
Our grandparents Leon and Mary Grayson came to Washington, D.C. in the early 1930s. After they died, we helped their only child, our mother Mary Ann Grayson Guevara, move their earthly treasures to our childhood home. When Ann died in 2015, we gathered their combined treasures – much of which ended up in boxes stacked in my bedroom closet. Life happened, and in addition to their sixty years together and the fifteen years before our mom died, five additional years have passed. A couple of weeks ago I dug deep into my closet and unearthed a box of photos dating to as early as the 1890s, and hundreds of photo negatives dating from at least the beginning of Leon and Mary’s life together. I was gifted a photo and negative scanner for my recent birthday, and only now do I realize what treasure lay within that particular box. It’s the story of our beloved grandparents, whose life before we came along we knew little about.
Road Trip to the Mountains
Our grandparents were city dwellers, well acquainted with the streetcar and bus routes, and they never owned nor drove a car in all the years we knew them. Based on the photographic evidence, however, they apparently once owned what looks to be a 1941 Pontiac sedan (note the distinctive “Silver Streak” trim) in which they took a road trip to the mountains. Since Ann was born in August 1942 and in the photos Mary shows no evidence of either pregnancy or babe-in-arms, the road trip must have taken place in the summer or fall of 1941. What would an automobile road trip have been like at that time? A 1940 State Farm travel map shows paved highways criss-crossing the Mid-Atlantic to connect the numerous metropolitan areas. Comfort food, motor lodges, and service stations dotted most roads.
A Day at the Races
Among the photo negatives was a series taken from the grandstand at a horse race track. The back drop of the backstretch was particularly striking, abutting a mountain with a sheer rock face.
The Mysterious Race Track
Where is/was this scenic track? None of us particularly follow the horses, but based on the mountain backdrop and the belief that the couple drove the Pontiac to the track, we were nearly certain it was somewhere in the Appalachians within driving distance of Washington, D.C., perhaps as far north as New York or as far south as North Carolina. An initial internet search proved unfruitful. Existing horse tracks within easy driving distance were the first we looked to. Charles Town Races near Harpers Ferry, West Virginia – in the Blue Ridge Mountains about 60 miles upstream of Washington D.C. – was the obvious first thought, but the existing track certainly does not have a rock-faced backstretch. Saratoga, New York? Ditto. We studied the photographs for clues. The horses were thoroughbreds, not trotters. An American flag flies in the infield, but no state flag shares the post beneath it. The scoreboard is visible in a few of the negatives, and we re-scanned one of the negatives at a higher resolution to see what clues were written upon it. None that helped us in our quest, it turned out. Just the time of day, post time, most recent race results, odds, and payouts. No advertisements, no “Welcome to XXX Race Track,” nothing that easy. We sent some photos out to friends who are horse people and waited. Nothing.
Do you think you know where this track is (or was)?
The National Road
As early as 1806 Congress approved funding for the first national road, an east-west route across the Appalachians connecting the port of Baltimore to the town of Wheeling on the Ohio River, and eventually beyond into Illinois. A turnpike already existed by then from Baltimore to Cumberland, located about 140 miles west in mountainous Allegany County, Maryland (and a similar distance from the new Federal Capital). Since the government-funded portion officially began in Cumberland, it was sometimes called the Cumberland Road in addition to the National Road or National Pike. U.S. Highway 40 still follows that original historic route. Cumberland is proud of its beautiful mountain scenery, and its history as an important railroad, canal, and highway junction.
The Race Track Identified?
But back to our mysterious race track. I was planning to contact the National Thoroughbred Racing Association to see if some historian there could help. Before I did, I must have typed just the right thing in the search engine. Wikipedia gets a bad rap. It is a great starting point for many research projects, and the references at the bottom of each page usually point you toward other sources. In this case I stumbled upon a Wikipedia page titled “Defunct horse racing venues in the United States.” Sixty-eight tracks are listed in alphabetical order (not state order, unfortunately). I was able to hover my mouse over each venue and an overview of that track appeared, allowing me to quickly eliminate any that were out of our geographic range. Two or three remained as possibilities, but Cumberland Race Track, also known as Fairgo Race Track (1924-1961) jumped off the screen at me. The short Wikipedia entry did not confirm my hopes, but now that I had a strong hunch, I was able to dig a little further. A raceway history post showed a current photo of the venue, located within the Allegany County Fairgrounds about five miles south of historic Cumberland. It is now called the Greater Cumberland Raceway, and it has been used as an auto race track on and off over the years.
Take a look. What do you think?
Could it be the same track that Leon and Mary visited in 1941?
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